lagilman | Entries tagged with the freelance life

False health day - which is to say, I feel so much better I could do All The Things.... which maturity reminds me is how I ended up with pneumonia that one time.

Yeah, never want to do that again.

So I'll be taking another quiet workday on the sofa with laptop and tea, rather than giving in to the impulse to run all the errands, etc.

All the chore-things (and fun-things) that need doing will still need doing on Wednesday, and be none the worse for the wait. And enforced focus on work (aka the sofa-tether) means I'm going to hit ahead of deadline on the current project. So yay?

I tried to manage three different cats (anthology edits, winery job, writing) within the same half hour period, and my head may have imploded.

I need to not do that again. Fortunately, the manic phase of the anthology is starting to come to a close (these stories are SO GOOD, you guys), Unfortunately, I'm expecting revisions notes for Book 3 Any Minute Now, so that's going to take up the slack...

Compartmentalizing and time management. Those are my new BFFs.

Crossposts: http://suricattus.livejournal.com/1993428.html

One of the interesting/infuriating/exhausting things about working in a tasting room is that you rarely have any sense of how any particular day may go. There may be a slam of people early, and then nothing all day. You may be slow all day, or slammed from the moment you open your doors. You may think the day's going to be a total loss, and then in the last half hour things get really busy. There's no way to predict: even if you have a group reserved, they may come in late, or not show up at all (or, come in 45 minutes early, but let's not talk about that one...)

I think we had nearly all of those iterations, this past weekend, ending with someone squeaking in 5 minutes before we closed (I'd gotten inventory done already, so I said 'what the hell.'). And he was a delightful guest, so I'm glad I did.

I am thinking, though, that I should do a "how to visit a tasting room" primer....?

Anyway, and now it's Monday and it's snowing (surprise! Pretty sure this was not in the forecast), and I intend to sit at my desk with a cat on my lap and a laptop on the desk and wear my writer/editor hat ALL DAY. Well, most of the day....

Crossposts: http://suricattus.livejournal.com/1993128.html

Someone with a large dog in my neighborhood has a collar for said dog that not only glows in the dark but shifts color. It's a #RavePup!

I know this because it is very dark and rainy outside. Oh well, blue skies, you were a nice reminder of what's coming in a few months. We'll wait.

Meanwhile, the next few days are split, about 30% winery stuff, 70% writer-stuff, and 20% activism. Wait, you say, that's more than 100%? Why yes, so it is. And I have a cold, too.

*Squints at sinuses. Sinuses squint back, then sneeze*

Coffee is required.

How be you?

Crossposts: http://suricattus.livejournal.com/1990173.html

Today: Dive Into WorldBuilding vidcast this morning, political-legal stuff, working lunch with Rocky Pond crew, finish Patreon episode for this month and send it to betas, confirm sketches for cover of THE CASE OF THE FECKLESS FERRETS, follow-up on still-pending NYC publishing stuff, clean apartment, promote books and upcoming signings and whatnot....

Oh, right. And scritch cats. Very important, can't forget that.

Crossposts: http://suricattus.livejournal.com/1984999.html

Before you say “gee, your prices are kinda high” to a freelancer, consider that out of that money they have to:

a) pay living expenses (rent, food, utilities)

b) pay taxes

c) pay health insurance and all non-covered medical bills

d) put up with a client who doesn’t think they’re worth a living wage for a professional skillset the client has requested.

One short story has been handed in, awaiting editor's response, one short story under sail - or would be, if there was any wind - and one novel due in 15 days and we're going to make it, one way or another, by dog. And a client manuscript on the desk, and another one on deck.

Busy days.

Meanwhile, it is unseasonably, unregionally HOT in Seattle, and it being Seattle, my apartment building doesn't have A/C. What I do have is a fan and a balcony that picks up an ocean breeze, so we're cranky but surviving. Even if I did have to ice the cats on Saturday.

(relatedly, anyone want a nice, spinnable pile of carded cat hair?)

And this week being a holiday one, I also have three shifts at the tasting room. There is uncertainty if it will be busy, as people seek to escape the heat, or if it will be dead, as people refuse to go out into the heat. Busy is to be preferred, for many reasons, but quiet would equal more time to work on deadline-driven projects...

