i'm depressed.
i was going to move this summer.
and last summer.
and the summer before that.
but writing always comes first.
but this was going to be THE summer. have to do it. have one of those crazy mortgages that's now gone crazy. and of course i got it because i never planned to be here this long.
but here i am again with a book due December 1. I'm taking all of September off to promote my fall release. i know i should sell my house, pack, and move in this same time frame but i also know the book will suffer in a huge way. i could wait until december, then put the house on the market. but houses don't sell well here december through march, so that seems like a really bad idea. arggghhh! i keep rearranging things in my head and can't figure a way around it.
i can't plot this thing!!!
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If you put your house on the market, you could move to some creepy little town like Tuonela (which now has a really groovy coffeeshop to hang out at.)
You can't overthink these things... it's like getting married or having kids, you just jump in and ride the wave
crob:
LOL! that idea is still in my head!
and you are so right about overthinking this. that's exactly what i'm doing!! i probably need to get back on the same drugs i was on six years ago. :D something to break the pointless thought circle.
Jump in and ride the wave...yeah, I like that.
If I had van, a laptop with a cigarette lighter adapter, gas money, and nowhere else to be, I think I could write an amazing book. How about auction most of the stuff, put the rest in storage, and wander for a while?
(Hope you don't mind me playing out my fantasies through you for a moment. Okay, back to reality.)
We've been talking about/"trying to" move for the last 2 years... this is our third year. The chips have just never fallen exactly in place for us to commit. Hoping this is the year though... we don't have a crazy mortgage, but we do have a crazy property tax reval kicking in this year, along with crazy oil prices.
It will happen if/when it's meant to. Do what you can to push it in that direction, but don't fret if it doesn't all fall into place.
There is never a right time.
There's never a right time to get married, have kids, or buy a house.
You just do it, or you don't.
Pack up and go. It'll lead to inspiration.
[emeraldcite says from his stasis bubble]
Anne, don't be bummed. This has been a tough year with the book from hell--that despite your reservations is freaking awesome--and now your deadline is creeping up.
I guess I would ask myself if I could handle living there more months and write the book I wanted, or move and have life crazy while I write.
Okay, I did that but I had help! And not to mention I was rushed into this by my impatient husband. Otherwise I would still be in a house that was falling apart because I am a creature of habit and routine.
Gees, is this confession time or what?! *laughs*
Hey, emeraldcite is pretty wise. =D
jason, that's exactly what i'd be doing if i didn't have the neck problems i have. (i try to avoid much vehicle time.)
but it still hope to eventually do a version of that, even if it means flying instead of driving.
christa, sometimes i think i just need to shut my pie hole and do something. :D but i tend to think the way you do -- something will happen and i'll know when it's right. once i decide to do something, it's immediate.
emeraldcite: back to the shut my pie hole approach. :D i am stuck in a rut. i can definitely see that, and sometimes jumping in is really the best thing to do.
kelly: i keep thinking of how you moved over a weekend! what i really worry about is trying to show my house while i'm writing. i let everything go and don't think about anything but plot and scene. i just don't know if i can take the intrusion. if the place sold immediately, no big deal. if not. ick.
Of course, my advice comes from a person who fears change...
Hell, I have a panic attack just thinking about it...
:)
Arg. That was me in December. Sorta. Just bit off too many things and wanted to hide in a closet and get something done.
The whole moving/house-selling thing is a pain. Just accept that fact and it'll be less painful. If it was me, I'd try and sell ASAP and worry about unpacking after the deadline du jours have come and gone.
Good luck working out the plot.
Let me tell you, coming from a person who has moved 4 times in 3 years moving is never easy. I say, put your house on the market, see what happens. You can actually schedule times when the house is shown so it's by appointment only. That way it's not as stressful as people coming and going 24-7. Spring/Summer is the best time to sell with the market booming as you said.
Just think how happy you could be in a new place! It's amazing how quickly a person can feel comfortable. I moved almost exactly a month ago and I haven't looked back. I'm much more relaxed and am inspired by being in a new area. I'm never good with change either!
Good luck on working out your plot!
What's that thing about life being what happens when you're making other plans?
There's never a good time to uproot your life, but if you really want to do it, probably better that you make the choice than have the choice made for you. I say that, of course, with no actual context for what your life is like. In other words, I'm probably talking out my ass.
Of course, you could always set fire to the house, dump the insurance payout into a shipment of black tar heroin, sell it on the street and launder the cash through an offshore account in the Caymans. Then it's a life of luxury and ease in South America with cabana boys and a never ending supply of mai tais.
emeraldcite: sometimes i have this what the hell, just do it attitude. other times i'm a big baby.
jamie: i'm feeling the ASAP thing is the way i should go. but yes, it is painful! argghhh!
tami: showing by appointment only is a good idea. and it's encouraging to hear your content after just a month!! it is amazing how quickly we adapt to new situations.
stephen: i'm off to get rags and some other stuff...
