Where the magic should happen

I think I have one more writing post. I can't be sure yet as I'm writing this on Sunday to go up on Wednesday and anything could happen by Thursday.

The reason I don't accomplish great things is that I am disorganized. That is my excuse today. For months, this flat surface has been covered by tax stuff, bills, and discarded mail. I've spent a great deal of time making my home office look like this, with all the papers organized. And this picture reveals a bit about me.

1. I have a terrible Sonic/Diet Coke habit. I love it. I really do. I can't give it up. I need it. I usually have one of these on my desk. I should figure out a Trash to Treasure idea to make use of all my ginormous styrofoam cups. I might save the world singlehandedly.

2. I was blogging when I took this picture. My ideas are stacked there in the center. And the Blogger screen is up.

3. I am disorganized because I don't spend the time to take care of things as they come up. Notice the pile in the back? That is a Marketplace Connection pile, my other time commitment. And there it sits. Waiting. Frowning at me when I come in to do other things, like play games on Facebook. Lately I've just been frowning back. I can procrastinate with the best of 'em when I'm motivated.

4. I do like organization and systems themselves. The colored boxes are for book ideas. They have notecards in them with scenes, characters, conversation bits, and general "wouldn't this be cool?" ideas. Just in case I ever carve out the time to do something with them.

5. And here's the really revealing part...I made a schedule. That part's a sickness. One part of my job at Leisure Arts is building the schedule for each publication. Once it goes on our publishing calendar, then I build a schedule with intermediate deadlines to help us get it to the printer on time. And at this point, schedule-making has become a compulsion I can't really fight. I enjoy it way more than the process most of the time because that's a perfect world.

6. And I posed this shot with an inside joke for all LA people who have a connection with the journey that is the Gooseberry Patch Christmas book. You know who you are. I've used a recent photostyling trick to add some "cash" to the picture. Maybe we can photoshop it out later? That photostylist must have a "cents" of humor.

7. And here's a photo of Darcy's normal pose (when she's awake). She's a great writing partner. She is quiet most of the time.