Along with juggling quite a few things I can’t talk about, I have been working diligently on my latest WIP, a dark upper YA novel, Speak No Evil. I am excited about how this book is shaping up and how close I am to the finish line with it. Then I happened to have a conversation with my literary manager and agent extraordinaire, Italia Gandolfo, and she said the dreaded word. DEADLINE! I can’t fault her, she’s been incredibly patient waiting for me to write this particular book, which has written slower than any book I’ve ever done, but has been so worth the time. And deadlines are part of the writing life — whether self-imposed or given to us by others.
And she didn’t JUST say deadline … she gave me the reason. Two well-known producers are interested and she needs a finished product ASAP, and could I please get on it??? I shook my head to clear any obstructions in my ears making me hear things. But Italia confirmed it and may have mentioned that if she gave me my way, I’d pick at this one forever. So then this happened.
After I finished running in circles, my next thought was, Holy Crap, I need to get this thing done!!! I take deadlines very seriously anyway — even if it is a deadline I give myself. The only way to achieve a goal is to have one and as Napoleon Hill said, “A Goal is a Dream with a Deadline.” Without deadlines we cannot take our dreams and turn them into reality. So I do set deadlines for myself all the time, but when it comes to my writing career, I involve Italia, as my manager, to help me set those goals because together we are building my career. And now I have an honest-to-goodness real deadline made out of concrete.
So how do I handle this new deadline??? Using the time-honored tradition of procrastination, I first BLOG about the deadline and break my website in the process. Then I root around in the cupboard because deadlines are serious stuff, so I have to have the appropriate cup to drink from while I am fastened the chain that tethers me to the writing chair. And at this time of year, WHAT could be more appropriate than my turkey cup for a Thanksgiving deadline??? I guess I’d better get busy and get this book submission ready!!