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ROW80 Update: Eat Lunch In

by Jennette,

One thing that’s helped me achieve my fitness goals on the intake side is that I stopped going out to lunch. It helped a lot that my coworker who was the main instigator of lunch out, also wanted to lose a few pounds and stopped, well, instigating.

Also, I can leave early = more writing time. I don’t usually eat at my desk, as part of the purpose of having a lunch break is for workers to get away from the work for a short time, and hopefully come back a little energized. But instead of going out, I usually go to the kitchenette area and eat with coworkers. Side benefit? I eat with some really cool people, and two of them are now my readers!

Granted, this is not a very useful tip for those who work at home (including stay-home parents) but for us paycheck peeps, it’s a great way to save a half hour or more. And every half hour counts, right?

ROW80 goals this week:

  1. Finish read-aloud of Time’s Fugitive (about 10 hours)
  2. Read one Golden Heart entry
  3. Three interval workouts plus two short workouts
  4. Write and post review on Amazon & B&N of a friend’s book I just finished re-reading
  5. Bonus: type-in changes from read-aloud and send Time’s Fugitive to beta readers
  6. Bonus: dog walk or other activity in addition to #3

I did not get to either of the bonus items, but didn’t really expect to; hence why they’re bonuses.

I got in all three interval workouts, but missed one of the short ones due to the fact that I was gone all day one day, and wasn’t feeling well a couple of other days. But the writing got done!

This week, I’m going to spend getting caught up on related stuff. Here’s what’s on tap:

  1. Type in changes resulting from read-aloud of Time’s Fugitive and send to beta readers (finally!)
  2. Read one Golden Heart entry (#3 out of 5)
  3. Three interval workouts plus two short workouts
  4. Write and post review on Amazon & B&N of book I offered to blurb
  5. Finish web design side job I took on to pay off my publishing company start up costs
  6. Guest blog post I offered to do for my friend Michele Stegman (in addition to my own blogs)
  7. Go over two chapters for critique partner
  8. Cover design tweak promised to friend
  9. Tweak & validate epub file of Time’s Enemy and upload it to Lightning Source for distribution
  10. Go over stuff I learned with the release of Time’s Enemy plus stuff I’ve gathered from email lists, blogs, etc. and put together a launch plan for Time’s Fugitive
  11. Bonus: do anything that’s on the launch plan list
  12. Bonus: dog walk or other activity in addition to #3

It looks like a lot, but it’s mostly little stuff. How about you? Got any time saving tips for lunch, whether you’re a paycheck peep or a stay-homer?

Out to Lunch sign via Microsoft Office Images

Reading Outside Our Usual Genres: Northcoast Shakedown by Jim Winter

by Jennette,

I first read Northcoast Shakedown by my friend Jim Winter, back in 2005, when it was first released in print by a small press. It’s a fast-paced, engaging story with a quirky main character who’s so real, it’s hard to believe he’s fictional. Upon the re-read, my original opinion stands: P.I. Nick Kepler’s a piece of work (in a good way!) and never fails to entertain.

The majority of my reading consists of romance, suspense, fantasy and science fiction; preferably a combination of two or more of these. However, it’s good to take a departure from the usual every now and then and try something different. For me, the occasional “different” is usually a cozy mystery or straight fantasy, or perhaps something more mainstream. Occasionally, I pick up something more straight-suspense, usually upon the recommendation of a friend, or in this case, something written by a friend.

Northcoast Shakedown is crime fiction, a P.I. story with a bit of noir that doesn’t cross the line into too dark and dreary. Main character Nick Kepler is a P.I. with the perfect, cushy gig of tracking down workers’ comp fraud and the occasional cheating spouse. When the book opens, he’s investigating just that, plus a questionnable life insurance claim that’s more a matter of saving an underwriter’s job than saving the company money. But the more he digs in, the more questionable the life insurance claim appears, and not for the reasons the company thinks. Before Nick knows it, he’s in over his head in a world of swingers’ clubs, political cover-ups, and murder, and finds himself next on a killer’s hit list.

