Carrie Callahan

With my last post, I shared a few of my disorganized thoughts and experiences on forming a digital self . This post, I'm going to explore some of my methodology for hopefully crafting said self and maintaining sanity IRL (In Real Life). First, some guidelines you should consider: Don't Spam You know this one and I know you know this one because every writing blog worth its salt mentions this at least once. Basically, you are what you post online. So, if you post nothing but advertisements for your next book you risk becoming a cardboard cut-out or a billboard. Don't flatten yourself. Keep it Reasonable  Don't just make a million accounts, thinking you're going to get a million followers on each one. In order to have an online presence you kind of have to engage in the community. You need to reblog, retweet, like, share, and comment. If you have too many accounts you won't be able to keep up with all of them; you'll be spreading yourself too thin. Ins...

I wrote my first manuscript during the 2012 Camp NaNoWriMo session. I managed, quite happily, to punch out all 50,000 words of that hideous first draft - ten days early, even! For a long time afterward - two years, to be exact - I didn't finish anything else. There was something about that first foray that really struck me and kept me motivated, and it took me a long time to figure out what that was. Turns out, it was the word counter Since I determined that missing link between me and finishing my work, I've tried many different substitutes for the NaNo word count graph. I made my own in Excel, made charts in OneNote, but nothing really helped. Then, I found Write-O-Meter Write-O-Meter is an android app designed with writer's in mind. I use it primarily to log my writing; it tracks word counts, time spent writing, and even how you felt during a particular session. There is a timing feature as well as writing quotes and special little tools to get the creative jui...

The Rut isn't just something you get into, it's a disease. Everyday you have it, it takes over your motivation, your will to work, your concentration. Eventually, The Rut will absolve you of your happiness. So what's the cure? I still haven't figured that out. Things that have worked for me have been consistency, a healthy daily routine (eating right, getting enough sleep, and exercising), and new experiences. By creating a happier life outside of my work, I'm more focused once I actually plant my butt in my seat to write. Humans are incredibly physical creatures, but I don't think we like to admit it. If we're stuck in a rut, we prefer to attribute it to any number of things: bad luck, a lack of talent, an angry deity. It could be that our brains just want a little novel stimulation. It could be that our bodies are just sick of digesting junk food and only getting four hours of sleep a night. Yeah, it really can be that simple. Taking care of yourse...

Man, has it only been a week? These past 7 days have felt like an eternity. Maybe that's because I've been getting things done! Since limiting my daily internet use, I've freed up a lot  of time. No longer do my hours go missing into the great time sinks that are reddit and facebook. Instead, I have those hours to do other things - like actually finishing a podcast (coming soon) and setting up some new fitness goals. It's not just about limiting my internet usage, though, it's also about organizing my days so that I know exactly what needs to get done and when. I'm not gonna lie, I'm a bit of a planning junkie. I really like finding systems that work and I'm about to nerd out on you! Wunderlist  is AMAZING! I've got it set up so that I have larger, weekly goals planned and smaller, daily goals. This app has sub-tasks, reminders, and the ability to get others in your lists. It's also very easy on the eyes. They aren't paying me, I just l...