I had a lovely, if brief visit in NYC, getting to see friends and have meals with friends, and just hang out with friends, despite our incredibly busy, indeed hectic lives.

(in one instance we literally had time for HALF a cup of coffee. But that was lovely too)

And then to Boston, for my mom's 80th birthday party with family and friends and friends-who-are-family. And the weather was PERFECT (sunny, warm, not TOO warm), and then the rains came and did not stop for two days. Gilman weather luck strikes again.

And now I am home, and the cats have been reclaimed, and the new book is due in 29 days, plus graduations and editorial work and social gatherings, and a short story I need to revise, and the side-gig shifts, and the Research* Road Trip....

Hi! How're YOU doing?

*actually the Fact-Checking Road Trip, but that is less tripping on the tongue

I was out and about on Friday night. And Saturday night. And Sunday afternoon. And Monday night. And then again on Tuesday night. Social butterfly was me. I am therefore officially pulling the door shut behind me as I go into the work cave and may not actually interact with another human being until Friday. Trust me, it's better this way for all of us.

Books to write. Books to edit. Emails to send, coaxing people into doing ~~what I want~~ what's best for them. Busy busy busy.

Meanwhile, courtesy of the lovely P, I had a small plate of mini-cupcakes on my counter this morning. So that was breakfast sorted. So I'm going to be a happily buzzing hermit, at least until the sugar crash* sets in....

*[admission: I remove about half the frosting before eating, because I know my sugar issues]

Today is when estimated 3rd Q taxes are due in the mail, if that's a thing that you need be concerned with. Just a friendly reminder from your neighborhood freelancer....

Meanwhile, the editorial revisions to CLAWED (Gin & Tonic #4) are back with my editor as of this morning (on schedule, go me!). So what's up for the rest of 2014?

Well, I'm still waiting on the revisions letter for SILVER (I keep reminding myself it's 'only' been 10 weeks since I handed it in....argh). So when that does hit, it's all decks on hand for that. And it will be an intensive revision, because we're also going to be working with the language experts and the weaponry experts, to make sure no Actual Facts got FUBARd during the creative process.

Other than that?

I'm still waiting on the edits for WORK OF HUNTERS, and I need to finish AN INTERRUPTED CRY, and get those out to the kickstarter backers.

And I owe an editor a short story, and there are two other short stories that have been waiting in queue for...a while now. Oops.

Hrm. 2014 was a relatively quiet year for new releases from me, with only the new mystery and a short story, but it looks like 2015 might be...kinda busy.

(Plus - wearing my other hat - I have a client manuscript incoming any time soon, and a handful of short stories to edit. Wheeeee.)

oh yeah, and if you're in the upstate NY area, I'll be GoHing at RoberCon in Binghamton at the end of this month. Hijinks at this location are highly probable.

Revise CLAWED (G&T #4)

Write a (very rough) draft of "An Interrupted Cry" (Sylvan Investigations #4)

Shamrokon

turn 47

Dragoncon

polish and send short story to Kickstarter backers

edit a client's manuscript

and, y'know, various and sundry laundry and grocery shopping and occasional sleeping....

Such a rare thing to the freelancer or writer, the day off. An actual day where you not only don't do any work (or billable hours) but you don't even THINK about it.

Okay, maybe that last was a bit too much to ask for. But I did manage to spend a lovely Saturday with thousands and thousands of my best neighbors, hanging out in Central Park, soaking up solstice sun, rehydrating frequently, and otherwise pretty much lazing about. I read a book [AN ENTIRE BOOK! START TO FINISH!] and started another, and got only slightly sunburnt, and rounded out the day with dinner with a friend, and was asleep silly-early, so I got a full 8 hours before the feline overlords woke me up.

The plan had been to make Sunday a repeat of Saturday, only in a different park, and I did in fact spend time under the vitamin-D-granting sun - but then I retreated back to the cool, dark cave, where I read some more, cleaned and sorted things, and, well, napped. A lot.

It was nice, all things considered. But now it's back to work, starting with a culling of the spam and answering of emails that arrived over the weekend.... silly people, don't YOU take days off?

After nearly one year, four passes, two false endings, and some brave work by a small army of beta readers, and at a weirdly lean 114,000 words, SILVER ON THE ROAD is off to Twinling and Agent for their not-quite-so-exhausted take. Yay?

