The End is in Sight

Woof-da! All I can say is that it is time to start highlighting my list of goals in green for the accomplishments I can cross off my list for this Round. And how much longer is this Round?

I. READING

A. Weekly goal

1. Read my assigned blog posts as a ROW80 sponsor.  I think I did this.

2. Read ten hours a week in one of the books I am reading.  I am switching off between “The Two-Edged Sword”, by Caye Bartell, and “God Called . . . He Wants Your Answer”. I just liked that title. It is pretty good, but I just wish I had a title like that for my WIP.  

B. Goals for the Round                           

1. Have finished reading five books.  I am still at three, “The Boy at the Museum”, “Years of Stone” and “Sell Your Book Like Wildfire”, but should be able to finish another one this week.   

II. WRITING

A. Weekly goal

1. Work on my novel, “Tale of an American Woman”. I have finished chapter 31, and started crying as I typed, which I hope is a good thing, as I was crying for my protagonist and not for myself. I had cheated though and still have to go back and write chapter 30, then it is about two more chapters and I am DONE! I also added a prologue. I know that some publishers (some readers too?) don’t like prologues, but I think I need it to really pull the reader in. And because it is in a different time and place from the rest of the beginning of the book, I don’t want to make it chapter one. I guess we will have to see what editors and important people think about it when the book is finished. 

2. Edit “The Early Life of Jesus in 40 Days”, the second book in the Bible Stories in 40 Days series. I have edited the first 15 days, 25 more to go!

 3. Write two blog posts here and three posts to my other blog, The Dino Chronicles. I did this. And let me tell you a little about my other blog. I usually write a devotion or something else inspirational on Sunday, and then blog about whatever pops into my head on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Seeing as it is vacation season, a lot of my recent posts have been about – duh – vacations. But I also have a summer goal to walk every street in my town and blog about it. I have been striving to do that once a week, because I still work fulltime and need to sleep once in a while. But on top of that, they are tearing down our old hospital and I have somehow gotten myself all wrapped up in chronicling that. So, my other bog, for at least the next few weeks, will be all about the little city I call home.

B. Goals for the Round.  

1. Have finished the first round of edits for “The Early Life of Jesus in 40 Days”. What did I say? Like 37% finished?

2. Start editing my novel.   Just a few more days and I can jump into this.  

III. REACHING

A.      Weekly goal.

1. Promote either one of my books on one other site or in person. I got a call from my publisher on Friday. They want to try something different with the e-version of “The Christmas Story in 40 Days”. It’s that whole pricing thing with Amazon. I told them to go ahead and we’ll see what happens. I am excited that they thought to do this for me and hope the book starts taking off as we roll into fall, because it really is an item that people only buy around Christmas, right? And the better that book does, the better my chances with the second book in that series.

2. Comment on my assigned blogs for ROW80. Yes, I did this.

3. Research markets for an hour. Yes, I guess, if it counts. I am still researching Splickety magazine group, reading what they have already published. I’ll count anything.

4. Walk several streets of town, taking pictures and blogging about it.  Yup, twice. Once around the afore-mentioned hospital, and once with my dog in the neighborhood where the dog park is.

B. Goals for the Round

1. Have submitted three pieces somewhere. Up to two submssions. One to that poetry challenge I did not win and one to Guideposts magazine.

2. Have sent a copy of “The Early Life of Jesus in 40 Days” to my clergy-friends for their input. No, just gotta finish those edits.   

3. Have finished walking every street in my town.  No.

IV. PERSONAL

A.      Get in Shape – Let’s not even keep track anymore, let’s just say no.

B.    Nonprofit – Tumaini Volunteers – More goals blown out of the water. My daughter, our   chairman of the Board, wants to forget about picnics and craft shows and little stuff like that. She wants us to concentrate on getting our tax-exempt status and writing our business plan.  I’m ok with switching gears, it is probably a good idea, since what we have been doing so far has not been working. Plus she has contacts who say they are willing to make large donations once we prove ourselves. I just think that in the meantime, we need to keep our presence out there.

C. Sewing -- Finish one project this Round. Yes! Sewed that adorable dress, and then last night I picked out some material for another project. Argh!  

D. Church -- Our college kids will be leaving for school before you know it, get them all mentors. I have four addresses, two mentors and one match all matched up. Only have four more kids to work on.

Ok, I guess I didn’t have that much green, so I added yellow for things I am getting close on. 

The hospital has been vacant for 11 years. It has become an eyesore, but it is still sad that they have to tear it down.