What made this book really enjoyable was Keper himself. He’s a very relatable character, a regular guy who just wants to get his job done and kick back with a beer and watch baseball afterward. His quirky dislike of SUVs and ability to be distracted by an attractive female are among the little details that make him real and fun. He has certain principles that he refuses to compromise, and others that aren’t so rigid, and reading him wrestling with these choices is what really made me want to root for him, especially when he deals with the aftermath of a choice between shitty and shittier. While totally a man’s-man, his emotions are 100% real and believable, and Winter didn’t pull any punches getting them on the page.

I had a few nits with the book, although they may be more genre conventions than anything else. One thing I’ve noticed is that mystery writers sometimes spend a lot of words getting a character from one place to another, nothing street names, traffic patterns, and scenery along the way. For the most part, that stuff works in Northcoast Shakedown, as Nick’s often being tailed (or fears he is). I’ve read other books where the driving becomes a travelogue (and a place to skim).

Another genre thing is the need for suspects and red herrings in a mystery often results in a large cast of characters. Northcoast Shakedown is no exception. However, there are so many minor/extra characters in this book, I found it hard to keep track of them. In this case, I’m not talking about the long list of persons of interest – the book does very well there. But Kepler is a former cop, and has associates in several different departments in addition to other government types and colleages/customers at the insurance company – enough that they eventually ran together in my mind.

Finally, I’ve talked about dated books before here. In his author’s note, Winter mentions that the book was written in 2002. There’s definitely the occasional reference to outdated technology (Windows 2000? Firewire?). Kepler also doesn’t appear to have a smartphone, GPS, or even an MP3 player – and while I can see Kepler as a guy who refuses to use a smartphone, I can’t imagine him not owning an mp3 player these days (or at least using his computer as a stereo while he works). Knowing that the book was written ten years ago, I could deal, but stuff like this did momentarily take me out of the story. Still, these things are minor, and Northcoast Shakedown was as enjoyable a read now as it was when initially published. So if you’re looking for an entertaining, fast-paced suspense, check out Northcoast Shakedown at Amazon or Barnes & Noble.

Do you stick to mostly one genre when you read fiction? If so, do you occasionally step outside? Do you notice things that you think are probably genre conventions, but clash with what you’re used to?

My Town Monday: We’ve Come a Long, Long Way

by Jennette,

Indie filmmaker David Schock didn’t listen to more than the first few minutes of the odd, unlabeled tape in the box full he’d received for his film that day in early 2008. He was collecting audio of performances by poet and theatrical performer Herbert Woodward Martin for his film Jump Back, Honey, and that extra tape clearly wasn’t one Schock needed for his project.

Who knew something like this could contain a treasure?

He was a little curious about the tape, of the old reel-to-reel format. It started out with someone noting that it was taped at the University Dayton in November of 1964, and introduced Dayton City Commissioner Don L. Crawford, and Charles Wesley, the president of Central State College. He set the tape aside and went on with his work.

Over a year later, the project was finished, and Schock attended a well-received premiere at U.D. But he remembered that odd, unmarked tape he still hadn’t listed to, so he dragged out his equipment and gave it a listen – this time, to the whole thing. Sure enough, it started with opening remarks by president Wesley and Commissioner Crawford, who was the first African-American to be elected to that office. Then the featured speaker came on: Dr. Martin Luther King.

Dayton Daily News pics from 1964

Calls to U.D.’s archivist confirmed that Dr. King had, indeed, visited Dayton on November 28, 1964, and had given a speech at the U.D. Fieldhouse to a crowd of 6,200. In his usual, eloquent style, King addressed how “we’ve come a long, long way” in terms of racial equality, but noted that we still had a long way to go. He advocated peaceful protest and using the ballot box as the way to effect change, and highlighted the need for legislation to abolish discrimination. The tape cut off fifty minutes into his speech. The rest of his talk remains lost, the whereabouts of any other, complete recordings of it – if any exist – are still unknown.

