Cue the wailing and tearing of clothes and throwing sand in my hair. No. Not really. In fact, I'll probably be back at work sooner than that. Ideas began to flow for the next Holmes & Moriarity story and I've started writing again -- very slowly. It's okay though because I realized the other evening that I'm never going back to the madness that was my old writing schedule. It isn't writing itself that I dread, it's that lunatic schedule I devised.
Well, devised makes it sound like I had a plan. That schedule more or less just happened to me. I had to write (and sell) a certain amount of books to earn a living, and because I had no idea what that might be, I accepted every single proposal that came my way. Thus the year I turned out 13 unique works.
Not something I recommend.
But -- as I keep reminding myself -- I'm never going back to that. Four unique works a year is going to be my target number moving forward. I can't promise all those works will be novels. They may be novellas. They may be short stories. The only thing I know for sure is I'm not the literary equivilent of a jukebox. Those writers are out there, and the readers that are all about quantity versus quality have plehenty to choose from. Cue the Bob Dylan: That' ain't me, babe. No, no, no. That ain't me.
And it never will be. And I'm okay with that. I don't need to make a fortune. I need to earn enough to pay my bills -- health insurance included -- and I need to feel good about the work. Otherwise I might as well go back to being a corporate overlord.
(Hey, you need to buy my books because you do NOT want me for your boss.)
That realization that I control this...that moving forward I will be working at a sane and reasonable pace has done a lot to calm my anxiety down.
So. In the interests of making each moment count, of focusing on the here and now, here are five things I love about summer.
1 - Sunset. The end of the day is a beautiful thing. Especially if it's been a productive day.
2 - Cocktails. What is there not to like about evenings spent with friends? Especially when a modest amount of alcohol is involved and everyone is feeling relaxed and happy.
3 - Hammocks. Does anyone use their hammock in the winter? What is more relaxing than swaying gently beneath clouds or stars?
4 - Swimming. Oh yes. You knew that was coming. I love, love, love the water. There is nothing more immediate and centering than diving into cold water. It clarifies the thoughts and cools off the body.
5 - Reading. Ideally reading in a hammock. But a lounge chair will do. Or even the grass. Or clean, crisp sheets and the five minutes or so of reading before you fall into sleep at night.
For me summer is all about letting go, letting loose, relaxing. What is summer to you?
The hammock...it's good?
ReplyDeleteThe hammock, she is wonderful! :-)
DeleteI want a hammock, but unless it's raining, Georgia is typically just too hot and humid for me to be outside most of the day.
ReplyDeleteI envy my kids still being young enough to enjoy summer; it seems like it's turned into the most stressful part of my year -- wrestling three kids with the "Gimmes" and the "GottaHaveIts" through stores (or even worse, the dreaded "I'm BORED, Mom, can we LEAVE yet?" when, no, in fact, we can't; I have things I *have* to do and I'm not done yet.) Driving for hours and hours to visit family with three kids and at least one dog and my mom (and, oh, lovely, it turns out the puppy gets carsick and he's STILL not completely potty-trained). Then, at my parents', it's hot and they don't have AC at ALL, and I have to sleep on the second most uncomfortable sofa EVER with dogs and cats fighting over who gets to sleep with me -- apparently NONE is not actually a choice -- and fighting over possums in the kitchen at 3 a.m. (true story). And then buying new school uniforms and supplies and please oh PLEASE tell me classes start back soon!? (They do. About 3-1/2 weeks, thankyouJeebus) Oh, and don't forget getting home from "vacation" to find that the AC is out -- on the weekend, so service requests are going unanswered until Monday...
On the other hand, we go out to Jekyll Island fairly regularly, which rejuvenates me like nothing else.
:-D :-D :-D
DeleteTracy, I've got my nieces and nephews over here most days. It's like I've taken on the role that my own grandparents played -- snacks and swims and XBox.
Of course when we were kids it was snacks and swims and books.
I suspect there's a huge difference between children you get to give back at the end of the day and children you have to be ON for 24/7, because there's simply no one else to do it for you.
DeleteThat said, my Girl-child (the oldest) is 12. I can DEFINITELY wait to be a grandparent.
And I push the books. We've been reading the Oz series aloud, and the two oldest have been reading the Redwall books (and concurrently watching the animated series, which is kind of cool.)
some of my best childhood memories are of being read aloud to!