*decides that yes, yay*

So that's one deadline down, two to go. Since the second one is coming up in a week... yeah, I'm not entirely exactly relaxed right now. And hey, then I'll have feedback and revision letters and ... well. Sufficient unto the day the deadline slain therein.

Monday, I'm back on the pony. A mystery to finish, novellas to write, a book to launch next month, and two client manuscripts about to land. But today is the solstice, the longest day of the year for half the globe, and it's bright and sunny and comfortably-not-too-warm outside. So I'm taking A-Book-I-Didn't-Write, a blanket, and a cool drink, and heading off for a day in the park.

Because I can. :-)

Nice weather and occasional walks, broken up by an Unexpected Vet Visit (CatofSize now has painkillers for his knee, and we'll revisit the possibility of x-rays next week, if he's not healed by then) and Digestive Discomfort, aka "LAG spent much of the weekend on the sofa bitching about her internal organs."

Which means I'm behind on both writing and editing. Argh. This week is going to have to kick into high gear, and then some, no matter what my body wants.

Meanwhile, I managed - by dint of sleeping through a lot of it - to miss most of the noise about the Hugo nominations. But yes, congrats to the Hugo nominees who earned their reader-acclaim! I'm not going to single anyone out because I have a lot of friends on the list and I'll doubtless forget someone, but I cheered each and every one of you... and no, I'm not a voting member so yes I CAN say I'm rooting for you all!

The great and horrible thing about multiple projects is that even when one's in a resting phase, the others need kneading. So while I let Silver on the Road sit for a bit, I'm going full-tilt on Gin & Tonic #4 (due in July), and restarting work on Sylvan Investigations #3.

It's actually sort of relaxing, being able to slip into familiar characters and familiar settings - while there's a particular trickiness to writing mysteries, there's also a structure I can fall back on, compared to the wide open canvas of the epic fantasy, especially an epic fantasy where you're worldbuilding at an intense and somewhat terrifying scale...

So hopefully, I'll also be able to catch up on the backlog of email and blogposts that have piled up over the past two months. Eeeek.

And, if anyone's wondering "how the hell do you juggle all that?" I ask in turn - how the hell do you manage all your projects? How do we manage to learn multiple subjects in school? We just...do.

So, yesterday's "get stuff off your plate" shame-listing worked pretty well. All but 1.5 things were done and dusted, and the remaining 1.5 are underway. So, yay me.

(shame is not something I recommend, but you use the self-motivational tools that work)

And part of why things didn't get done yesterday is that the contract for the new Devil's West books arrived, and I took the night to go over that with a fine-tooth comb (and a few glasses of wine). At one point, I may or may not have been reading relevant bits out loud, because some of that Legalese really calls out for a Radio Announcer Voice.

And it made me wonder if people are up for a post about Contracts and Creatives and the love-hate professional relationship between them?

Anyway, today's all about getting those last bits done, then plowing back into the writing. Yay, writing!

(originally published at Writer. Editor. Tired Person. You may comment here or there)

Killed any number of little darlings today.

He’d thought the brim would shade her face enough, the crown suitable to a woman. He hadn’t thought much more than that. He hadn’t thought, once her face was half-shaded, the dark brown felt matching the dun of her jacket and the dust on her boots, that the Isobel of the saloon would begin to disappear.

and

One of the faro dealers had developed a case of nerves that made him imagine spiders on his arms when he was falling asleep. He’d sworn off drinking and moved south to take up farming, instead. But Izzy hadn’t had a drop to drink, and quitting wasn’t an option for her.

Still ended up adding 3k new words. Oops. Chapter 8 is with betas. Chapter 9 and 10 revised. Chapter 20 rough-drafted.

In other projects, we're 4,000 words into Gin & Tonic #4. The opening line: Going sixty miles an hour was no time to feel someone licking the side of your face.

So that's 7,000 words on the day. God, bring me that pizza, and a drink.

And two new freelance stories just landed for editing. Better make that drink a double.

March did not exactly start off with a bang - Saturday was reasonably busy, but then I got nailed with serious insomnia Sunday morning (not a thing I am normally prone to, thankfully) and the rest of the day my brain felt much like wet taffy. I can no longer function on 4 hours of sleep. Oh hell, I never could. Six, yes. Four, no. Managed to get some editing and pre-editorial reading done, but not so much with the writing.

