THOUGHTS, RAMBLINGS, WHATEVS
SO! This past week! The short version? Creativity on FLEEK, bitches! And my life game? UPGRADING.
Update’s a little late this week because there’s so much that’s been going on! To start, the countdown to Arizona has begun! Woot! We’ll be moving within a month, and so lots of things are happening: packing, sorting, carting stuff and old clothes to Goodwill. Out with the old and in with the new. So yeah, that’s happening!
Also, I have just been BUBBLING. OVER. WITH. CREATIVITY. And ideas! For plot twists, new IPs, development for blossoming IPs, and more. But we’ll get to that in a bit.
I’ve been thinking a lot about all the changes I’m making and want to make before my 30th year is over: in terms of career, health, life, travel… and obviously my creativity and the way I navigate it is a huge part of that. Lol, I mean, I’m even trying to figure out what kind of “word count per day” is comfortable for me, so that I can churn out books more regularly but also engage in my other interests. Filmmaking, screenwriting, gaming (and game development), directing, producing, and learning all the new skills that come along with being a dramaturg are all super important to me.
Bruh… who the hell does that? Can we say “focus”? Lol!
Am also realizing that my energies ARE in fact finite. At least while I’m home with the little Queen, that is. When I’m killing it on my word count, for example, I have little left over for developing The Bohemian Badass. Or I’ll SLOG through my selected course at my creative uni, rather than fly through. And vice versa, and etcetera. Consequences of grown ass womanhood, I suppose. But they say that whatever you focus on will grow, so I guess everything is growing a little more each day, even if they’re not all growing at the same pace!
Am also really enjoying and vibing with my friend circle right now, because all my friends are not only awesome people, but they are also doing big as fuck things: one has just become a finalist in the James Patterson co-author competition. Another is working on one of my FAVORITE shows, “How to Get Away with Murder”. I’ve got a lot of actor friends performing on the silver screen, on Broadway, off Broadway, just killing it with their craft. Tons of friends getting PhDs and tenure track positions after graduating from the number one university in their fields. Lots of friends starting families and being kick-ass parents. One of my best friends is the head of a major women in comics movement, paneling at NYCC, getting invited and recognized by big players in the field like the National Book Foundation, the Melissa Harris Perry show, and way more. And of course, there are other friends I haven’t even mentioned yet, but they know who they are!
Just badass bosses doing badass boss things. I feel so blessed to be surrounded by greatness all the time and to be consistently inspired by everything my peeps do. It makes me even more determined to get these five books published this year.
Lol! Anyways, I guess this month is just a reflective month as I try to finish up a lot of projects, bask in my circle, and position myself to blast into Q3 (July 1) with all rockets firing! So, wow, yeah… that update started off boring as fuck and then got long and awesome. Boom! And we march forward with:
LAST WEEK’S HAUL
What I wrote: Holy fuck did I kill it on The Iron Maiden this week. Nearly 12,000 words and counting. I’m determined to churn out at least 2,000 words per day until I feel like this ish is DONE. (Actually, I’ll be pulling 2,000 a day regardless, because #writergoals and #lifegoals.) I’ll also probably be moving the release date back. Sorry, boos. I HATE disappointing readers, but that doesn’t mean that The Iron Maiden ISN’T coming. IT IS! It just means it’s coming 4-6 weeks later than planned. Bear with me… I want to make it the best book I can!!
What I edited: Lots of The Iron Maiden, actually. Specifically getting a logical plot progression in order where the story’s a little cray cray.
What I read / watched / listened to: My usual podcasts. More of Mockingjay. Mockingjay actually picked up a bit, so I don’t dread finishing it, but I’m still only able to do about one chapter per day. Guess it’ll just take me a lot longer than usual. But I’ve committed to finishing it for one other special reason: I’m going to write a special short story fan fiction set in the world of the Hunger Games. (More about it below!) Um, I’ve also found a pin on Pinterest that lists out forty-one thriller and suspense books that I now just HAVE to read. So there’s that. So many books, so little time!
In other news, I’ve put all of my binge-watching of my favorite shows and missed movies on hold until I have a baby-free schedule on my hands, lol. To try and catch up otherwise would make me feel extremely frustrated, as my little one is determined to distract me.
What I researched / developed: Bruh. Not only did I develop the worlds and books for three existing IPs this week, but I also created EIGHT, yes, EIGHT new IPs! Holy moly. Five of them are awesome spin offs of an IP that I’m particularly crazy about, which I’ll start writing and releasing next year alongside the ASYLUM trilogy (and hopefully, the FORGOTTEN trilogy). But as I mentioned above, one of the IPs I’m working on is a special project set in the world of The Hunger Games.
The special project is a collection of short stories. It just pays homage to the trilogy that kicked off the world’s more general acceptance of female-led stories. And these short stories inside me just HAVE to be written. (My ideas for them are pretty cool, actually, imo.) The collection is going to be free (obviously, or I’d get sued) and available on both my website, WattPad, and on fanfiction.net. I’m having covers made for each story and everything (fiverr.com, yo)! Not trying to pimp Collins’ work. I’m just showing respect, spreading the love, and inviting folks into my interpretation of and expansion on the series. The collection’s going to be called Famine.
What I learned: Finished a big fat chunk of Nick Stephenson’s Your First 10K Readers course, and it’s freaking phenomenal. I’m flying through it as quickly as I can, taking notes and creating action plans so that I’ll be ready to rock it in Q3!
THIS WEEK’S HUSTLE
What I’m writing: More of The Iron Maiden. Running to the finish line!
What I’m editing: More of The Iron Maiden, and focusing very closely on PACKING and MOVING (to AZ) so that I’m not in a last minute rush. I still have some tech stuff to do on my websites, but I’m starting to realize that I’m not superwoman, lol. One thing, one day, one week at a time.
What I’m reading / watching / listening to: More Mockingjay.
What I’m researching / developing: Undoubtedly, the development of new IPs and growth of existing IPs will just unfold naturally. Apparently, my subconscious is just working in overdrive right now, so I guess things will surface as they surface. As usual, I’ll keep ya’ll posted!
What I’m learning: Still trying to finish Your First 10K Readers, so that will be the focus for this week. It’s a huge course, but worth every minute, and every penny!
Writing on, rocking on, and forever journeying towards creative badassery,
<3 Colby
