Taking a Rest: Author Style

Some of you may have noticed I missed a week. Yes and no. This is the issue of writing a blog post, thinking I hit the button, not hitting the button, then getting invited to the lake…

This is a make up post. Sorry.

For everyone, taking a break is a vital part of work. Especially for anyone working for themselves. This goes double for creatives. However, what about those crazy among us that write every day without fail?

I still wrote.

I never said I wrote a lot. I managed to write a grand amount on the first, then I went away and wrote my minimum. This is important.

One for disciple. I don’t write because I am motivated to. The only thing I am motivated to do is to eat pork rinds and play video games. (I eat the pork rinds, but not the video games.) I am disciplined. This means I write even when’d rather not.

For those creatives, know this. To get high word count and to be productive is to be disciplined in your efforts. Write because you don’t want to. Write when you want to do nothing at all. There is a hump, a cliff, you must cross. Cross it. Get over it. Once you get to the other side, things become easier.

This journey is not something I can do alone. It takes support from many people for it to become a reality. The easiest way is to visit my Amazon Author Page and purchase one of my books. They are available in all countries and for free in Kindle Unlimited. I have a tip jar set up at Ko-Fe, where you can buy me a coffee. Or you can also visit me on Facebook. Your help and support are much appreciated.

Time Management and Choices

Eighty-six thousand, four hundred.

The argument made to me was to imagine having a job earning 86,400 dollars a year. Then imagine making a wrong choice and losing 400 dollars. Are you willing to toss the rest of the 86,000 dollars away for that simple error?

Let me say this another way, there are 86,400 seconds in a day. If an argument takes six minutes of your day, does it make sense to toss the rest of the day away?

This story has been told before but smarter people than myself. It is not new.

I ended up telling this story to my son, trying to teach him about time management instead of having mental health get the best of a person, which was the initial purpose of the story.

My son was up at eleven at night, wanting to read a book after I had told him all day to do just that. He spent the day playing video games, and it was hard to get him to understand that the choices he made had consequences. For him, it was that if he played video games all day, then he had no time to read a book.

But this is relevant to me. I make choices every day, and they have consequences. If I play a video game, I end up losing hours from my life. I have a long list of goals I want to accomplish, and if I make bad choices, spending those 86 thousand seconds on bad decisions matters.

Time is the biggest commodity we are all given each day. Sleep for eight hours: that’s 28,800. Argue with your spouse: that’s 600. Binge-watch 6 hours worth of Netflix: that’s 21,600. These add up. I work at my writing between 6 and 10 hours a day: that’s between 21,600 to 36,000 each and every day. I do it cause I don’t watch Netflix. I don’t let myself throw away all 86,800 for 1000 worth of a bad day. I’m not perfect, but I strive to make each day better than the last.

So, how do you spend your 86,400?

This journey is not something I can do alone. It takes support from many people for it to become a reality. The easiest way is to visit my Amazon Author Page and purchase one of my books. They are available in all countries and for free in Kindle Unlimited. I do have a tip jar set up at Ko-Fe, where you can buy me a coffee. Or you can also visit me on Facebook. Your help and support are much appreciated.

 

Being Creative and Dealing with Distractions: Interwebs

Last week, I talked about the giant distraction creatives have to deal with called Children. However, they are only one of the many distractions we have to deal with. The big one I have to deal with is the internet.

Easy access to the plethora of human knowledge and the trillions of cat videos. This is an immense distraction that keeps me from writing as much as I’d like.

I understand it is a problem, and I can stop anytime. I just don’t want to.

In all seriousness, here are five methods I use to mitigate my internet addiction.

Five Methods to Keep Distractions at Bay.

1. Turn off the internet.
2. Go to a coffee shop/ library.
3. Keep track of internet time usage.
4. Take away visual and use it for noise.
5. Limit research.

Turn off the internet.

The easiest way to keep the distractions at bay is to turn them off. The internet is addicting, and it’s easy to want to do a straightforward thing, but get distracted by something on the internet. For those with no ability to limit themselves, turning it off is the best way to go.

For those that don’t know, at the bottom right of the computer is a simple internet button. Two clicks on that, and the internet is dead. For those that can’t control themselves, there is an ability to have your significant other enter a parental control password. Then not only is the internet off but then the creative must beg for the password.

Go to a coffee shop/ library.

One way to remove oneself from the distractions called the internet is to go down to the favorite coffee shop and sit there for a few hours. This is good if the internet is too accessible in the home. Coffee shop internet is never very good, being split between an untold number of different people. This is the perfect spot to get some work done.

