The Hidden Value of Planting Seeds

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If you’re embracing the monthly themes, then in January you found the value in PLAY. In February, you used that month to ORGANIZE, and in March you’re thinking about ways to PLANT the seeds for your career or your future. On the surface, it might feel as if you’re going too slow or you’re not being productive because you’re focusing on smaller tasks. You may not realize it, but all big projects–even writing a novel–can be completed by accomplishing mini-goals one day at a time.

The hidden value of planting seeds to further your career, however, is not the joy you get from seeing your progress or completing tasks–it’s your fresh awareness of time. It takes time to paint, time to write, time to learn a new skill or technique, time to submit, etc. All of the little things you do to build a career adds up, and without realizing it you’ve spent the time required to do the work.

Often, the reason why new artists stop, start, and then stop and start again is because it seems as if success only comes to lucky people and it happens overnight. The truth about success, is that it does take time to master your art. Some say it takes ten years to achieve success, while others claim success is in the eye of the beholder. Regardless of what you believe, the missing component to achieving your dreams is often time; there are no shortcuts and so much is out of the artist’s control. Even if you catch a lucky break, you still have to do the work in order to take advantage of that opportunity. To achieve your dreams there is only one constant, and that’s to do the work and all the many little things that entails through deliberate practice.

This month’s theme, PLANT, will help you establish a deliberate practice because you’re thinking about all the small actions necessary to reach your goals. Then, once you’re confident you’ve established (or re-secured) the needed discipline to make art and build your career, then you can look farther into the future and plan for bigger goals. After all, if you know you can do the work (or have the dedication to learn) it’s that much easier to actually do it.

    Mood: Pi Day!
    Caffeinated Beverages Consumed: Enough that I’m floating
    Work-Out Minutes Logged Yesterday: Work out? In a snowpocalypse?
    In My Ears: Space heater
    Game Last Played: Final Fantasy X-2: The Last Mission
    Book Last Read: Black Unicorn
    Movie/TV Show Last Viewed: Legend of the Seeker
    Latest Artistic Project: Make Art Not War 2017 Challenge and Rules
    Latest Releases: In Volo’s Wake for Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition. Read my end-of-the-year list of releases for an overview of what I’ve put out for 2016.
    Current State of Projects: Read my latest project update. New project update coming this month!



March 14, 2017
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And the Changeth of Seasons-eth

Jack The Pumpkin King Avatar

First, before I say ANYTHING else… Some GOOD news! So far, you’ve helped raise over $2,000 to fight hunger through DriveThruFiction.com‘s Read and Feed charity drive. Thanks for downloading the bundle! If you haven’t, you have until the 20th. I’d *really* like to see this hit $5,000!

So how have things been going? It’s been a roller coaster these past few weeks, but thankfully everything’s beginning to normalize. I *really* don’t like to take my bad mood out on other people, but I’m grateful for the time spent with friends who understand that while I’m a strong-willed person, even I have awful days. But those are behind me, come hell or high water, I’ll make it so — it’s all about the ‘tude for me. Sometimes, I just need to hang upside down to catch a different perspective. Six impossible things before breakfast. Etc. Etc. Etc.

I’m happy that the government is back to it’s normal day-to-day operations; I have a lot of friends that were dramatically affected by the shutdown. I understand it’s a politically charged topic, like many issues are these days, but it is what it is: people I care about were directly affected by this. Some worked as contractors or in other public agencies associated with different branches of the government (e.g. outside of the 800,000 figure). Others had to go back into work with no guarantee they’d get paid for that time. Hopefully, things will go back to normal for them very, very soon.

I’ve dealt with ideological purity before and the destruction those beliefs can leave in its wake. I was reminded of this last night when I was looking at some of my b-b-b-b-b-b-b-bad poetry. Wrote this oh, a while ago, but it’s fairly apropos to how I’m feeling right now about all of this political mess:

    Untitled

    spinning in a square pattern
    his spoken word one sad vibration
    of logic and the one way
    of naught perception, nay
    so Truth spins wayward from his line
    Statistics take their place up high
    emotions fall the Great fall
    failing his so smart conclusions

    they die the silent death
    of wind and water and angel’s breath
    till no more Truth exists within him
    a pile of data, just one more number
    un-separated from a mass
    who can not distinguish “eye”
    from “i”.

Told you it wasn’t *good* poetry. Heh, heh. But, if I’m looking on the bright side… I’m happy Fall is officially here. Seems like just yesterday it was 70s and sunny — and now it’s 50s and cool. I am totally and completely in love this weather!

Now, back to my to-do list. Oh, is it ever a beaut.

    Mood: Sunny side up
    Caffeinated Beverages Consumed: Decent consumption
    Work-Out Minutes Logged Yesterday: Pesky Chores
    In My Ears: Water filter (new fish take)
    Game Last Played: Dragon Age II
    Book Last Read: Research materials for work
    Movie Last Viewed: Alice in Wonderland
    Latest Artistic Project: *Still* *still* *still* need to take pictures… It’s on the list!
    Latest Fiction/Comic Release: Last Man Zombie Standing
    Latest Game Release: Serenity Crew, Wedding Planners Cortex Plus, and Shooting Fish
    What I’m Working On: Primarily tie-in games work and novels.