DeleteMine, too! I've got at least one awesome one from A Horse and His Boy...
DeleteYou forgot 6! Friends. :D
ReplyDeleteTrue.
Delete#6 - Spending time with faraway friends.
Summer... I hate it :o)
ReplyDeleteHeat
Humidity
Lack of rain so everything is brown
Snakes
Bugs
Mosquitoes
Did I mention snakes?
Food poisoning because someone didn't get the potato salad in the fridge quick enough...
I am a Fall person. I love the clean crisp air, the lovely colors of the leaves and the faint tinge of decay in the air. The Earth is getting ready to hibernate and renew itself.
And there is a distinct lack of snakes in the Fall ;o)
And my river view will be even more spectacular this Fall and Winter with all the brush clearing I had done.
Glad you are enjoying the summer and I look forward to reading the new H&M story. Have you done the puzzle yet?
-Andy
You forgot to mention snakes. :-P
DeleteI love the Fall too! I guess I'm conscious of loving the summer because as an adult I was never very fond of it. I don't do so well in heat.
But now I've gotten to love it -- love the warm evenings, sitting out on the patio with friends and the stars and chimes blowing in the breeze. And swimming in the morning, evening...whenever.
Of course air conditioning goes a long way to making it all bearable. Not sure how keen I'd be on summer if I couldn't escape it!
We started the puzzle the other evening!
My list is remarkably similar to yours, Josh. However, I would have to add that my kids are more or less grown up and no longer at home. This summer, in fact a week from today(!), when we go on our annual stay at the cabin, the kids will meet up with us there. The dynamic is different. We talk and play and laugh as adults. It's a wonderful new chapter in our lives.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds wonderful, Patty!
DeleteThis is one of the last summers the kids will be...kids. In fact only one of the kidlings is still technically a kidling. The others are all teens. Probably the most awkward of ages.
A hammock under trees (!) is my summer dream, I wish we had trees in our garden.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you are enjoying your sabbatical and the muse is alive and well, looking forward to any results.
A hammock is a wonderful thing. But you know you can buy the kind that hook onto a metal frame and those are really nice too!
DeleteSummer? In Australia? It's Hell! Hot and humid or hot and dry. You go outside and you can literally feel all the moisture being sucked from your skin. Watching the earth, which is so hot it goes from brown to grey, crack. Brown grass, wilting everything, melting asphalt on the roads. And then, if we're really lucky, we get a heatwave...
ReplyDeleteGood time to take a summer vacation to...anywhere else? :-D
DeleteIt does sound like Hell!
I'd just add hanging out on the dock to the sunset-alcohol-swimming-reading mix. I love getting together w/ family and friends to while away a lazy summer afternoon.
ReplyDeleteOne of these days I want to live by water. Not that the giant wading pool isn't a step in the right direction, but a coastal home would be even better. :-)
DeleteI do passionately love the water.
Ah dear man....
ReplyDeleteI am afraid my summer loves are much like yours. I often direct during the summer as I teach the rest of the year. So I would add the satisfaction of seeing my work on stage as another joy. But enough of me. I am so very happy to hear that you are eager to keep your schedule sane and easy. Josh, you must know that 4 works of your caliber,length aside, is more than enough for us. Work from you is rich and full irregardless of word count. It is the passion, the depth of characterization, the intricate plot details--this is what makes your stories a feast for the eye, a meal for the imagination. With excellence like that, how can we demand more?? No, I would much prefer a contented, peaceful author than a harried, frantic novel producing machine. You are so much more than the sum of your work but your work is so rich it is hard for fans to remember that. Well, I do. And so I thank you for taking steps to ensure that the dear man who also happens to be my favorite author willand taken care of in the future. As always.. My best to you dear man
Sammy, that sounds like the best of both worlds. Teaching and directing -- a full year that satisfies the need to creative and share.
DeleteAnd thank you for those kind words.
Sabbatical is not exactly what I thought it would be -- it's less organized but yet more productive, I think.
Have you ever wanted to find a way to hang the hammock in the house during the cold months? I think it would be delightful.
ReplyDeleteAlways glad to find the joy in any and every season. Summer, full of flowers, bbq, walks, swimming, vacations, and visits from friends distant and near. And don't forget the books, books and more books!
