To plan or not to plan ~ Maressa Mortimer

 



It’s a new year, and my Insta newsfeed is filled with people planning their lives. Homeschool mums, trainers, dog walkers, writers...they all seem to have a plan.

I do tell my kids that failing to plan is planning to fail, but so far, I have failed to sit down and plan. I have a few notebooks dedicated to plans, this year’s plans, and this year’s books. I have also seen another nice notebook that I might need, just in case I can think of some other plans. Then there is the notebook that is too nice to be used, but you need it, in case you think of a very good plan. Like my Viking series. I will need a lovely notebook for that, as I can think of at least four of five books in the series, so it will need an overarching timeline and plans, and there needs to be space for each book.

I have a few things planned for this year. One of them is a Reading Challenge that I have joined in the last few years but never managed to do, but this year might be different, who knows? I love the different categories. One is a Book Set in Iceland. My Viking series needs that kind of research anyway, so that’s a good plan, right? I signed up for another Conqueror Challenge, which is walking a certain distance for a medal. I’m walking around the whole of Iceland. Part of the research as well as keeping the puppy happy.

I was planning to do fewer organised book reviews but ended up doing quite a few for the end of January, and the beginning of February, which is fine because they’re all amazing-sounding books. That’s one plan that failed already, but maybe it wasn’t a good plan. I want to review more of my personal books as well, so one of those reviews will be in the next Mom’s Favorite Reads magazine. I’m also contributing more to the magazine, which wasn’t a plan I saw coming, but I’m enjoying it. So another failed plan that worked out well.

Maybe I should keep my nice, new notebooks, as most of my plans have failed for the better. Or I should plan according to Murphy’s Law? There is the plan to finally finish Book 3 of the Elabi Chronicles. I’m not completely satisfied with what I have, but a few enjoyable scenes are coming up, and I simply want the thing finished, so I can travel into Viking territory. On paper at least.

So there we are. And of course, I failed to plan this blog in time as well, which is why it’s late in the day. I do apologise, and my notebooks will be used to plan blogs in time as well. Anybody else failed to plan the next few months? Although I might sit down later this evening, get my lovely notebooks out and plan some order into my chaos...

Comments

Wendy H. Jones said…
Planning, the curse of every writer. Great post.