October 17, 2013
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Progress Report #3

I haven’t posted one of these since the end of March, and for that… I apologize. If you’re just following up on these now, the progress reports are to check in and show you what’s up in Monica-land. I’m happy to report that all plates are spinning and balanced appropriately. I may even have a bit of a tan. SHOCKING, I KNOW!

I’m back from CONvergence which is, in my opinion, the best-run convention in the country. There is always something to do whether you’re by yourself or not and folks are very, very friendly. I stayed across the way and that turned out to be the best, possible decision. No standing in long lines for the elevators; very easy to go back and chill if I need to.

The panels went great and I’m very grateful for the fine conversation and company of so many wonderful people. This was a fantastic convention and sorely needed. I’d been averaging somewhere in the neighborhood of four-to-five thousand words per day for almost two months straight, and the break totally recharged my batteries. Thanks, all! 🙂

I am still recovering post-con, so e-mail communication is a little sparser than normal as I slog through and get projects done.

Since a lot has happened since the end March, I’m going to give a bullet point recap of what I’ve done. Note to self: provide these updates monthly… Second note to self: no wonder my office is a disaster area.

Games

  • Scion: Extras – The annual White Wolf April Fool’s joke was an absolute blast to write. I had a ton of fun with this one. After the fact, we provided a Scion style Irusan write-up.
  • Gaming in the ‘Verse: GenCon 2013 Exclusive – What’s 268 pages and full of Firefly? This limited edition game book is a preview of both the Firefly RPG corebook and Echoes of War, our line of digital adventures that will launch soon. The official release date will be the first day of GenCon. You can order a copy through www.margaretweis.com — you don’t have to go GenCon to get a copy.

I have a number of games and supplements that are in development. The ones listed here are either on my immediate “you must do this now” horizon or the first draft has been handed in.

  • Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn RPG – Thanks to the fine folks at Crafty Games, I’m able to announce that I worked on the Skaa supplement and handed in my first draft.
  • Echoes of War: Old Friends In Low Places – I am writing an adventure for the Firefly RPG that takes place on Hera. My first draft is due shortly.
  • Firefly RPG – Working on the revisions to the outline now and then assignments will be handed out. The writing continues! This will be released in stores February 2014.
  • Vampire the Masquerade: Red List – I’m partnering with Matt M McElroy and diving into this with bloody abandon. Bloody.


Fiction

I cut back on my short story work in order to focus on long form, which has mightily decreased the size of my list here. Next month, I’ll put little word count bars in so you can see what progress I’ve made.

  • The Women Who Called Down The Train – This is a Lovecraftian Orient Express story that’ll appear in an anthology. I read the editor’s draft for the first time at CONvergence and the story went over really well. I also received some feedback for the historical and pacing elements of this terrifying tale.
  • My Compliments To The Tailor – I promised to donate this story to charity, but I’m not quite happy with it yet. I’d prefer to expand it some and I’ve gotten some historical fact-checking back on the Victorian-era voice. It’s just not long enough in my book, and I’d rather provide some value even if it is free.
  • The Red Door – The novella is 40% done and I hate every damn word of it. I went back and storyboarded it last night. Due to the nature of this story, I have some word lists to build ahead of time.
  • Traitor’s Masque – Alternately titled “Argentum.” I’m also going back into this and storyboarding certain sections, because I want to make the story tighter and more exciting. Pacing is crucial for this one.


Comics

  • Last Man Zombie Standing – This stand-alone comic will be available in an anthology called Unfashioned Creatures, A Frankenstein Anthology late this Summer. Want to see a preview? Check out the inks for Page 5.
  • The Adventures of Lord Lardbottom and Captain Whinypants – I have a few options available to me for comics, and I’m exploring those. My current plan is to get a year’s worth of scripts done for this satirical comic before moving further or finding artists.


Consulting

  • ROFL! – John Kovalic’s new party game debuts from Cryptozoic Entertainment later this month. I had both hands in this project and it was fun to see it through to completion. Watch for it at a games store nearest you!
  • Exalted Third Edition Kickstarter – I worked behind-the-scenes as the invisible ninja for this Kickstarter. We ended up just shy of $700,000, which set the current record for the most-funded RPG.


July 10, 2013
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Miss Random USA

Yuna Final Fantasy X-2

Good morning! Well, this week was supposed to be a strict “reading deprivation” diet. I made it all the way to Wednesday — excited I’d gotten so much done — then Thursday I blew it. Mostly because I was nervous sitting in the doctor’s office, waiting for the SO to come back from his appointment. (Good news, so far. Phew!) And got overly excited with the Top Cow Talent Hunt announcement that loomed on my immediate horizon. The contest had almost 900 writers submit and the commonalities of the pitches helped eliminated the writers. While I did not win, I am very happy for whomever did, though! However, that does not declare the end of my fate in comics. I signed a contract for an original short comic and I’m pitching another series. So, I won’t qualify next time around, but I’m very excited that I’m finally breaking into this industry.

