The first quadrimester (4 months) of the year is over, and I’ve gotten a BUNCH done. I’m really ready for a break and to settle back into some deep, serious self-care. (And diving into more creative projects, of course!) But before I do, here’s a comprehensive round up of everything I’ve gotten done! I’m having a lot more fun (and “success”) this year, and I just hope I can keep up the momentum!

(Don’t want to listen to a 2-hour podcast? As much as my voice sounds like honey on a hard-on, I totally get it. 😉 Just check out the bulleted list of milestones below.)


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QUADRIMESTER #1 CREATIVE ACHIEVEMENTS
(JAN 1 – APR 30)!


Grad School & Teaching:

  • officially reached the end of my second year AND the 2/3 mark of my graduate program!!
  • finished out my four grad classes (Theatre & Culture II; Period Styles – Architecture; The Dramaturg & the New Play Process; Studio Workshop); managed two TAships at once; graded a BUNCH of papers
  • learned a HELL of a lot about international horror film history, re: the aesthetic movements and the industries
  • taught two full lectures, one on Gothic Architecture and one on Blackface Performance
  • finished and submitted prospectus for Shakespeare MFA thesis, which will become the necessary background research for my modernized adaptation of Shakespeare’s Roman history tetralogy
  • am starting to gear up for my final year in the program (which will include finishing my MFA project; passing my MFA comp; teaching 3 more courses; taking an Experimental Dramaturgy course and a Play Adaptation course; and having a final directing opportunity)
  • started working on my Artist’s Manifesto

Creative Uni:

  • FINANCIAL HEALTH
    • Real Estate Investing 101 SIGNATURE COURSE (Andre C. Hatchett) — MOST
    • The Live Richer Challenge: The Credit Edition SIGNATURE COURSE (Tiffany the Budgetnista) — SOME
    • Cryptocurrency RESEARCH
    • Invested in the Cryptocurrency 101 SIGNATURE COURSE (The Digital Underground)
    • MARKETING
      • 5 New Ways to Get Instagram Followers in 2018 MASTERCLASS (Later)
    • ENTREPRENEURSHIP
      • How To Build a Business with Your Current Skills MASTERCLASS (Tiffany the Budgetnista)
      • Publish Your Thing: Make Your Site Remarkable Already SIGNATURE COURSE — SOME
      • Publish Your Thing: Visual Arsenal SIGNATURE COURSE — SOME
    • CREATIVE
      • Scrivener 3 SIGNATURE COURSE — SOME
      • The Creative Penn PODCAST
      • How to Create a Binge Worthy TV Show WEBINAR (Screenwriting U)
      • Learned to use Dragon Naturally Speaking Software
      • Learned the History of International Horror Films
      • Started learning Unity
    • PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT
      • The Happy Black Woman PODCAST

DIRECTING & DRAMATURGY:

  • Directing 2018 MLK Performance:
    • went to tech & dress rehearsal for MLK day (1:30 PM – 3:30 PM; 6:30 PM – 9:30 PM)
    • went to MLK performance and managed/blocked performers (12:30 – 5:30 PM)
    • THE PERFORMANCE WAS AMAZING!!!
  • Directing the “Generator: Death of King Arthur” Production:
    • PRE-PRODUCTION: wrote casting notice for King Arthur studio; went to King Arthur auditions (6 PM – 10 PM); did research and adaptation work for my King Arthur storyline; went to King Arthur research and writing meetings; advocated and achieved co-director credit for King Arthur Production!; wrote beat sheet for Morien storyline; wrote 1/3 of the Morien story script; created production packet for actors; went on a 3-hour prop shopping and costume shopping tour for the King Arthur production
    • PRODUCTION: created 17 moments in total; finished the rest of the script for Morien + WROTE A MINI MUSICAL about Morien, the Black Knight of the Arthurian Round Table; finished a combined, more streamlined script for the entire King Arthur production; attended an actor reading of the script; edited and locked the final script; held real rehearsals; staged and blocked the entire Morien storyline on stage; brought in a stage combat expert; polished the staging and blocking; ran the show; and OPENED THE SHOW ON THURSDAY, APRIL 19
    • POST-PRODUCTION: wrote final paper and assessment of the King Arthur Production process; WE GOT NOMINATED FOR AN “ALPHIE AWARD” FOR BEST STUDIO SERIES PRODUCTION!!
  • Dramaturgy:
    • finished a one-round development process for a 10-minute play about Korean comfort women, complete with two sets of written notes and one phone conversation
    • finished a three-round development process for a 10-minute play about gentrification, complete with six sets of written notes, three phone conversations, and a Skype reading; helped developed a voice of color
    • finished a three-round development process for a 10-minute play about micro aggressions, complete with six sets of written notes, three phone conversations, and a Skype reading; helped developed a voice of color
    • finished a one-round development process for TWO full-length plays, complete with a set of notes for a full-length original play, a set of notes for a full-length play adaptation
    • finished a full dramaturgical protocol for the 10-minute play on gentrification
    • finished a full dramaturgical protocol for the 10-minute play on micro aggressions
    • finished a full dramaturgical protocol for full-length play adaptation and a partial protocol for an original play adaptation