If it didn't get so blasted cold here in the winter, I think it would be wonderful to lie out and watch the stars!
DeleteYou're right about finding pleasure in every season, Lin!
Blackberry cobbler from berries I picked myself and it doesn't count if I go to a pick-your-own farm. It just doesn't taste as good if I don't have poison ivy and I'm not swapping snake horror stories with whoever I dragged with me.
ReplyDeleteCounty fairs to appease my fix for over-priced funnel cakes and fried Oreos, petting the goats (otherwise known as hillbilly lawnmowers) even though these are the same goats I can walk a few house away to visit any time I want. And a night ride on the Tilt-a-Whirl.
The wind rustling the leaves in the trees -- trees that smell like trees instead of car exhaust. I'll never get AC piped into our bedroom as long as I can fall asleep with the windows open to listen to that sound and smell that scent. Never gets old.
Summer is THE BEST time to live in the country, bar none.
Kari, I suspect you're right. Your adventures sound like storybooks I had when I was a kid. :-)
DeleteHello,
ReplyDeleteSummer is my least favorite season. Because here it's extremely hot, very little rains. Grass is wilting, some of the trees already spotting yellow leaves. For me as an office worker it means that I have to manage looking smart in this heat, survive budget review in June and luckily escape somewhere far for a holiday. And keep my mobile off. But usually I don't. Hate summers because I am allergy for something blooming May-June and this whole summer time is associate with being uncomfortable on various levels.
Usually I check your website every 2-3 months and I was always surprised about the number of new or in progress works appearing there. I am sorry to hear that you had such a crazy schedule. Good thing that you are taking a break now (I am really surprised I missed it, since I am following you on twitter). Don't burn yourself out. You are such a talented writer, so I don't fear the quality turning into quantity problem, but no one needs you to decide that you are done with writing only because you strove to keep up with your schedule.
I also read your blog post about the authors who advertise their books online. It's weird. I never thought that people actually do that. I think it's ok to write on your personal blog about your releases, but go around shoving it (metaphorically) into other people's faces - why would anyone do it? It would probably just have an opposite result, just like you said. I would probably ignore such a book, although I tend to give people a benefit of a doubt.
Also, a random question maybe, but I am really curious - do you prefer to give your draft to someone to read, so you can get am objective opinion or advice (and do you follow it?) or do you write just how you feel it and listen only to your own voice of wisdom (or a muse, or whatever that prompts you to write)? I understand that there's no universal rule for everyone. I am just curious about your view.
Have a lovely sabbatical (the rest of it).
:)
Hello, Nika!
DeleteYour summers sound pretty horrendous, I have to admit. :-P
I teetered on the edge of burnout, that's for sure, but I think I withdrew in time and now, slowly, I'm starting to feel inspired and energetic again. Knowing that I won't ever go back to that insanity helps.
In response to your question, it's sort of depends. It's many years since I've gotten heavy content edits (which makes sense because if I haven't learned my trade by now, I'm not going to) but there are always a few areas where you want to make sure your intention is coming across, that you're making yourself understood. I used to rely strictly on my editor for that input, but now I will have a couple of trusted readers take a look too.
My editor has the final word on all matters of copy. Content...usually I will go with the editor and readers. Rarely I think the line or the action must stand. But I've written so much, and intend to write so much more, that I'm not particularly ferocious about protecting my words.
I will say that when I was publishing through one epub in particular, I did have some nasty battles with copyeditors. But that was my frustration with (what I perceived as) arrogance matched by ignorance. I had no patience. And still don't, frankly.
Delete''Sane and reasonable pace'' sounds perfect also for us worrying about your health ;-). Enjoy the rest off your sabbatical!
ReplyDeleteCiao
Antonella
Thank you, Antonella!
DeleteI'm not sure what it says about me, but I don't trust hammocks. Anything that can tie me up or drop me on my butt on a whim is not for me, however, after typing that, it would seem hammocks could be considered a summer kink. Perhaps I should rethink. ;-) Summer for me, is reading. I always have a book in hand, or a reader. Summer is a time for imagination and stories to carry me through the long winter. I am Fredrick, I think. Hope you are finding the rest that you need. It sounds like you are on the right path.
