Is writing a business or is it monkey business?

Me, yesterday

Monkey business or a valid use of my time? This photo is how I felt yesterday, trying to figure out three (3!) new software programs. Yeah, I know. I should only do one per season. I definitely felt as if monkey business ruled my actions.
I’ve been wanting to add an opt-in email/newsletter box on this website since forever, but was intimidated. Finally, a couple weeks ago, I put on my big girl panties and signed up to MailChimp. The result? Frustration, confusion and very bad, horrible things. But, we have to persevere, right? The answer? YouTube to the rescue! I found an awesome how to video and, after testing it thirty times or so, it works (no popups yet, but I’ll know how to do it if I decide to annoy readers).

Of course, adding one thing on a website is the first in a line of dominoes:

1. Deciding to add a free offer to new subscribers involved:
   1. Cleaning up the formatting on said offer – a short story. Oh, the horrors of the wrong font and formatting.
   2. Changing from a .docx file to .epub:
      1. Downloading Calibre and wrestling with it for an hour. I can proudly say I now possess 1/10 of 1% knowledge of how it works. Yeah, me!
      2. Uploading and linking said (now) .pub file to MailChimp. Success after a half-dozen tries.
   3. Changing the background color of opt-in box to match the rest of the website (#7EA8D3 for anyone curious)
      1. Getting sidetracked into finding the code to change the BLARING red on the post sidebar. One hour of my life gone. No code found. It will remain red until I die.
      2. *****IMPORTANT UPDATE*****We interrupt this blog post to announce the BLARING RED post sidebar, through the intervention of magic elves in the middle of the night, is now a calming blue #7EA8D3. <cue hallelujah chorus><drop mic>
   4. Finding a link and discovering I can upload any of my books for a FREE download into the nation’s library systems (if they accept it) and for sure into my state’s libraries. Kudos to me—get my work in front of readers!
      1. Uploading .pub file to Self-e’s site (it’s Mr. Right, Mr. Wrong, Mr. Alien for the further curious).

What the rest of my day looked like.

We won’t touch on the rest of my monkey-work for the day. Okay, if you insist:

• Writing yesterday’s blog
  • Posted to Linkedin and other social networks
• Signing up for FREE image site pexels.com and exploring TOO MANY choices.
• Began a 40+ video series on writing in today’s environment and how to make a living doing so (Key=perserverance, butt in chair, write a lot, publish a lot, repeat). Watched six.
• Watched three non-writing related videos. (Abraham for guidance, calm).
• Read 1/4 of an Elmore Leonard book because he was the master in writing only what needs to be written. Learn from the masters, young grasshopper.
• Casting my characters for Alien and the Dying Woman (Daniel Silva and Linda Cardellini for the very, very curious)
  • Deciding my current Alien Book 2 (The Alien and the CEO) will now be book 3 as the above story needs to be told first.
• Made an agenda for my writer’s group on Thursday. Tomorrow, I’ll have to research and draft one of the items. (For the insanely curious, we’ll be discussing the free to library thingy; how to pre-format a manuscript; and how to garner good reviews. {I love the word garner. Garner. It rolls off the tongue so nice. Garner})

That’s yesterday’s monkey business.

What today looks like

It’s Saturday, Sept. 3, and I vow to get some writing done today. See, it’s sandwiched in my to-do list, one hour each:

• Blogging
• YouTube lessons
• Getting ready for Thursday meeting
• Writing
• Critiquing for my Wednesday night group
• Scrivener tutorial

Oh, and I get to eat lunch out with my husband. Where should we go?

Blessings and happy writing!

Cheryl

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