REBEL RAGDOLL BUSINESSES

  • Rebel Ragdoll:
    • finished business purchases for 2018
    • finished creating my at-home artist’s studio, which includes: the Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, InDesign, Premiere Pro, Prelude, After Effects, and Audition), game design software (Unity and UnReal); writing & publishing software (Scrivener 3, Dragon Naturally Speaking, and Vellum), and blogging/marketing software (Elegant Themes, Screenflow)
  • The Blackheart Boulange:
    • updated, designed, and edited The Blackheart Boulange, The Blackheart, Bakery, and The Blackheart Boudoir websites
    • updated some websites and did some backend website development
    • decided to put The Blackheart Boulange on hiatus until fall of 2019 / fall of 2020
  • The Bohemian Badass:
    • The “Breaking Badass” Challenge: fully outlined the challenge
    • The Self-Care Journal for Artist-Entrepreneurs: designed the content for the journal
    • The Bohemian Badass Scrivener Templates (for courses and lead magnets): worked on the Plot like a Badass template; updated and FINISHED the Badass Horror Novel Scrivener Template, the Badass Horror Screenplay Scrivener Template, and the New Novel + Plot Builder Template
    • The Bohemian Badass Podcast: recorded, uploaded, and posted episode #5 (1 podcast)
    • The Bohemian Badass Blog: recorded a MailerLite tutorial for an author; and then turned it into a blog post (1 blog post)
    • Complete Business Reboot: updated podcast graphic template; updated the INSTAGRAM post graphic; worked on The Bohemian Badass website; re-designed sample template for the TBBA blog template graphics, Facebook graphics, Twitter graphics, and Instagram graphics; really got to know my target market and audience; re-wrote my brand mission; WORKED ON Template Set #1: blog post graphic template, Twitter graphic template, Facebook graphic template, Instagram graphic template; WORKED ON Template Set #2: blog post graphic template, Instagram graphic template; worked on brand and web design by studying/analyzing other brands in the field; doing more research for The Bohemian Badass
    • Developed an affiliate plan for The Bohemian Badass that I am SUPER excited about!
  • New Adult Noir(e):
    • Wrapped up the December 2017 “25 Days of Box Sets” giveaway
    • Updated all subscriber lists with new subscribers from 2017 giveaway
    • Cleaned up and segmented all my subscriber lists
    • Created an awesome lead magnet and landing page for New Adult Noire
    • Updated New Adult Noir(e) website
    • Ran two FREE BOOK promos for January 2018 and February 2018
    • Ran two AUTHOR EXCLUSIVE PROMOS for April 2018
  • Rebel Ragdoll Press:
    • finished story for the 2054 anthology
    • published the paperback version of THE GIVEN
    • published the paperback version of THE TAKEN
  • Rebel Ragdoll Productions:
    • went shopping for film scheduling and budgeting software
    • engaging in gaining directing experience
  • The Dollhouse:
    • recorded and posted my first Single Mom Entrepreneur vlog

