The anthology is in print, we had a wonderful launch party at Towne Center Books in Pleasanton, but the long shadow of the To-Do List is creeping over my joy. Like many of you – probably all of you – I have a lot of irons in the fire. Writing isn’t the only thing I do, so time management is essential. I have lists and charts and graphs in all of my work spaces, reminding me of the endless and varied deadlines that rule my life. In fact, I have so many lists and charts and graphs that I’m starting to think of myself as a Walking Tetris.
My day is broken into chunks, and as one item gets crossed off the to-do list another slips in to take its place. Whatever is left undone at the end of one day is rolled over to the next day. Thus, the weeks also get broken into chunks, with the work of one day slipping into the work for the next.
Sometimes everything proceeds smoothly, but sometimes the piece that slid in so easily prevents the next piece from locking in place. When that happens, by the end of the week my to-do list is as long as it was at the beginning, and now I have another week’s worth of projects to add to it.
When the projects pile up, which is most of the time, even finishing something as exciting as the anthology can get lost in the rush to the next thing in line. Just this once, however, I think I’ll turn the lists over, cover the charts and hide the graphs. Tomorrow I’ll be a Walking Tetris again, ruled by deadlines – tonight I’m reveling in a project completed.