ReplyDeleteThere is nothing funnier than watching someone climb into a hammock for the first time. :-D
DeleteI fall out regularly, by the way!
Hammocks are wonderful. Not many of them in the city, however.
ReplyDeleteI echo a lot of the comments here about summer, but at the risk of sounding risque, one thing I love is wearing as little clothing as possible. I'm barefoot most of the time at home year-round, but going to the park and wiggling toes in fresh grass, or if I can get to a beach, in the sand? Heaven!
Summer fruit. Watermelon is a pain to carry home, but so incredibly satisfying.
Going to a dock-side restaurant near my parents for messy, get your hands dirty seafood and amazing wine.
Convertibles.
And light - more light!
And to finish it off, Josh, I think your plan for 2013...and beyond is excellent. I don't care how long I have to wait for your next book, especially as I know that you'll be healthier in the process.
PS, why is my captcha word 'ibacksm?' Hee!
I like these!
DeleteOh yes, I do love watermelon and warm sunlight on bare skin and the smell of flowers and grass. And the crazy little hummingbirds and the coyotes at night...
Gardening. And definitely the hammock, too. :-)
ReplyDeleteIn the summer you see just what a good gardener you've been all year long! :-)
DeleteSummer. Reading of course, inside on a rainy day or lying on the grass or at the beach on a rare warm and sunny day. But also, wild strawberries, so small but full of taste that explodes in your mouth, the silky water of an inland lake surrounded by dark trees and decked with waterlilies, so mystical it actually has me believeing in the water spirits of our fairy tales.
ReplyDeleteThe humming of bees and the smell of wild flowers and warm, dusty grass.
Mosquito bites and sunburned shoulders.
I am glad you have lerned to pace yourself, then the sabbatical has not only been for rest but for learning as well.
Anne, I love your description of the lake!
DeleteMm. Fresh fruit on tart sorbet. That's one of our favorite summer evening desserts. Blackberries on lemon, rasberries on passion fruit, strawberries on lime...
Outdoor yoga. There's something about getting up early and going down to the beach to stretch and limber up in the early morning sun.
ReplyDeleteI love going for ice cream too. Just outside my town there's a small jam store in the middle of a cherry orchard. I stop for ice cream once every couple of weeks.
Summer just makes me feel good. :)
Yes! I feel healthiest in the summer. Probably because I am healthiest. I get the most exercise now between swimming and gardening and walking.
DeleteAnd it never will be. And I'm okay with that. I don't need to make a fortune. I need to earn enough to pay my bills -- health insurance included -- and I need to feel good about the work. Otherwise I might as well go back to being a corporate overlord
ReplyDeleteAye, aye, captain!
Actually, I've been buying your print books and starting a collection. The only other author for whom I have an extensive print collection is J. R. R. Tolkien.
I need to find the P.O. Box address to get my CUTYS copy signed. :)
Thank you very much! I appreciate that.
DeleteThe address is on the contact page on the website. :-) I'm always happy to sign books.
I also am a Fall person. But since I became a teacher (the last six years) and completed all the formal education I can stand (masters and level certificates), summer has taken on renewed meaning. Yes, sunsets! Dancing tango outdoors. Planning a dozen household projects and doing maybe one. Casual family parties with homemade blackberry ice cream. Putting up the bountiful apricot harvest that dodged those false-Spring freezes. Extravagant (for us) vacations (we pay for the rest of the year). A road trip or two. The hot part of the day spent inside reading, catching up with favorite blogs, etc. Braving the heat for a sweaty outside yard/garden chore. And more reading! Sun tea. Sun ripened tomatoes.
ReplyDeleteYes, long hours, intense focus, and tough expectations from all corners during the school year. Meh salaries. Then summer!
Oh yes! Summer vacation. I think that's one reason I had a lot of trouble settling into corporate overlording after I left teaching. You're so programmed to have those summers off to recharge. Not having that time was difficult.
DeleteFresh tomatoes. Fresh sweet corn. BBQ and homemade salsa and guacamole! Oh yes!
Maybe that's one reason I feel this kid-like sense of freedom again?