Schock contacted Mr. Martin, the subject of his film, who’d provided him with the box of media. Martin had no idea where the tape had come from, or how it came into his possession. He hadn’t listened to it, nor was he aware of its contents.

King was not universally welcomed

Later newspaper articles about King’s speech surfaced, and revealed how, while King spoke to an enthusiastic crowd, there was a different scene outside the Fieldhouse, where protesters gathered, bearing signs with racial epithets and calling Dr. King a communist.

Despite this, King was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize just a few weeks later, and gave almost the same speech there as the one he’d given in Dayton.

It’s easy for me to think we’ve come a long way, since I wasn’t around at the time King gave this speech, but one only need to watch the news to see that there’s still a long way to go, even now, almost 50 years later. You can hear Dr. King’s speech, digitized by David Schock, on the Jump Back, Honey website, as well as read a transcript of it.

What do you think? And can you imagine finding a treasure like that tape in a box of stuff you’d obtained for something completely different?

More at the My Town Monday blog

Reel-to-reel tape photo via ehow.com
Dayton Daily News photos by Bill Koehler via jumpbackhoney.com 

ROW80: Test Mile Success

by Jennette,

Last week’s test mile really helped. I learned that it took me about a half-hour to read ten pages out loud (these pages are 1.5 spacing, set in Times New Roman). This should have netted me about 160 pages if I read a total of eight hours. My RWA chapter meeting was cancelled yesterday, so I was able to get a couple more hours in. Here’s how the week’s goals went:

  1. Do a “test mile” read-aloud of Time’s Fugitive
  2. Eight hours of read-aloud of Time’s Fugitive, hopefully at least 1/4 of the book
  3. Two blog posts plus a ROW80 update on Sunday
  4. Comment on at least 5 blogs this week
  5. Minimum of 3 status updates or shares on Facebook
  6. Tweet at least once a day
  7. Read one Golden Heart entry
  8. Three interval workouts plus two short workouts (bonus: dog walk or some other activity on one of the other two days)
  9. Declutter my desk top (the real one, not the computer desktop)
  10. Bonus: write one book review on Amazon & B&N
I didn’t get any contest entries read, but I only have four more, and they’re not due until March, so I have some wiggle room. I’m doing better on the social networking than I thought; I far exceeded the tweets, Facebook shares, and blog comments. As for decluttering my desk, I’m not going to worry about that for now, as it turns out, the clutter is stuff I’m actively working on (i.e., the Golden Heart entries). What isn’t, is mostly my husband’s. I can collect that into piles and throw away the obvious trash, but otherwise he needs to go through it. And it’s all on the printer cabinet, not in my face, so it’s not a big distraction. I was happy to get to a bonus and get a review up on Amazon and B&N last week.
I’ve also done well on my physical activity. Knowing I get to read when I get on my treadmill is a world of help – it’s the reason I’ve finally found something I can stick with.
The best news was the test mile and reading results – my goal was to read at least a quarter of the book; I read half (which was what I was hoping for). I’m not going to post social media goals this time, I think I’m doing OK there. So here goes for this week:
  1. Finish read-aloud of Time’s Fugitive (about 10 hours)
  2. Read one Golden Heart entry
  3. Three interval workouts plus two short workouts
  4. Write and post review on Amazon & B&N of a friend’s book I just finished re-reading
  5. Bonus: type-in changes from read-aloud and send Time’s Fugitive to beta readers
  6. Bonus: dog walk or other activity in addition to #3

Have you done a test mile with a long-term goal or physical activity? How did you do? Were you surprised?

Thanks to Fabio Bueno for the idea of color-coding our goal accomplishments!

Dreaming in Third Person

by Jennette,

Are your dreams like movies in your head?