This doesn’t mean to only go to a coffee shop, five dollars a day in coffee gets expensive. There are also libraries, which are good places to go to. There are also parks, malls, universities, etc that are all good places to go out to get work done.

Keep track of internet time usage.

For those with a good amount of will power, keeping track of internet usage time and turning it off when the set amount of time is up. I’m not this type of person. I can’t turn on and off the distraction. I don’t have enough will power.

But I know of a few people who can. They must have the focus of a God. It must be a great thing to be able not to get distracted by the internet. I assume its a learned skill but the amount of willpower needed sounds immense.

Take away visual and use it for noise.

One method is to let things play in the background. The idea is to turn on noise, music, commentary, etc. This is to train yourself to control the noise being played, especially for those that work in a noisy environment.  By playing something in the background, the idea is to have something interesting to keep the focus on the noise, but not enough to maximize the tab and watch the video.

This is the method I tend to do more than any of the others. I will listen to music, but I’ve also been listening to documentaries while I work on my writing. I use headphones and they block other distractions from keeping me from getting the work done.

Limit research.

One of the greatest issues is squirrels. This is when the creative stops working and to do some “quick” research. This starts with good intentions but quickly goes off the rails. The creative needs to look up one issue, and then they blink for a few minutes to discover hours have passed. They have been watching cat videos for hours.

I’ve been here, I look up one detail on space travel. I blink to discover I have been watching police chase videos. This is a bad thing for getting anything done. To keep from doing it, I limit my research by either writing notes to do the research later, or by keeping it to the topic I need to lookup.

This journey is not something I can do alone. It takes support from many people for it to become a reality. The easiest way is to visit my Amazon Author Page and purchase one of my books. They are available in all countries and for free in Kindle Unlimited. I do have a tip jar set up at Ko-Fe, where you can buy me a coffee. Or you can also visit me on Facebook. Your help and support are much appreciated.

Being Creative and Dealing with Distractions: Children

Some creatives must have uninterrupted time to be productive. They need the time, or else they can’t get anything done. Their process has been described as pushing a boulder up an icy hill. Near the top of the mountain, the slope shallows. It is at this point where they are the most productive. The longer the creative stays here, the farther along with the project they get. But the time it took for them to get there takes time, which is subjective to the creative.

On a typical day, the creative spends hours in the productive zone, where they only stop when exhaustion takes hold. At that point, they slid back down to the start, where the next day, they start again.

However, on a non-ideal day, one of the pitfalls that a creative need to navigate is distractions, usually by little non-furry creatures. Every time those little beings bug them, they lose focus and end up sliding back down the hill. This restarts the process and can stall the entire day.

This is a problem with me. I have two kids who tend to be distracting and want my attention. They are kids, after all. They get hungry, tired, cranky, and want to spend time with me. I understand there need.

But how do I get things done? I wrote over 527k words last year, and I plan to write over 600k words this year. So far, I’m on track to make my goals.

Five Methods to Keep Distractions at Bay.

1. Significant other.
2. Easy distractions.
3. Wake up early/ stay up late.
4. Write around their schedule.
5. Train self to work with distractions.

Significant Other

One way to keep on task is to have a blocker. Setting up a set amount of time to get the work done and having the significant other to handle the walking distractions. This works if you have someone willing to help you with that task. Not everyone has someone ready to help or available to help.

Easy Distractions

This gets easier as the kids get older. Books, TV, computers. They are all critical ways to distract the kids with something to get some words done. Plug in a two-hour movie with some popcorn and then get to work. Getting the distractions understanding that they need to leave you alone is the cornerstone of the method. Having an easy access bin of snacks for them to munch on is also helpful, though be prepared for mess and overeating of the snacks.

Wake up Early/ Stay up Late

This one takes some sacrifice of the well-deserved sleep. This means to get up an hour earlier while the distractions are sleeping to get a few hours of work done. Or, for those night owls, it means to stay up late and get the work done in the twilight hours. This still means a sacrifice of sleep, but every hour helps. Sacrificing time watching Netflix or the lunch break at work is another time to use.

Write around their Schedule

School, dance lessons, swimming lessons. The longer, the better. This means spending money in terms of dance lessons, etc. If they’re in school, this is 6 hours of free time. Keep this time safe, and don’t let anything steal this time. If there is money in the budget for some type of lessons, use this time to get some words done. Dance lessons are an hour in length, which is a large block of undistracted time.

Train Self to Work with Distractions

The stereotype of having the perfectly clean creative space and the hours of no distractions isn’t available for everyone. My writing space is in the living room. I can’t just shut the door and block out everyone. My significant other does have her own tasks to do. This means that I have had no choice to learn how to get productive once more distraction one and distraction two are whining. This is hard and doesn’t always work, but it’s the best long term solution.