Maybe you could incorporate moving house into the book and justify it as research.
Okay, sucky idea... Moving sucks all-round.
sandra, i'd hoped to do that with another blog i was calling you move me. i imagined thousands and thousands of people voting and following my house sale amd move. i appreciate the people who did respond and vote. got a lot of good suggestions, but there was no stampede. :D
Well, you know what we all think here -- that you should move closer so we could stop this "neck business" as an impediment to bi-annual retreats! On the other hand, I think we all voted for Charleston so we'd have some place to crash when we visited there, which isn't close, but at least gave you options! Moving sucks, anyway you look at it. But which is worse, working on the book or moving?
If you set fire to the house, be sure to find a way to blame it on the neighbors!
anne...working on a book or moving...? hmmm. that's a tough one. :D
highlander! hi! and excellent idea!
another idea i've been toying with is to simply not send in a proposal once this contract is fullfilled in december. take 6 months or longer to get things straightened out with my living situation. i would still write during that period, but wouldn't be under a deadline. kind of a risky thing to do though. but if my fall release doesn't do well, it won't matter if i take time off.
Your fall release will do fine. It's an excellent book and readers will be flocking to your door. So when they show up, hand them a box and say, "Put it in the truck".
thanks, stephen. :) i think it might be tough for this book to find its audience, but i'll just have to wait and see.
I think your fall release will do fine.
If you want, when we get the Absolutewrite forums up and it gets closer to release, I can (probably) set you up with a chat interview. AW has (had) about 7000 members. Most of them will be back.
I have moved a few times in my life and know what a pain it can be. My suggestion would be to rent a place down south for a couple of months during the roughest part of the winter and then look to sell your house next spring. That way it won't interfere with your Dec. deadline, plus give you more time to get things settled.
btw- Don't worry about Pale Immortal. It's a great book and I predict it will be the next USA Today bestseller for Anne Frasier. :)
emeraldcite: that would be great!
jeff: i thought of doing that at one time, but i don't think i can swing it!
thanks for the kind words about PI. :)
ever heard of raynaud's disease? just found out i have that. haha. i don't know why i think that's so funny. guess because i live in mn. but that gives me more incentive to move.
Wow Anne, sorry to hear about that! I actually had never heard of raynaud's disease so I just looked it up. It sounds like there are a few things you can do to prevent attacks! I hope your case isn't too severe. Maybe it's a sign that you do need to move!
Like I have mentioned before, it sure is beautiful here in San Diego! Nice and warm! ;)
tami, at this point it doesn't seem very serious. there are drugs a person can take. plus it's something i've had for a long time, just not diagnosed.
the doctor wrote a prescription for mukluks.
http://www.mukluks.com/
:D
you probably don't see those in san diego. hehe
Nope! Flip flops are the footwear prescribed in San Diego. LOL
Those are awesome! I'd totally dig those if I lived somewhere they would get some use.
Yes, I am familiar with Raynaud's. You need to keep those toes and fingers warm.
Do those mukluks come in black? :)
tami, yeah, they're pretty cute! expensive, but i now have an excuse!
jeff, i do believe they come in black!
Sounds like you've got a shitload o' crap on your plate. Wish I had some groovy pearls of wisdom, but the best I can do is send you tons of well wishes. Oh, and I wouldn't stress over the book being successful (though I'm sure you will do it any way...human nature and all that). It sounds like a great read. Nice to know the sequel's already in the works!
Okay, I'm totally behind the times - been off-line doing day job crap for a few weeks & just scrolled down to see what I've been missing on yer blog. So you're gonna be at ThrillerFest?!! How totally bitchin'! Hope to have a chance to say howdy in person!
angie:
you're going?????
woo-hoo!!
see you there!!! :)
and thanks so much for the well wishes. :)
I'd have to be a complete jackass not to go. After all, I live in AZ. Feeling a little weird as I'm still working on 1st draft of 1st novel, but what the hell. I have to advise against mukluks, though. Be prepared for 110+ degree heat - a bit of a drastic change for a Minnesotan, huh?
i don't know, angie.... it might be cold inside the hotel. i'd better bring the mukluks.
LOL!
I have a sister with Reynaud's. On the Avon Walk over the weekend she turned to me and our other sister and said, "Look." Showed us her fingers. Then she went back to eating her breakfast.
That's the extent of what I know about it.
About the move--you already know I'm a ready, fire, aim kind of person. Impulsive as hell. But I DON'T want you to move until after September because I'm doing a stand-up gig in La Crosse WI in September and hoped you might come to see it.
Yes, it is all about me.
jer, those fingers can be blue/black one second, and pink the next. pretty weird.
september, huh? got a lotta book stuff signing stuff in september. let me know the date! i might visit milwaukee sometime. you never know. i like that town, and i'd love to stay at the brumder mansion again. :)
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