I’m trying the reading deprivation tack again for another week. I managed to get the edits done for an adventure science fiction novella and have to enter them into Megatron (my compy) yet, but that should be done today along with cleaning and a plethora of [Redacted Projects x a lot]. This is the first time The Thirteen is reading one of my longer works and I’m anxious to see how they critique this. Then, we’ll try an even longer novella. Hee.

I finally sent out some of my Christmas presents, which will be pictured at bottom. The red quilted earrings, choker, and copper ball drops are original designs; the other two are variations on a pattern. I had no choice but to stick to my original Edward Gorey plan o’ Christmas cards. Only, the interior said Season’s Greetings. I may have decorated the inside with flowers, music notes, and other paraphernalia by saying Happy Spring Season’s Greetings, but so it goes.

Because I was supposed to reduce my intake of words, when I did get caught up in news, I was more painfully aware of what happened when I did. A few articles in particular got under my skin. Namely, having to do with politics and predisposition, the Magdalene Laundry tragedy, and the Orson Scott Card writes Superman kerfluffle.

I took my stress as a learning opportunity and translated the experience into hard data, a tactic designed to reduce stress and increase productivity, and wrote about it for BookLifeNow.com as a two-part article. I’ll let you know when it appears.

The other consequence to going offline is that I miss news and whatnot. This weekend, I’ll also be putting together some lots for an auction called “Evil for Crestline.” You can read more about the tragedy (the burning down of Crestline Elementary and its effect on the community) in the auction. I’ll update you about that, too, as more news develops.

Overall, I’m very happy because I’m seeing immediate payoffs to the attention I’ve given to my business, the goals I’ve set, and what I’ve achieved so far. My writing pace is back where it needs to be (3,000 to 5,000 words per day) and I’m steadily pursuing a better and a consistent method of editing. What I’ve found, there, is that it all comes down to how the draft was written. I know a lot of writers talk about process, but I prefer to internalize those elements and the only way to do that? For me, the answer is to write. Not talk about writing or give advice or obsess about process — but write. If I can’t write, I show up anyway, and flip to something else. But tying my creative work to the dollars I earn has been the best motivator, overall.

And, for that reason, I believe 2013 is the true start to my career. *winks*

Here are the pics!

Red Quilted Earrings 2
Cupcake Pendant 2
Victorian Choker and Copper Ball Earrings 2
Daisy Crystal Bracelet 2

    Mood: Not caffeinated enough.
    Caffeinated Beverages Consumed: WAY too much pop-a-doodle-doo.
    Work-Out Minutes Logged Yesterday: Walking. In the bitter cold.
    In My Ears: Cher! ‘Cause… CHER!
    Game Last Played: Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed
    Movie Last Viewed: A Good Day To Die Hard
    Latest Artistic Project: SHINIES. A few you can see above!
    Latest Release: “The Button” We Are Dust anthology
February 17, 2013
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A Semi-Obligatory but Sort of Not Really Progress Update

The Tick Weapons Lab Avatar

2013 is off to a fantastic start! I’ve delivered a little over 10,000 words of fiction so far, submitted quite a few other pieces, and circulated a number of pitches plus I’m now diving head first into Kickstarter planning, new stories, scripts, and RPG-related material — and that’s just for my writing and editing plate. That Cortex Plus Hacker’s Guide Kickstarter I mentioned earlier? Funded in less than a week! Now onto the stretch goals! For John, we’re celebrating the upcoming release of his new game ROFL! which will be released through Cryptozoic and working on a few other sekrit projects.

I also just received my schedule for the GenCon Writer’s Symposium. I was invited to work with SFWA publicist Jaym Gates on the Business Track; I have not opted for any panels outside of that. I’ll post a final schedule later on. I also have two time slots in Author’s Alley where I’ll have my books and games to sign and I’ll be doing a reading with author Paul Genesse.

I was so excited about everything that’s been going on, I got a little lax with my social media embargo. I gotta tell you, it feels great to be in smack dab in the middle of a whirlwind and so much fun!

    Mood: Boo-yah
    Caffeinated Beverages Consumed: I WILL NOT CONFESS MY ADDITION.
    Work-Out Minutes Logged Yesterday: A few, but it’s darn cold!
    In My Ears: Amy’s Choice Doctor Who
    Game Last Played: Bears!
    Movie Last Viewed: Resident Evil: Apocalypse
    Latest Artistic Project: Holiday gifts
    Latest Release: “The Button” We Are Dust anthology
January 17, 2013
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Looking for Monica’s books and games that are still in print? Visit Monica Valentinelli on Amazon’s Author Central or a bookstore near you.

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