J.R. McGinnity's Official Site
Epic Fantasy. Secret Missions. High Stakes.
  • Home
  • About Me
  • Writing Blog
  • Book List
    • The Talented
    • The Kingdom of the Light
    • The Bodyguard >
      • The Bodyguard: Part One
      • The Bodyguard: Part Seventeen
      • The Bodyguard Comment Section
  • VLOG
  • Editing Services
    • Beta Reading
    • Content Editing
    • Copy Editing
    • Testimonials
  • NaNoWriMo 2018

Welcome to my blog

As a writer, my first area of interest is obviously my books, but for my blog I will try to address different writing issues or provide my own tips when it comes to writing or self-publishing.

My blog also includes shout-outs to and recommendations for other blogs or websites, book reviews or recommendation, and a few posts sparked by nothing but an area of interest at the moment or occasionally a complaint or five. 

-J.R. McGinnity
P.s. This blog contains affiliate links, usually to Amazon.

Home

The love/hate relationship with deadlines

6/2/2014

0 Comments

 
Picture


Let's be honest: we all have a love/hate relationship with deadlines.

On one hand, deadlines are big, awful, scary things. Like running late for an interview, deadlines can cause untold amounts of stress and anxiety. I have to get this done! I'm falling behind! I'm not going to make it!

Deadlines are the reason college students pull all-nighters and 8 hour days turn into 12 hour days. They cause stress.


They also "cause" focus. 

When you have a deadline, you don't forget about that project. You don't sit down and watch three hours of Antiques Roadshow. You don't go on a leisurely Sunday drive. You work.

And that can be exciting. My latest (and greatest) version of my book The Talented was finished on the deadline for this year's ABNA. My work on The Bodyguard is on a deadline so that I can start releasing it as a serialized novel June 16th.

My recent surge of job applications forced me to focus on my goals and philosophies as a teacher.

Deadlines are big, awful, scary things that result in focus and hard work. 

I don't know that there is any single thing more important than that. Not if you want to be a serious writer. Or really, a serious anything.

Deadlines provide an impetus for action. That impetus is especially important when the action is for something secondary in your life. If you write for a living, you are going to keep working on that next novel because that's your job. When you write for a hobby or a sideline, there needs to be something more. Something that makes you work.

And that is what deadlines do.

So find a way to give yourself a deadline. Find a writing buddy or critique partner who expects 5,000 new words a week, and if you don't deliver you owe them $5 (or a beer). Enter a contest. Set yourself a goal that, if reached, will result in some sort of reward. If I finish this draft by July 1st, I get to buy a new pair of shoes.

Trust me, a deadline can make all the difference.

And since I only have hours left on my Kickstarter campaign, that is giving me a strict deadline on asking for last minute donations. As I write this I am sitting at 91%. I invite everyone to throw me a couple bucks or share the following on Twitter or Facebook: Only hours left to raise funds for The Talented by J.R. McGinnity via Kickstarter. http://buff.ly/1jMpIOT


Picture
Donations go through your Amazon account, making it a quick and painless process through a trusted company.
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    RSS Feed

    Author

    My name is J.R. McGinnity, I am a former English teacher with a passion for writing fantasy novels with strong female leads.

    My time is spent immersed in books (reading or writing), hiking when the Midwest weather allows, and watching seasons of old TV shows.

    Follow her on Twitter @JRMcGinnity

    Archives

    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013

    Categories

    All
    Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award
    Blogs On Writing
    Book Recommendations
    Characters
    Editing
    Genre
    Kickstarter
    Miscellaneous
    NaNoWriMo
    Self Publishing
    Sensory Saturdays
    Services
    The Talented
    Top Ten Tuesday
    Tuesday Tips

    RSS Feed

Follow me on Twitter @JRMcGinnity
Proudly powered by Weebly