These posts are from my I’m as positive as I can be that Santa Claus is at the North Pole taking stock of his shelves to see if he can accommodate all the requests from the boys and girls who have written to him. He’s a jolly fellow by midnight, December 24th, as he glides through the air with his sleigh full of toys to deliver to children all around the world.
Taking stock means different things to different people. It could mean the stock market, planning a party, ancestry or lineage, or your personal reputation and where you think you stand in the eyes of your peers. Where we are now, where we need to go, and what we have to do to get there is important to know, and I can’t think of a better time than the end of a year to take stock of our life and what’s important for us.
Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about my future as a writer and the different ways to plan for the year ahead. My work in progress, Prey in the Vineyard, the third in my Shakespeare in the Vineyard series, hasn’t been going well. I’ve done most of the research, but the pieces aren’t falling into place. I don’t outline, but then I never do so that’s not the problem. I have a couple of short stories I want to write, and also edit/rewrite a completed novel I started about ten years ago. I hope to be more proactive next year in promoting by books and keeping my website updated (with my daughter’s help).
As I sit here at my desk, sipping tea, music softly playing in the background, and Shilo asleep on the sofa, all seems peaceful. Until you look at my cluttered desk with scraps of notes scattered around, birthday cards (Christmas cards already mailed) waiting to be addressed, letters to respond to, and recipe cards for an appetizer I’m to take to the police volunteer Christmas potluck this week. I glance at the stack of books on the floor waiting to be read and sigh. Maybe I’ll have another cup of tea and read.
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