Summer here in the PNW means...sun eventually. An annual camping trip with really good friends (and, thankfully, wine or I would never sleep). This year holds particular poingnancy for me, after 20 years of marriage and two wonderful daughters that I wouldn't change anything for, my husband and I are divorcing. Summer 2012 feels like the summer before I went to college (the first time) full of promise but tempered by the realization that I was supposed to be an adult. Fall has always been my default 'new year' so I am trying to enjoy these hot, lazy days. I admit it is a little hard somedays and others feel perfect. Mood swings? Not me :)
ReplyDeleteElise, I'm sorry to hear about your divorce. Not that it isn't the right thing or that you won't be happier...just that, yes, what a poignant time this must be. It's a new chapter, and that's always exciting and yet there's always that yearning for what was. Not because "what was" was better, just...that's where the memories lie.
DeleteHammocks are a must! I do prefer lying in my hammock (that is conveniently placed near the pool but under a good shade tree while reading....and most of the time I have a cocktail within arms reach :) It makes for a good summer day. And I do have a garden to although the rain we've had this past week and a half may rot my garden *sigh* I do love the summer....and you're right sunsets are prettier in the summer...so are sunrises :)
ReplyDeleteAnd somehow I don't mind those early sunrises in the summer. Five o'clock doesn't FEEL like five o'clock in the summer. :-)
DeleteIt sounds like a nice summer to me too. I am job hunting and volunteering, so I spend a lot of time inside, but I am getting to use my Gran's pool a lot - I love swimming too, so it is not all work. I am excited to hear that you are thinking about a new H&M book - I think they are my favorite so far. Ah, the anticipation!
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the job hunt! It's a tough time to be looking for work, I know. All the better if you can break it up with swimming and reading!
DeleteOh summer...yeah, I vaguely remember when we used to have those! In London the summer happened in May and my heart sank thinking it would be 90F in the shade for three months. Nah! No way! My sister went camping on a live action role play thing after the heat wave broke, and posted a photo of the icicle on the tap in the ablutions block! Since then it has rained and rained and rained and rained and rained and we have had occasional gales and thunderstorms by way of light relief. We had the Diamond Jubilee. It rained! Keep calm and bring your umbrella!
ReplyDeleteSo now what? I need to spend time avoiding the Olympics and the Paralympics, and the Nottinghill Carnival. I may just think about getting my summer clothes out. Today I was nice and warm and the sun shone a bit while I was working, I am writing this in my hotel in Brighton wearing two cardies and loving the way the flap top heats up on my lap!
Normally what do I like about summer? Hmmmm, summer frocks, pretty sandals, visiting National Trust gardens and wandering happily with one of my sisters. Glyndebourne, with champagne and fabulous music, getting into full evening dress at 1pm and drifting round the garden with a glass of champagne and my lovely gay friends - I'm usually the only girl and since they can bitch for Britain, I have to get well tarted up. Note to self, need to buy Champers. Sunsets and roses in the twilight, swimming in the sea, or the outdoor swimming pool. Dancing on the lawn at a summer party. Lots of good things.
So pleased you are enjoying summer and thinking about Holmes and Moriarity, I love those two guys. Glad you're not giving yourself a lunatic schedule again, your fans, like me, are in it for the long haul, and four things a year is really generous...enjoy the coming months, and schedule in a longish break next summer, just because the official sabbatical has come to an end doesn't mean you don't deserve a holiday!
I do envy you that rain, although I'm sure you're sick of it. It's so dry and brown and brittle here. The nights have been cooling off, which is a relief because the days are hellish.
DeleteNo more lunatic scheduling. Of that, I am determined.
Summer has arrived, so the spell worked! I whinged to you and bought a new brolly - I also found the one I thought I'd lost. It is 83F in my flat at the moment the skies are blue and the sun is shining with all its might. I have been down in Devon working for a couple of days, and it is beautiful, all lush and green and shining in the sun. Coming back to London was not fun, the tube was like a Turkish bath and my flat was an oven.
DeleteEvery silver lining has its cloud. Sometimes a cloud of steam. :-D
Deletewell,I wholeheartedly agree with the list,but I have things I add to mine.
ReplyDelete6.Travel.I have been to many U.S states and plan on arranging some international travel in.Granted,some of this was arranged with fellow fans in the name of following a few bands.Several times I am able to work all year and save up(along with taking care of rent,bills,ect.along the way)but when summer comes around,I can take breaks from work/school and really hit the road/take flights/ect. How can anyone not be driven to that?Not ever going beyond daydreaming of it?