This journey is not something I can do alone. It takes support from many people for it to become a reality. The easiest way is to visit my Amazon Author Page and purchase one of my books. They are available in all countries and for free in Kindle Unlimited. I do have a tip jar set up at Ko-Fe, where you can buy me a coffee. Or you can also visit me on Facebook. Your help and support are much appreciated.

Video Games and Distractions and Time off.

As a creative and an author who has written for 349 days in a row, the hardest thing to do each day is to put the distractions aside and get started.

As long as I have some type of plan of what I need to write that day, starting those first few words is the hardest thing to do each day.

My biggest distraction is the pile of video games I have in my Steam account. Some creatives can play video games and have the unique ability to be able to turn them off.

I am not that type of creative. Once I turn on a game, there is always one more level, one more turn or one more thing to do. The next thing I know, it is hours later, and I have yet to get a word.

Other distractions for me are Youtube and school work. The latter being something unavoidable, while the former being something I use for noise. Usually music.

Why am I talking about this?

Cause it is vital to recognize what is causing the distractions and losing one’s focus. Know the problem is the first step from solving it.

But solving the distractions is not a topic for this post.

What is the topic is that sometimes distractions are essential for mental health. Having written for almost a full year in a row and suffering through one burn out, it is crucial to recognize the signs when a break is required.

As stated in my previous blogs, my breaks are writing the minimum daily requirement. This keeps my daily writing goal going, allows me to make my word count goals.

It also allows me to keep sane. If you can call this sanity.

The task of recognizing the days to take the break and the days to put on one’s boots. Finding the balance is hard and takes self-reflection. Knowing yourself is essential in getting things done.

If you like what you are reading and wish to support me in my endeavours, please sign up for my newsletter, visit my Amazon Author Page and purchase one of my books. Or buy me a coffee. Your help and support are much appreciated.

 

 

Right before NaNo. Burn out.

This is going to be a short blog post. Sorry.

Nearly 300 days into this journey and I have hit a wall. Like a freight train running at full speed.

Well. Not that bad.

A week ago, I burned out. Everything became too much and I didn’t want to do any of it. I have school things piling up, the words are slipping as I struggle with starting Felix #3. Yes, that means I have finished writing Des #3 plus trying to catch up with my editing and my NaNo goals right around the corner. It was inevitable and I’m surprised I lasted this long.

Writing nearly 300 days in a row and accumulating over 400k words written, that’s an accomplishment.

So I took some time to myself. I didn’t loose the streak. That’s still going. Barely. This month, my count is going to be very low, but I managed to keep the 150 word min. Even though I didn’t want to. I still struggle some days to get words down.

I’m taking it one day at a time. As long as I get 150 words, then the day is a success.

I will be doing another post on burn out later. Once things clear up.

If you like what you are reading and wish to support me in my endeavours, please sign up for my newsletter, visit my Amazon Author Page and purchase one of my books. Or buy me a coffee. Your help and support are much appreciated.

Stress, the creative flow, and being an “Artist.”

Being a Creative, (my wife would say artist) I have to deal with many different forces that want to dominate my time. These can range from getting groceries, going out to shop for things we “need,” giving out discipline to my kids as needed, being a father by playing with them, being a good husband for my wife, and trying to get my work done.

All of that causes stress.

For Creatives, this stress can be interpreted in one of two ways. It can either stiffly or encourage. Too much of it causes a creative drought that hampers creatives in their artistic aims.

I’ll start with the later of the two.

Some people thrive with deadlines, daily counts, and such. They use that stress to give them a fire to get things done. They may use the line, “You’ve got to be the hardest worker in the room.”

They will have a breaking point, however. At some point, they will run into where they can’t handle things. They will break and burn out. This is different depending on the person.

For the first, some people are stifled by the least amount of stress. They can’t handle any and will quibble at things like deadlines and daily tasks.

They get things done at a slower rate than those that love deadlines. They like doing things on their own timetables. They hate being told what to do. It just causes stress.

This, of course, is a sliding scale. Some can handle more stress than others.

The important part is to recognize where you are at and how to either use it to your advantage. Or how to avoid stress to increase your productivity.

Until next time, if you like what you are reading and wish to support me in my endeavors, please sign up to my newsletter, visit my Amazon Author Page and purchase one of my books. Or buy me a coffee. Your help and support are much appreciated.

