Vacation Writing Rocks

Today is my first full day back in reality.  And reality is harsh.  Especially after you've been in the Bahamas.

Not only was the water beautiful, it wasn't too cold either! (And yes that's me!)

I spent the last week in the Bahamas and enjoyed every, single minute of it.  It was a fantastic vacation, only made better because it was my honeymoon and I was with my new husband.

And what an amazing husband he is!

He took charge of the honeymoon and he planned such an awesome vacation.  I'd actually agree with anyone who called me spoiled right about now.  I absolutely was spoiled. We even had butler service so I never had to get up and do something if I didn't want to (which included having lunch brought to me poolside).

But besides playing in the water, eating tons of food, and relaxing, I also did some of the best writing I think I ever did.

For a while before going on vacation, I debated whether or not I should do any writing.  Was it fair to my husband to bring work? I contemplated and asked his opinion.  We both agreed it wouldn't hurt to bring it.  So glad I did!

It actually worked out perfectly for us.  I'd get up early and go reserve us a cabana while he woke up and got dressed. Usually, I'd get about an hour of time to myself. And we'd get an awesome cabana that other people always wanted.

Those hours really added up to being some of my best writing.  It was so relaxing.  There was hardly anyone around, soft music played in the background, and the weather was gorgeous (even if it did melt my Macbook case, just a little bit).

I managed to get in at least 1000 words a day, and it felt so effortless.  It was way easier than when I write at home. I'm pretty sure that if I was on vacation everyday writing would go so much faster.  If only, right?

But, writing on vacation isn't for everyone.  It worked out well for me because of our schedules and because I'm pretty good at stopping before I get too carried away. It also helps that our big plans for the vacation were to sit at the beach and relax, so I really wasn't interrupting anything.

And now we're back in reality and I have to dig out another routine. I have a feeling it might involve some procrastination...but maybe I can push some of it off :)

Just for fun, one of the guys we met on our vacation :) (not that I'm procrastinating or anything)

My friend Igor.

Wait, what?

Tomorrow, I'm getting married.

Still trying to let those words sink in.  It hasn't really happened yet because right now I'm just stress, stress, stress, stress, stress.

There's a lot to do.  So much more than I expected.  Last night we had a craft party to get my centerpieces done.  It was worth dragging my friends and my mom's friends to my house to get them going.  There's still a little bit more to do, but they're close to being done now :)

I still have to do the place cards and go make myself beautiful, but everything should be starting to get much easier.  Well, I hope...seeing as the wedding is tomorrow.

Unfortunately, in all the fuss my writing has suffered.  I've maybe written 1000 words over the last two weeks. I just don't have the time.  And I know the whole adage, if it's important, you'd make time.  I no longer really believe that's true.  It is important, but there's not always time.  Sometimes, you just have to live and put your writing to the side.

I hope everyone is having a lovely week.  At this time tomorrow...well, I hope to be sleeping, but we have to get those darn place cards done first :)

Enjoy your weekend!

I'm in the airport Waiting for my flight to Miami! Woot! Of course, we've been delayed. Boo. But I have used my time to get some writing done. It went well again today, even though I wasn't on my laptop. Why no laptop? I don't like to travel with my laptop. I'm always afraid something will happen. But I wanted to be able to write. So I figured it all out. My fiancé has bothered me and bothered me to use Dropbox. I downloaded it a few months ago. It's something I have, but haven't always made use of. But I decided to upload my most recent draft into Dropbox. Now I'm really glad I did because ive been using my fiance's laptop to write. It meant I had my story available to me easily without worrying about where I was or what else I had planned. I definitely recommend Dropbox. It's one of those tech things that just makes writing so. iChat easier. What tech makes writing easier for you?

Summer Vacation

What I love about being a teacher is (besides my students--usually) is having summers to myself.  It's a great chance to explore other things that I want to do.

During the summer, I workout more, travel more, and spend more time on the internet.  This year though, I've decided to try to do more writing.  Every other summer it's been hard for me to stick with my writing routine.  In fact, last summer I didn't write at all.  That was a mistake.  It took a very long time to get back to writing after that.

For some reason, this summer is different.  I've been more focused and driven to get more done.  I wish I could pinpoint why.  I think it has to do with finishing my first novel.  It's giving me a confidence that I didn't really think I'd ever have.  Now, I feel like a writer.

My new story is also going so well. (Knock on wood).  It feels different.  In my first novel, my characters meandered and wandered and I decided to throw this in and that in.  But with my new one, everything clicks.  Every scene has a purpose and I can tell you exactly what that is.  It makes me feel like I'm closer to being published--even if this might not be the one that gets published.  (I really, really, really hope it does though).  But I'm getting there.  I can feel it.

So this summer, my goal is to write at least 10,000 words a week.  My goal is to do 2,000 words a day and take the weekends off.  Sometimes I get so involved and try to push for too much that I burn out.  I think this is a much more manageable goal that I'm pretty confident I can accomplish every week...maybe except for the week I'm on my honeymoon (just a little over two weeks to go!)

That's it for me.  Shoot me a comment about how writing affects your summers.  Is it easy to stick to your routines?