Multiple Beginnings

Posted on November 10, 2024 by Karen

So, I did a thing this week. It was rather an epic thing. If not the smartest thing I’ve ever done.

I love my job, I really do, but there is one aspect of it I don’t like, and we’ve had to be doing it since the end of last year. And that is mowing. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind mowing, but when you’re mowing a rest home. No, let me rephrase that, Push mowing a rest home lawn.

For weeks, I’ve been stressed about mowing and weed-eating the lawns. I struggle with weed-eating, because it hurts. I have tennis elbow which started about the same time we started mowing the lawns. Anyway, I know what stress looks like in my body, and my eyebrow was starting to twitch. I also noticed that my multivitamins weren’t working quite like they used to, so I brought more vitamin b to help me with my stress.

But it all came to a head on Tuesday, when we were supposed to mow. I hadn’t had a lot of sleep the night before, and to be honest, I was looking for a fight. So, I started one, with my boss.

And then I quit. I told her where she could stick the job, and I told my boss in Auckland as well.

To start with, I wasn’t sure if it was the right thing to do, and after talking with my immediate boss (who is an absolute sweetie to be honest,) she made me promise that I would think it over before I made a final decision. After an epic walk home, I had a sleep. I literally slept on it.

That night, I wrote a formal letter of resignation to my bosses. If there was a chance of not mowing, I probably would have stuck around, however, that wouldn’t have happened anytime soon.

While I’m sad to be leaving my job, I’m looking at this as an opportunity to move forward, find something new to do, and look at doing part time work so I have more time for my writing and other business ideas that I have.

And while I’m nervous, because I don’t have anything lined up, I’m also confident that something will come up that will make me as enthusiastic as I was about gardening.

And talking about new beginnings, I also started writing Hope’s story, the next character in my Racing Harts story, and I’m already 18k in. I’m taking part in NaNoWriMo, and so far, I’ve clocked in over the daily limit to get the story done by 30th November. I’m quite excited about this story, and even though it is the second story in the trilogy, I have a feeling that it will eventually become the third story, so I am kind of aiming it that way as well.

I hope you all have a good week out there. Think of me, and if you know of any part time work, let me know.

Changes Afoot

Posted on September 29, 2024 by Karen

Some people don’t like change. Sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t. It all depends on whether I’ve initiated it or not. Overall, I’d like to say I’m adaptable and it isn’t often I dig my toes in and resist change.

Change is something that happens regardless of whether you want it to or not. Change can be positive if embraced and negative if you don’t want to accept it. Change is inevitable, you can’t stop progress.

I’m a ‘routine’ kind of girl. I get up in the morning at the same time, prepare the coffee, get dressed, make breakfast, use the bathroom, bush my teeth, wash the dishes, (hang out clothes from the washing machine if I put it on), and then I have writing time.

My work day is different every day, and I have some things on in the evenings, but I try and do editing and some admin in the evenings. Weekend, I get up later, and I tend to tidy around the house, or outside for most of the weekend, but then Sunday afternoon, I’m writing up my blogpost, preparing my facebook feed and getting ready for work on Monday.

Routine helps me to get things done. I discovered this after a long bout of not writing because of procrastination and realising that while I thought I didn’t have time, I had plenty, I was just wasting a lot of it.

And I’m starting to feel like I’m wasting time again and something needs to change. I want to be more productive, do more writing, more editing, get more books out there, but I’m also aware of burnout and not wanting to wreck myself, because I still work a fulltime job.

I have a five year plan. I’m now down to 4 and a quarter years, but I think my five year plan is achievable. I might not be making millions in year five, but I intend to have a good crack at the six figure income by then. My five year plan is so that I can finish working at the end of that time, and rely solely on my writing income.

In saying that, I’m looking at updating my website and completely branding myself – I would say rebranding, but my website has been an ecclectic mess of my branding anyway, but bringing it all together cohesively would be great. So say tuned people.

A New Season

Posted on September 1, 2024 by Karen

Yay, spring is here! Well, not technically, but today is the first of September, which is the first day of Spring, but we’ve had daffodils flowering since April, so perhaps it’s actually autumn???

Well, it has been a busy week for me, not at work, but writing-wise. Had two days off work last week because of rain, which sounds nice, but it isn’t. Not normally, but these two days I used to format up Compromising Positions ebook for Advanced readers, and I put something out in my newsletter about that. If you didn’t get my newsletter, why not? You should be able to sign up if you are on my website.

So, I have a pre-order up for Compromising Positions as well, it will be launched on 1 November 2024. Two books in one year! I know!

Not only that, but after to-ing and fro-ing over my plot in Racing Harts, Faith’s story, I have finally decided on the course of action, and I’m near the finish line, only like 5 or 6 chapters away. Considering I knock out about half to a chapter each time I write, that could be done by next week. And I actually did write every day last week, except for the weekends, because, well, I like to have a break too.

And I am working through the Sam Healey edits. Slowly, very s l o w l y… I’m dragging my feet on that, and I can’t really explain why. I guess I felt that formatting Compromising Positions was more where I needed to spend my time. (I wasn’t procrastinating at all, I promise…)

Anyway, how is your week going? Anything exciting happening in your world?

Take care

Catherine

Getting Stuck In

Posted on July 21, 2024 by Karen

This week has been all about getting stuck in and getting jobs done. Writing, editing, tidying, cleaning, gardening, you name it, I probably did it.

I’ve been writing in the mornings before work again, which has been good. I have to keep reminding myself that I haven’t written myself into a corner, because I know where I want the story to go, it’s just that I seem to keep going off in tangents. I’m hoping to get myself out of that thought pattern tomorrow.

Editing has been a bit slower, I haven’t finished my skim reading, because everytime I start, I actually read through the chapter, which isn’t what I’m supposed to be doing. I’m hoping to get into the full edits this week.

I’ve also started cooking Japanese food, Udon soups, ramen meals, rice dishes, I’ve been making them all, and even had a go at crispy pork. Strangely you don’t seem to need as much food when eating Japanese. I’ve also been looking into some of their philosophy, and I’ve been trying to follow some of them, like cleaning every day. I try and clean every day, and following this theory is actually refreshing.

Work has been all about catching up on the small jobs that tend to get left and become big jobs. Getting in and finishing a big job makes me feel good and I like feeling good about my work. At home, I pruned my roses this weekend, so again, feeling like I’ve accomplished something.

How was your week?

And all it once…it ends!

Posted on May 26, 2024 by Karen

Man, the last few weeks have been hectic, emotional and very disturbing. I’m ready for a break!

I am currently in the middle of getting my final assignment done for my organic’s course, and then I am done. I’ve given myself until 31 May to get this done (course ends on 17 June). I wasn’t sure I was going to get there, but two assignments have been submitted, so just the last one to go.

Also happening on 31st May is the launch of Second-Hand Daughter! I’ve had it up on pre-order for a while and got everything ready for it to be released on time. The books look amazing in real life, and I’ve ordered some to arrive by Friday. Saturday I’ve registered for a book sale, so it should get a few hits then too. It won’t put me on any best seller lists, but it is a successful launch.

My big boss from Aucktown is coming down this week for work to do performance reviews. I have a list of things that I intend to talk to him about, so whether I have a job or not on Tuesday is a different matter. He’s pretty good to talk to, and most of it is just niggling shit that annoys me, and probably shouldn’t.

And I have been back writing Faith’s story, been a bit here and there, but I’ve been writing. Will be nice to get everything above finished and then I can focus on writing, editing and cardmaking.