Dealing with Distractions

So most of my classes for the summer are over. I have one remaining, which runs until the beginning of August. You’d think that I’d have time to double my productivity as I have more free time.

I thought so, I made a plan on it.

In my writing endeavors, the big issue that I am dealing with now is that I have many manuscripts with a completed first draft sitting in a pile waiting to be edited. This all takes time, time which I didn’t have, and now I do right?

My brain is on summer right now. It doesn’t want to cooperate for me. It wants to play video games and watch Netflix.

My main computer is a massive time suck. Mainly Facebook and Youtube. Those two sites are one of the main reason nothing gets done until late, and I’m in panic mode. Youtube especially.

My kids are also off for the summer. They want to hang with me and do things. Outside. Like going to the beach or the skate park. Things that hamper my ability to get things done.

There has to be a solution to this problem of mine. How do I deal with the distractions?

My solution so far is to move my laptop, where I do most of my writing, to a coffee shop or library. Coffee shop costs money, while the library does not.

This solution may remove some of the distractions. At the Library, my kids can read as many books as they want at they want and I can get some work done.

It’s not the best solution, but besides turning off my internet, it is the only one I got.

If you like what you are reading and wish to support me in my endeavors, please sign up to my newsletter, visit my Amazon Author Page and purchase one of my books. Or buy me a coffee. Your help and support are much appreciated.

Wow. Where did the time go?

So things have changed for me and my family. But first I would like to apologize for the months of radio silence. I didn’t intend on it, but it happened.

You see, we have moved. Down south, on an island. Near the ocean. My family and I have moved from the cold north of central BC to Vancouver Island. To Nanaimo to be exact. Why you may ask?

Blame my wife. She applied and got accepted into VIU and is now a university student. Her instagram account and her wonderful art can be seen at the link below.

https://www.instagram.com/gracepedde/?hl=en

My kids are going to elementary school. Here is a pic of them on picture day. I have to get them ready all by myself. That was the best that I could do…

Me, I am still writing. I am currently prepping for NaNoWriMo this year. If you are doing it, add me as a buddy. My name is N A Pedde. Just mention that you saw my blog.

Here is another pic. This one is my book board.

Each card is a novel or novella or a short story that I am working on. Each column is the different series that I am working on. The line on the right are all of my story ideas.

There you go. In a nutshell. Well, not really. There is more to tell. But that will have to wait on a future blog post.

Hopefully it won’t be as long as this one was.

Until next time.

Let’s Play

On top of the writing that I am always doing, I am a bit of a gamer. I have approx. 100 games on my steam account. It is an addiction that I have.

Not a real bad, must go into rehab problem, just a problem with time management and the ole wallet.

One of the ways that it has hurt me is that I will buy bad games. I have a bunch that I have purchased that basically suck. The games aren’t that expensive on the most part, but it still hurts the wallet.

To combat this, I have found a wonderful thing. Well… Wonderful and evil.

Let’s play videos on Youtube.

A ‘Let’s Play’ video is a video of someone playing a video game. It sounds really dorky, I know. But bare with me.

The video shows someone playing a game. Let’s say that it is a game the you are interested in buying. The reviews are good and it sounds interesting. But it is 39.99. What do you do?

The ‘Let’s Play’ video shows the in game action that is not filtered or changed by the producer. There is no worry that the footage is edited to show the game in a better light than it is. These Youtubers show the game warts and all.

For example. I am a fan of the Sim’s game. A real dorky game. But it is interesting to me in various ways and reasons which I won’t get into here.

So I watched a Youtuber play the latest version of the game. While there are some features to the game that I like, there are some that I find appalling. Like having a repair man not leaving your house and standing around. Or going on a date with someone to have everyone and there dog come bug you at your romantic table. Or the times where the gamers has told the character to do something and the character not being responsive.

Are these bad issues that break the game? Not completely. But…

But the game has been out since Sept 2014. It has had 14 DLC content added to the game. There shouldn’t be any of these issues with the game. It should have been fixed. But it hasn’t. And the price hasn’t gone down at all. It’s getting close to 200 bucks for all of the DLC content and the game.

I have watched other ‘Lets Play’ for other games that are that old with just as much DLC added to them. They early versions of the games had issues to them that became apparent in some of the gameplay. They were fixed. I saw that they were fixed by watching the gameplay. I bought the games.

So that is why ‘Lets Play’ videos are good thing and evil thing. They show the game warts and all. They allow people like me that love buying and playing new games the chance to watch the gameplay. They also allow you to see other video’s by Youtubers that you might not have seen if you didn’t watch the Youtuber.

Then you buy those games that you like.

Until next time.