I learned something interesting about my teenage daughter a couple weeks ago. Often, as I’m driving her to school in the morning, she’ll tell me about some weird dream she had that morning – and they are almost always weird. Like seeing a library in the sky, or seeing people she knows in weird places or situations. But what I never realized until she mentioned something about how hair looked in her dream, was that she dreams in third person point-of-view. As in, she sees herself as if she’s someone else, like watching a movie.

It was hard for me to comprehend – and it’s also something I never thought about before. Sure, I’ve had dreams where I wasn’t playing an active role, but was just passively seeing other people going through whatever actions, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen myself, other than looking in a mirror. It never occurred to me that it would be otherwise for others. On the other hand, it seemed weird to my daughter that I would dream everything in first person point-of-view. Although when she thought about it, she thought some, if not most, of her friends dream in first person.

...or are you a first person shooter?

It reminded me of my Grandpa Adams, who told me he dreamed in black-and-white. I was maybe eight or nine at the time, and of course thought this was very odd, although it didn’t seem as strange at the time as it does when I think about it now. No, he wasn’t messing with me. At the time, I figured he dreamed like he watched TV, which for him was in black-and-white, until maybe ten years or so before we had that conversation. But why it seems stranger now, is that he was born in 1914, and therefore wouldn’t have had television until he was well into adulthood. Of course he went to the movies, but wouldn’t have had that frame of reference until he was at least elementary-school aged. I don’t think I know of anyone else who dreams (or did) in black and white, although it’s not a topic that we talk about all the time. It never occurred to me to ask my other grandparents.

It’s something I don’t think about often. I hardly ever remember my dreams, and of the few I do, 99% of them are just dumb and boring.

So what about you? Do you see yourself in your dreams, or are you a first person shooter like me? Does anyone you know dream in black and white?

Photo of people running via Microsoft Office Images
Game photo via gamingbolt.com 

My Town Monday: Now You’re Cookin’

by Jennette,

One thing Dayton is known for is its history of innovation. And what most people think of relating to this, are inventions over a hundred years old, such as Jame’s Ritty’s cash register, the Wright Brothers’ airplane, and Charles Kettering’s automobile starter.

Lee Smithson and his Water Broiler

That spirit of innovation continues today, much of it in commercial and military research facilities, such as the Air Force Research Laboratory. But one recent innovation I’d never heard of was one I found to be quite helpful in everyday life, and I learned about it on the Dickens of a Christmas tour of the St. Anne’s Hill Historic District, last month.

The final stop on the tour was the beautiful, dramatic Bossler Mansion, where homeowner Lee Smithson gave us an overview of the home’s history. He also told us about what he’s been up to in the twenty-five years he’s lived there.

Mr. Smithson is an accomplished chemist, retired from Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. More recently, he owned – and worked – his own catering business, during which time he also created a simple yet elegant piece of cookware just about anyone could use: the Drannan Water Broiler.

No more of this yuck!

He compared the water broiler to the one you get with any new oven. Sure, you can use them, but what about cleaning them?  (That got most people’s attention – UGH.) And how well do those free broilers do the job? Adequately, but overall, those things are about worth what we pay for them, especially when we add in the hassle of washing them – none I’ve ever had fit in a dishwasher, and even with no-stick spray, they are a major PITA to clean!

The primary feature of the Drannan Water Broiler is that it’s made of high quality, stainless steel. The cooking surface is a grille, rather than the slotted metal found in the cheap broilers, and it’s stainless steel, too. I have a stainless steel cookie sheet from years ago, so I knew how nice this would be to bake with – no matter how burnt the cookies are, they never stick to that baking sheet, and metal spatulas don’t hurt it. The other difference in the water broiler was that it’s round. Mr. Smithson’s reasoning was that most, if not all, things cooked on it (i.e., roasts) don’t need those four corners. It’s slightly smaller than the freebie broilers, but plenty big enough for a roast – and that enables it to fit in the dishwasher.