On the other hand, I did manage to clear out and sort my email, so that the Actual In Box (as opposed to the side subject folders) is easily scannable, and nothing will get lost. For at least a week, anyway. However, in the process some settings got wonked (I touched nothing, I swear!) and now Thunderbird will only d/l email from the Gmail account, but not SEND anything, and ignores the sff.net account entirely. I have access to mail, I just have to interact with it via the web portals, which I HATE. Have sent out the usual cries for help to the usual suspects.

This week, I'll be doing the final pass on DOGHOUSE (Gin & Tonic #3) page proofs, working on a client manuscript edit, starting work on the Kickstarter bonus projects, and continuing work on SILVER ON THE ROAD (The Devil's West 1) and TAGGED (Gin & Tonic #4). Oh, and there's that short story I started, too. Should go poke at that some more.

Slide a pizza under the door, willya?

Meanwhile, there's a nice review of PACK OF LIES here, from Musings And Ramblings. It's always good to see older books getting discovered/loved. :-D

Today, no matter how I try to deny it, is March 1st. That means my month of focusing-only-on-the-fantasy is over, and I now must not only pick up the yoke of the 4th Gin & Tonic book (which will be fun, so not too much grumbling) but also put the editorial hat back on. Which is...not AS much fun, right now. One of the pleasures of freelance editing is that I can say "no, I can't right now" when I'm not up to it. But the current project was agreed-to months ago, so...

(and there's a project coming up later in the year that I'm really looking forward to, so there's that)

Anyway, speaking of books, I'm reminded (because apparently I need reminding, I am such a crap self-promoter) that you can acquire many of my books for your e-reader via Book View Café and also via B&N, Amazon, and Kobo.

(I encourage BVC, as it's writer-run, and DRM-free)

If you're more of a print person, well, you know where to buy those, but also remember our Small Press Sponsor - Plus One Press.

and for those of you who're more into listening to your storytelling than reading, Audible has your ears covered. :-)

Yesterday I spent mostly putting out various fires. Today, I'm gathering kindling. No doubt, by Monday, I'll be putting out fires again. Somewhere in there I suppose is also carry water...

Today is Team Kornetsky, working on the revisions to Gin & Tonic #3, which will NOT be called DOGHOUSE. Unless it is. It's the perfect title, really, but the sales force thinks it's got too much resonance with "husbands in trouble." Not that any of them are projecting, at all...

*blinks innocently*

This weekend is going to be a blitz of All The Work, because I've set a deadline of Monday, Damn it, to get things off my desk.

Meanwhile, I'm noodling along on the opening scene of WORK OF HUNTERS. Have you backed the Kickstarter yet? If not - why not? Do you hate adorable hard-nosed fauns with a permit to carry? Do you have something against young women figuring out and owning their awesome shit, magical and otherwise? DO YOU HATE PUPPIES?

(or, PUPIs?)

I apologize to those who are seeing the Kickstarter reminders every day (especially if you've already become a backer). The sooner we hit 100% funding, the fewer updates I'll have to make. That's just a friendly reminder.... *g*

Profile

Laura Anne Gilman

My Website

September 2018

S	M	T	W	T	F	S
						1
2	3	4	5	6	7	8
9	10	11	12	13	14	15
16	17	18	19	20	21	22
23	24	25	26	27	28	29
30

Syndicate

Page Summary

Style Credit

Style: Neutral Good for Practicality by timeasmymeasure

Expand Cut Tags

No cut tags

Page generated Jun. 18th, 2025 06:31 am

Where Personal and Professional Life Collide...

My life in 8 words: Organized chaos, by preference. Exhausting, but never boring

Entries tagged with the freelance life

False Health Day

whoops

Thus, Monday.

Checking in...

The Do-Board groans under accumulated weight....

Not so much a rant as a through-gritted-teeth aside

State of the Meerkat: Alive, mostly, kinda

Home! (and updatery)

Midweek thinks I have been far too social...

Fourth Quarter and the clock's ticking

My to-do list for the rest of August

Days Off

Deadline and the Longest Day

So, this weekend...

Mix, knead, rest. Repeat.

ReThings and ReThinks

proof of work, and unwork.

State of the Meerkat, Monday Edition

yeah okay I guess I should....

Friday Posting...