MARKETING, MAINTENANCE, & COMMUNITY

  • Marketing:
    • General: did some exploring of social media outlets; updated squeeze pages and pop-ups for New Adult Noir(e) and for Colby R. Rice; updated websites as needed
    • Patreon Page Launch: updated Patreon page with ALL new posts, revamped Patreon description, and launched it! (I still need to update my milestones/goals + reward levels)
    • Scored an Instafreebie special promo for GHOSTS OF KOA!
    • Re-uploaded e-book covers and new e-book files to all distributors for both THE GIVEN and THE TAKEN
    • FINISHED a complete reboot of my author marketing funnel!
    • FINISHED reader survey
  • Reader Community:
    • Reader Interaction: noticed a significant uptick in reader engagement, retention, and feedback;
    • Reader Demographics: finished my reader survey, and now I have a great idea of who is in my reader community (nearly 400 respondents took the survey)
    • Growth of Reader Community: added 16 members to my Dark Council list (rabid fans!), 7 members to my Dark Council FB community, and 5 members to the Offworld FB community
    • Growth of Patreon Community: I have TWO Patrons!
  • Co-Creator Community:
    • Black Media Maven Mastermind: formed an unofficial community with Crystal, Udochi, Amy, and Regine; started conceptualizing a Black Media Maven Mastermind, comprised of Black women who are trying to be bosses in media and other creative industries
    • Author Community: community has grown through my online interactions with authors, the 4-author collaboration, and New Adult Noir(e) Author Community
    • Mentorship: reviewed a business plan and gave back comments to my mentee, Salestasia
  • Blogging / V-logging:
    • recorded, uploaded, posted 14 new episodes for the Epic, Fantastical Journey of a Black Female Sci-fi Writer Podcast
    • added 1 episode to my Unapologetically Melanated Media Crit vlog
    • recorded and posted my first Single Mom Entrepreneur vlog

WRITING & WORLDBUILDING

  • Worldbuilding & Plotting:
    • worked A LOT on research, worldbuilding, and plotting for the ASYLUM trilogy
    • did worldbuilding and plotting for The Books of Ezekiel series; did world building and plotting for the ASYLUM tetralogy; prepared cover production spec docs for series covers; worked on plotting for SODOM; plotting for Season 0 of The Books of Ezekiel series; worked on Micah Burke’s plot for HOLLOW POINT; plotting and world building for 2054
  • Writing: FINISHED The Camille 2054 story; FINISHED editing it; wrote a total of 44,463 words!
    • BOE Series: 12,221 words
    • ASYLUM Series: 740 words
    • The Godsman Series: 60 words
    • The Camille: 31,442 words
      • Episode #1: 22,093
      • Episode #2: 6,191

SELF-CARE

  • Self-care:
    • Self Care Upgrade: recommitted myself to self-care FIRST, sleeping better, eating better, more common spiritual practice, regular exercise regimen, better physical care, going to therapist more regularly, and created and maintained a self-care, exercise, and food diary, kept my self-care in mind if not at the forefront of my day-to-day experiences; CONSIDERING GOING VEGAN (on a trial basis) and am doing my research on meal planning
    • The Self Care Journal: made a daily self-care checklist which will become a journal product for my personal use AND yours!
    • Deep Focus: reminded myself of how to take one thing at a time and to focus on it until it is done (has worked really well)
    • Hobbies and Play: started lightly dabbling back into some hobbies (drawing, crocheting, coloring)
    • Hired My Village: got house cleaned regularly and ordered food when necessary (but perhaps too often)
    • Grad School Recusal: took days off when necessary; stood up for myself and my rights when necessary; tried my best to stay out of grad school politics; stayed away from campus/grad school/faculty as much as possible
  • Mommying / Adulting:
    • Being an amazing mom (the best I can)
    • Introducing my daughter to making theatre

******

PLAYS READ: 40

  • The Octaroon
  • Woyzek
  • A Glance at New York
  • Pussy Sludge
  • Native Gardens
  • The Wanderers
  • Constellations
  • Augusta Brown
  • Jazz
  • Blood
  • Ubu the King
  • 8 Futurist Plays
  • The Yellow Sound
  • Sphinx and Strawman
  • Mother Courage and Her Children
  • A Tempest
  • Toufann
  • What Washed Ashore Astray
  • The Parasites (10-min play)
  • Untitled (10-min play)
  • Lost Souls (10-min play)
  • Cost of Living**
  • Welcome to Matteson!*

TV SHOWS WATCHED: 5

  • How to Get Away with Murder*
  • Scandal
  • The Defenders
  • The Punisher*
  • Altered Carbon

FILMS WATCHED: 3

  • Night of the Living Dead
  • The Cloverfield Paradox
  • Black Panther