The water broiler comes with another of Mr. Smithson’s inventions, the “Forkula.” It’s like a gripper-spatula, only with tines. It’s also made of stainless steel, and can be used on any grill, as well as with the Water Broiler.

My daughter was sold on it quickly, and talked me into buying one for my husband for Christmas (he’s the one who does most of the cooking, and the daughter does most of the cleaning). They had gift shop tables set up in the mansion, so we bought it there. I could tell DH was skeptical when he opened it, but he gave it a try last week – twice.

The Forkula

We tried chicken breasts and pork chops, both of which we’d normally do on the grill. Both dishes turned out great: properly-cooked, and surprisingly juicy. Putting the water in the broiler pan keeps the food moist, basting it while it cooks. DD wasn’t home the night we cooked the pork, so I cleaned. The fatty drippings wiped right off, the broiler went into the dishwasher with no problem, and came out clean and shiny! The Forkula tongs worked great too. We haven’t tried a roast yet, but I have no doubt it will be yummy when we do!

The Drannan Water Broiler with the Forkula is $65 plus shipping, but IMO it’s worth it. The construction is of very high quality, and I expect this to last many years, if not a lifetime. Mr. Smithson guarantees his products 100%, plus postage both ways. I wouldn’t be surprised if no one had ever taken him up on that offer. The Water Broiler and Forkula can be ordered together or individually on the Drannan Company website. (Just as an FYI, I was not asked for this blog post, and I don’t know Mr. Smithson other than briefly meeting him on the home tour.)

Does the Water Broiler sound like something you’d consider trying – or have you already, and what did you think? Have you recently discovered anything new to help in the kitchen? Please share!

Photos via waterbroiler.com

ROW80: Something that Helped

by Jennette,

One week into ROW80 2012, Round 1, and I’m already learning!

Last week, Kait Nolan posted about the concept of a test mile on the ROW80 blog, and how it can apply to goal setting. Toward the end of the last round, I’d gotten my revision down to the type-in stage, which is when all the changes are marked in the printed manuscript, and all I have left to do is type in the changes. Sounds easy, right?

A typical revision page

The timing of the “test mile” blog was funny, because I’d just figured out the week before how much I could do on a type-in in one hour: ten pages. That doesn’t sound like much, until you see that while many of those pages look like the one on the left, a fair number of them look like the one on the right.

There are all too many that look like this

But what was really great, was I found something else that helped: Breaking a task down into manageable chunks, AND planning the work for each day. I read this on someone else’s blog to plan the work for each day, and sadly, I don’t remember where (if you know, please comment so I can link to them!). From my time management studies earlier this year, I know that I have about an hour to spend each evening on actual writing tasks (writing and revision, as opposed to promo, commenting on blogs and responding to comments on my blog, social media networking, cover art, reading for contests, etc.) I also estimated that I should be able to spend 3-5 hours on Saturday, since I didn’t have much else going on besides putting away the Christmas stuff (done – yay!).

So I broke out five segments of approximately 10 pages each (1-3 scenes), and paperclipped them. That left only 20 pages for my Saturday work. Perfect! I could have fit in more, so left that extra time for reading for a contest, writing this blog a day early, and maybe doing a test mile for my next task: reading my book aloud. This is an important part of my revision process; it’s where I make sure everything reads smoothly, the characters’ thoughts and dialogue are appropriate for who they are and their situation, typos, and making sure I stay true to my writing voice. After that it’ll go to the beta readers.

One thing I see a lot of other ROW80 participants doing that I haven’t is to add in other goals, especially ones relating to social media and blogging,  fitness, and decluttering. So I’ll jump in there, too, and maybe share a bit more about what’s worked for me on those fronts in future updates.

