Mood
I didn’t have a good week at all…I had a great week! Two weeks ago was good. Last week was better. Neither depression or mania reared their ugly heads, nor did I have a need for any extra anti-anxiety pills. I can’t think of one moment that I had to deal with anxiety. (at least not any more than a normal typical person.)
Looking back, in my head (which is always dangerous) I believe I have a trend for my good weeks and bad weeks. I think I’ll have a look back on previous posts and start a journal to see if I spot a trend. If there is, I can prepare to hunker down when it looks like the shit is about to hit the fan.
I decided to get back to reading again so I signed up for Goodreads 2017 Reading challenge. I chose twenty-seven books as my goal. That’s only two books a month, I figure I can handle that easily. I put a Widget to the right that displays my progress. Currently it says no books read, but I’m nearly finished with my first one.
Weight and Fitness
Saturday December 31 – 263.6 lbs
Saturday, January 7 – 260.2
Total loss – 3.4 lbs
Woo hoo! Down over 3 pounds.
In last weeks post I referred to a picture of me at my current weight, but forgot to include the picture. Here’s me on December 31, 2017. At the first of each month I will be posting updated pictures to show my progress. It’s a scary big step so wish me luck.
Last week I also goofed and said I was including links to Lose It, an online weight loss tracker. Each week Dyane of Birth of a New Brain, Marie of Merry Marie and I cheer each other on with our successes and support each other in our setbacks. I’m already a Weight Watchers member, but I enjoy Lose It because I can support fellow bloggers with our own unique set of challenges.
If you’d like to join us on this FREE program, you can leave a message for Dyane on her blog, or you can sign up for Lose It and search for Wondrous Writers Weight Loss Group. We’d love to have you join us.
Writing
Good and bad. The bad part is I really haven’t been getting any writing done. Since it was brought to my attention that certain situations wouldn’t work for many reasons, I’ve tried many times to rewrite a much-needed new character into the first couple of chapters. I’ve beaten my head into the keyboard so many times I may have a concussion. I finally wrote something that I thought may work, but felt uneasy so I let Maurice read it. He stopped reading halfway through the new material and said it was garbage ruined the flow of the entire first chapter and had no humor. It did not work. I had to agree. Maurice didn’t actually say the word “garbage,” but that was my interpretation.
The good part is I decided to move on with the later chapters. It’s hard to jump back in and keep the same tone, so I’ve been reading over a lot of material and have gotten a smidgen of new material in there. Once the manuscript is completed I can go back and make the necessary changes. It’s more work that way, but it seems like the best option. In Stephan King’s outstanding book “On Writing: A Memoir Of The Craft” he says any writer should pump out 2,000 words a day. Sorry, Stephen, I haven’t been keeping up with your standards, but I’m okay that I’ve been outlining.
The newly revised Writer’s Critique group I attended is back in action after a major coupe some needed changes. We meet on Tuesday. I don’t think I’ll have anything coherent to read, so I may just sit there and critique other people’s work and listen to the group. In general, I learn as much from other people’s critiques as I do for my own material.
Synopsis
Mood was excellent. Fitness was excellent. Writing wasn’t what I wanted it to be, yet I have a good sense of accomplishment. This week was almost as good as it gets, so I’m going to round it up. I grade the week an A+
I’m so glad you’ve been having a good week. How would you feel about letting us know what you’re reading and a brief review when you finish one?
P.S. Congratulate me! I’ve written my first sex scene ever – a bit more graphic than usual in mysteries, I think. It’s out to a beta tester now (the scene, not the novel). I think you’re smart to forge ahead and fix it up later. I’m confused about my plot, so I’m just writing scenes I know need to be in there somewhere, about 600 words per session, and will figure out later where they go.
I know others who write their stories out of sequence. I think that would be tough for me. In the widget on the right, I do have one that shows what book I’m reading now. Writing a review afterwords is a good idea. I’d have to write it fast, though because my memory of book plots goes away very quickly. I’ll remember if I liked a book or not, but not the specifics.
Congrats on your first sex scene. They are difficult to write. The book I’m reading, “Murder and Mayhem” is very sexual. No graphic sex scenes, but it’s obvious they are coming. The characters sure think about sex a lot. :-).
Hey my friend, best of luck on the weight lost journey, I’m on one as well! We need to keep each other accountable! Thanks for taking the step of being vulnerable and posting a pic, you’re inspiring to me for the bravery! I’m not there yet…but soon. As for writing, On Writing is great but don’t feel like you need to be at 2,000 words right away. Just write something attainable for YOU every day. Start with 250 words, 500, whatever is comfortable for you. Just like weight loss, it’s a process, and you need to give yourself small goals, and be good to yourself. Baby steps! Don’t overwhelm yourself! Eat the elephant one bite at a time, don’t try to swallow it whole!
All good advice. I never know how many words I’ve written, to be honest. I go by how much time spent, which is typically five hours a day. That could mean I write an entire chapter, or nurse one important sentence. Baby steps isn’t my natural state, but I’m trying.
This post made me smile 🙂
🙂 I’m glad it did. It’s been too long since I’ve written such a glowing review
Woo Hoo! An A+ week! I’m so happy for you. You’re doing great. I think Anthony Simeone’s advice is right on–a little at a time is still progress and a feeling of accomplishment. 2000 words daily is just overwhelming and would set me up for discouragement. Do what is attainable. I’m doing the Goodreads challenge too. Last year I read 19. This year I put down 12 but I’m sure I’ll do more. I’m studying for a depression group I’m co-leading and I don’t want to set my expectations too high and then feel discouraged if I can’t meet them. A book a month is very doable no matter how busy I get. Whatever you’re doing is bringing you awesome results. Keep on.
Thanks Journey. Good for you for keeping your reading goal realistic. I had to think my through because my typical MO would have been to choose something crazy like three books a week, That used to be how many I read, but those were simpler times. lol
so glad you had such a stellar week!
Me too
“This week was almost as good as it gets…” Bradley, anytime we get to say that awesome sentence you wrote, well, I may not be religious, but even I would shout “Hallelujah!” Haha! Wonderful. When those one-day-at-a-times turn into a week–just wow! Love it!!
I agree. Hallelujah, indeed. I’m grateful that I recognize how grateful I should be.
?
Wonderful! 🙂
I think so 🙂
I enjoyed my first visit to your blog. We have much in common!
Good to hear. I hope you’ll stop by more often
Sorry about the bad writing week however it does push you to grow and try new techniques.I have felt that frustration.I love to see you so happy and full of jokes and good humour. I think looking back with the sole purpose of finding a trend or trigger in your mood changes is a productive thing to do. SO happy to see you happy in your life. 🙂
I have been happy lately and I’m loving every second of it. I agree that every step of the writing process, frustrating or not, are learning opportunities. Thank you for your always wonderful feedback.