Once Upon This Time...

*giggles uncontrollably to self* *ahem* Back to the point of this post!

So! We're halfway through March, which is about the point I said I would be back on track here. So... am I? Pretty much, yeah. I don't think there's ever a point where you're ever truly caught up.

My Writing

Even though I didn't write/revise as much as I was hoping, although I think my mind had a different idea of how far I would get, I am still proud of how much I was able to do. One thing my mind didn't take into consideration is the fact that I'm EDITING now. Editing takes longer than blitz writing or just writing. I'm fixing mistakes, rewording sentences, deleting whole paragraphs, and rewriting whole scenes. I was reading on Veronica Roth's blog about how much Divergent changed from first draft to final draft (don't read it unless you've read Divergent!), and it was a comfort to know I'm not alone in changing things dramatically. It's funny how the ideas from week one of NaNo changed to completely different ideas by the end of the month, and even NOW it's different. I may have to do one of those posts once I finish my book.

Since you're all wondering how much I accomplished, I will give you the word count details. I can't recall what the word count was when I started February (my best guess is 2,500-3,000). In any case, my current revision word count (as of last night when I scheduled this) is 10,051. 8200 of it is words in order, 2051 is from the scenes I wrote out of order. So, I wrote/revised about 7,000 words in about 6 weeks. It feels GOOD, let me tell ya.

The To Be Read List

I had to cut down on my TBR list. The last time I went through it, I found so many books I won't read. And I have come to realize that as time passes, my tastes evolve into something different. Some things I would read just to read before become more of a waste of my reading time.

Of course, on this one I don't remember the number I started at. All I know is I probably removed about 50 books. For some reason, it just feels like a weight lifted off my chest, even though it's not that big of a deal. It's just nice to clear out anything that is unnecessary, you know?

My Etsy Shop

I was able to get my Etsy shop back up and running! Some of it is handmade stuff by me but most of it is craft supply destash. My room has been chock full of craft supplies and many of them were purchased on a whim or when I thought I could use them for a project but never got around to it. I still have a lot of craft supplies (almost wonder if I should weed more stuff out), but it's gone down tremendously. If anyone is interested, I added a 27% off discount (just type in "save27sale" in the apply shop coupon code spot when the item is in your cart). I have sold a few things but I am determined to get as many of these things GONE as possible by the time the listings expire.

My Blog Posts

I've been able to work out a number of posts that I can't wait to share with you. I saved them up so that in case I fall behind again, I have at least a week or two of leeway to get it back together. As you may remember from this post, there will be a few new features happening on this blog. On My Mind for the things currently on my mind, Question Of The Moment for the bookish/writing things I'm pondering about, and Inspired Creations for the Etsy awesomeness related to all kinds of obsessions.

My Reading

I got behind on my goal for the year in the middle there, but caught up near the end. I'm hoping to stay ahead for the time being. Also, I am getting closer on catching up to the number I should be at on my e.e. cummings poetry reading. I am behind on it, but I keep kicking myself so that I read the minimum at the very least per day. The further behind on reading I get, the less likely I'll have book reviews to post! AH! So, I need to keep up with it, at least for this year.

What Is To Come...

The rest of March and into April will include:

• attempting to revise 5,000-10,000 more words
• more blog posts
• my blogoversary giveaway
• list several more items on Etsy
• list a bunch of books on eBay
• a guest post on another blog
• a guest post on my blog
• ...and probably some other cool things, lol

I can't think of anything else. But I'm sure I'm missing something. Oh well, it'll be a surprise then!

Anyways, that's about all there is to say for now. Thanks for reading about the latest with me, even though it wasn't that interesting, and I threw in a shameless plug for my Etsy shop. ^_^ XOXO to all!

~Jessica

PS: Original picture has been removed on 08/03/2012