So for this week, my goals are:

  1. Do a “test mile” read-aloud of Time’s Fugitive
  2. Eight hours of read-aloud of Time’s Fugitive, hopefully at least 1/4 of the book
  3. Two blog posts plus a ROW80 update on Sunday
  4. Comment on at least 5 blogs this week
  5. Minimum of 3 status updates or shares on Facebook
  6. Tweet at least once a day
  7. Read one Golden Heart entry
  8. Three interval workouts plus two short workouts (bonus: dog walk or some other activity on one of the other two days)
  9. Declutter my desk top (the real one, not the computer desktop)
  10. Bonus: write one book review on Amazon & B&N

Whether or not you’re a writer, did you set goals this week, and if so, how did you do?

My Addiction: Time Management… Games!

by Jennette,

OK, it’s confession time. No, this is not why Time’s Fugitive is late, but… okay, it might have contributed to it, earlier on. It is one reason why I don’t watch TV. Or if I do, it’s looking up from my computer, where I’m writing, emailing, on HootSuite, or…

It all started with an intrepid waitress named Flo

I admit it. Playing games. I’m addicted. Ironically, to time management games.

For the uninitiated, these usually feature a character doing a job like waitressing or running a small farm, and you have to run the character through all sorts of tasks that must be done quickly, and in a specific order. In the Diner Dash series, and also Emily’s Delicious, another of my favorites, you work at different restaurants. You have to hand out menus, take orders, sometimes fix food, take it to the customers, collect money, and so on. There are different types of customers who have differing patience levels, and if they leave early, you loose points/money (in the game, not real money). If you don’t make enough money in the allotted time, you fail the level. As the levels go on, difficulty and complexity of the tasks increases.  There is a story that goes along with it, usually told in cut scenes between levels or major game segments. They’re fairly pedestrian – after all, it’s about the game play – but some of them are cute. What my husband finds most ironic about my addiction to these games is that they’re about people doing jobs I would be horrible at!

In the Farm Frenzy series, you play as Scarlet, who has farms all over the place - and in time!

It was way too easy to get caught up in this. It all started several years ago, when MSN Games offered Diner Dash 2 for free. Yes, it was online-only – as in, a tiny screen in a web browser window. And there are commercials between levels. But free! And legal! I was hooked. Eventually, I finished out the game, only to find that… it wasn’t finished. MSN only offered nine levels on the free, online game, then wanted to sell you a downloadable game. For $19.95, which I couldn’t justify.

Then I found  crack.com gamehouse.com, where they offer the full, downloadble versions of dozens of games, FREE. Like the MSN trial online version, these have commercials between levels, but they don’t bother me. (With the commercials, I know the developers are being paid, and that’s something I have a vested interest in.) Sure enough, they had Diner Dash – and if I wanted it without commercials, it’s only 6.99 on Gamehouse.  There are many to choose from. Not just time management games, but hidden objects, puzzles, arcade games. All designed to be played in short bursts (hence the name casual games, as opposed to something long-term, like Everquest or WoW).

"It's good to work toward my dream," Emily says. Ummm.... yeah. Now I need to go work on mine.

I don’t stop writing to watch TV. But I do, sometimes, stop to play a round of Farm Frenzy–gotta make that cheese! Which invariably becomes two rounds. Or three. Or… well, you get it.

So there is my big time management challenge… time management games. I’ve been good lately, but it’s involved a great deal of restraint. I don’t let myself play games until after I’ve done a set amount of work on my writing, done my workout for the day, taken care of paperwork or whatever else needs to be done around the house, checked and responded to email and so on. But sometimes I do slip up and play before the work is done. Then I get back to the work, and it’s that much longer before it’s finished. I admit, I had to get in a round of Delicious: Emily’s Tea Garden before writing this blog – and now it’s 10:30 PM. But the writing got done first!

So tell me. Do you like casual games, and if so, which ones? Or are you more into the more involved games, or… not at all – maybe your addiction is something else, like TV? Is it an effort for you to stay away from your addiction until you get things done? Please share, and tell me I’m not alone! I’ll stop back later… after I’ve served some customers!