And comments have to be made about 3&4.
I've had the idea hammocks can be quite lovely.Unfortunately I've kept a transient life for a while now,and apartments are easier to get.That=no back yard.Have had the idea of setting up a hammock for a bed suggested to me,but setting one up indoors?Sounds like too much work and what's the point in that?...
As for 4,I love a good swim.No wading in place,(gets boring)and there in always more to see and get into underwater.Public pools seem so careless and full of crowds that don't keep track of sanitation.:(Regardless,I do have memories from when I lived in Oregon.A few times,it would get hot and my friends would suggest swimming across local rivers.I would get halfway across,and lose the ability to move.Friends would have to swim downriver and get me out,then it would take time with me curled next to junk metal that had been in the sun all day before I would get enough movement enough to walk again.May have been my fault,I was battling hypoglycemia at the time and had no insulating fat because of it.Swimming is lovely!Hypothermia is a bitch...
I do love travel -- although I go through periods where I am borderline reclusive and don't want to leave the house even to buy groceries. As a matter of fact, that's kind of where I am at the moment. Not wanting to go anywhere.
ReplyDeleteI like all kinds of swimming. I used to love swimming in the ocean and in lakes, though I'm less adventurous these days. Ignorance is bliss -- but so is that wonderful youthful delusion of invincibility.
Reading is one of my favorite summer things (although also favorite winter, spring, and fall thing as well): I just finished reading the Adrien English series, and I loved it. It's funny, compelling, serious, layered, complicated, altogether marvelous.
ReplyDeleteThank you for saying so, Mary! That's very kind. I'm glad you're enjoyed them.
Deletehad to laugh at your comment on buying your books or getting you as a boss!... summer... I think I had those as a child. Being the boss here... wow, do I miss summers. You are soooo right about not wanting back into the corporate world. ...sitting here on a Friday afternoon dreaming of that swimming pool; of hiking...; of horseback riding... of sunshine instead of no windows and A/C... Will buy your books again, promise :)
ReplyDeleteOnce we're adults, we never have the freedom like that of summer vacation again, do we? I was thinking about that the other day.
ReplyDeleteMaybe retirement? But then you have to hope you're healthy enough to enjoy it. :-P
Coming very late to this post...
ReplyDeleteI had a busy summer so far, including attending some of the events of the London 2012 Olympics (I managed to get a last-minute ticket to the finale of the trampoline event in male gymnastics, and also went to see a few free events, like the swimming marathons in Hyde Park...), but I just wanted to drop by and say I loved your post. All of the things you love about summer, I do love too. And I know what you mean about missing a proper summer break after you left teaching.
And I love a hammock! My parents had two hammocks (not on trees, but hanging on those metal frames) in the garden of their beach house when I was growing up (they're still there, the frames... but the hammocks proper are beyond repair with all the sun and wind they've been thru LOL).
Swimming has been my favourite sport since I was little. Swimming in the sea has a special meaning, it makes you feel relaxed and at the same time energised like no other, but water in general is one of the most powerful relaxing and calming and regenerating things in the world.
And I'm very glad you're feeling more relaxed and regenerated by your sabbatical so far, and planning not to go back to the gruelling schedule you'd been keeping.
All best wishes,
Paola
Hey there, Paola,
ReplyDeleteA friend was describing her salt water swimming pool to me the other day, and I was practially salivating. It sounded like heaven.
You're the second person I've heard from who was lucky enough to attend any of the Olympics in person.
Every time I start to get anxious at the idea of getting back to work, I remind myself that I'm going to have a normal life and a reasonable schedule. Productive but not murderous. :-D It calms me right down.
Oh, salt water swimming pools are the best (of both worlds)!
DeleteYou get the benefits of sea water but no risk of close encounters with jellyfish... or sharks LOL!
I don't know about the US, but in a lot of Mediterranean countries, seaside hotels or beach clubs often have salt water swimming pools for their customers, though I don't know if that water is chlorinated too, or if the salt is enough as a disinfectant.
The enthusiastic atmosphere at the London Olympics was so infectious. I'd never seen London in such a festive mood :)