My Town Monday: Americana in Art

by Jennette,

We are blessed to have a wonderful art museum in Dayton. Sure, it doesn’t have the extensive collection one can find in a larger city, but there’s more here than one might think. The Dayton Art Institute is housed in a beautiful, 1930’s Italian-villa-styled building, and it’s small enough to see in one day without feeling overwhelmed.

Freedom from Want, one of Rockwell's Four Freedoms works

But one of the best things about the Dayton Art Institute is the variety and quality of traveling exhibitions it hosts. The current visiting exhibition is American Chronicles: the Art of Norman Rockwell, which I had the privilege to see last week. One of the U.S.’s most-loved illustrators, Rockwell is most well-known for his familiar Saturday Evening Post magazine covers. What I didn’t know before, and found amazing, was that he sold work to Boys’ Life, the official magazine of the Boy Scouts, at age seventeen, and became the publication’s art director at  age nineteen.

It was fascinating to see the progression of  his work, especially the original works in full size, and they present a social commentary that parallels our cultural history throughout the twentieth century, starting with his depictions of an innocent childhood for Boys’ Life, to his beloved “Four Freedoms” works that were sold as prints during World War II to entice people to buy war bonds, to his later works that highlighted current events like racial tensions in the South in the 1960s.

The Art Critic

One interesting addition to the exhibit was a slide presentation that showcased Rockwell’s depiction of the “typical” American family as reflected in television, and how this changed over decades. The slide show begins with Leave it to Beaver, a family headed by a married dad with a stay-home mom, children and grandparents. The presentation touches on blended families (The Brady Bunch), a racially-mixed and adoptive family (Diff’rent Strokes), and non-traditional families (Full House) and asks audiences to consider how Rockwell’s art influenced these other areas of pop culture.

Having a degree in Art and studied painting, I could especially appreciate the layering in the paint, and how many times Rockwell must have let it dry, then added on another layer of detail. This is something that can’t be seen in a print, no matter the quality. I also liked seeing one part of the exhibit that showed the progression of a single piece, starting with his research (this was one of his civil rights commentary works), a photo of the models posing for his initial sketches, his preliminary charcoal drawings. It then showed an early rough painting, and concluded with the final, finished piece.

Regardless of whether or not you have training in art or an interest in U.S. history, the American Chronicles exhibit is well worth seeing. It’s here through February 5th. For hours, admission, and more information, see the  Dayton Art Institute website.

If you’re in the area, have you seen the exhibit? If not, have you seen anything like this in your home town?

More at the My Town Monday blog

Images are under copyright, and are displayed under Fair Use as explained on this Wikipedia page

Goals in Brief

by Jennette,

So it’s New Year’s Day, and time to jump back into ROW80: “The Writing Challenge that Knows You have a Life.” I’d planned to get this post up yesterday. See how well that went – pretty much like my whole revision of Time’s Fugitive has gone. So it’s 10:45 on Sunday night, I’m yawning, so we’ll just make this fast.

Last ROW80 I learned to be more realistic in estimating how long things really take (then forgot it again) and in how much I could realistically do in a given amount of time. Even this past week, which I took off of work, I did not get as much done as I hoped. As much as I might want to get my revision done, like, tomorrow, it’s just not happening. So it’s carrying over to the 2012, Round 1.

My primary goal is to release Time’s Fugitive. Secondary to that, I’d like to have a marketing plan for this release. Here are the main steps I need to take to meet these goals:

  • Finish revision of Time’s Fugitive
  • Send to beta readers
  • Make changes based on beta reads
  • Send to editor
  • Prepare front matter, back matter, product description, and everything else needed before release
  • Format book
  • Develop marketing plan (preferably before release, but probably after)
  • Release Time’s Fugitive

 

If you’re participating in ROW80, good luck! Whether or not you are, or even whether or not you’re a writer, you probably have goals – what’s your major one?