1. In less than two months I'm off to Canada to teach poetry workshops to 11-14-year-olds at a summer writing camp (WordsWorth). I have to prepare my lessons. But I'm still waiting on info from The Young Alberta Book Society (the company running the camp) to find out exactly what kind of lessons they are after. So I'm feeling a little up in the air about the whole thing because I thrive on being well-prepared way in advance. I'm anxious to get myself organized, to say the least. Dream, dreams, dreams ... stress dreams ...
2. After Canada I'm heading to the USA to meet a few blogging buddies in Columbus, Ohio, before I head to Athens, Ohio to meet my publisher. So excited to meet everyone face to face! But ... my publisher is going to try to organize a few poetry readings for me while I'm there. Never done one before and all I can think about is the reason why I gave up playing live music: STAGE FRIGHT. Dream, dreams, dreams ... stress dreams ...
3. Today my edited ms of String Bridge is due in the mail from Lucky Press. A courier should be knocking on my door any minute. I have to review the changes and then email the document back to Lucky Press for galleys to be made so that the ARCs will be ready by July. I'm anxious about what people are going to say about it. Dream, dreams, dreams ... stress dreams ...
4. I'm anxiously (yes, this word is popping up a lot, innit?) awaiting for my String Bridge marketing plan to be emailed to me by my publicist. And again, I feel up in the air about that too because I have no idea what is going to be expected of me to pitch in toward promoting my novel. It makes me feel disorganized not knowing, not being able to prepare. I'm a bit anal like that. Dream, dreams, dreams ... stress dreams ...
5. I'm so close to finishing the first draft of my second novel. I've been so close for seven months now. I feel like I'm failing myself, but I've been busy, and every time I take five minutes for myself I feel guilty and mope around the house driving my partner nuts. Dreams, dreams, dreams ... stress dreams ...
6. My debut poetry book has just been released. Thank you so much for all the wonderful reviews that have come in! You have no idea how much they mean to me! Why is this stressful? Well, poetry is hard to market. Still trying to find my footing and courage to promote myself more vigorously. If anyone has any advice regarding this, please shoot me a line. Dreams, dreams, dreams ... stress dreams ...
7. I'm running a writers' workshop/retreat on a Greek Island next year and there is a lot to organize! Won't make a list here, but I'm sure you can imagine ... Dreams, dreams, dreams ... stress dreams ...
8. Some nit-picky-bits:
- I need to apply for a US Visa waiver before I travel.
- I need to pick up my renewed Greek Residency permit before I can travel (queues in public services here are deathly ...)
- I need to book my flights within the USA, but I need my Canada flight details first (don't have them yet, makes me feel stressed).
- Have some books on order for ages, that haven't arrived. Might have to deal with post office. Post office guy has crush on me. Don't want to have to call!
- Our cleaner is sick. OMG, I have to clean the house myself!
- I have a ton freelance work, WHICH I LIVE ON, btw, and I seem to be fitting THAT into my schedule when it's supposed to be the other way around. So I'm paranoid I'm gonna go broke ...
- Um ... I'm sure there's more ...
*BREATHE*
Okay a few of my dreams just off the top of my head are:
- I book flights to wrong airports in the USA and miss all my events.
- All the guests that come to the retreat/workshop are people who are trying to kill my parents because apparently they have been mobsters all my life and I never knew it.
- When I roll on my deodorant in the morning I roll cigarette ash onto my underarms and then suddenly realise I can't speak English anymore, but I do speak French. (Do you think that has anything to do with the hairy armpit thing?)
- I'm in a cartoon version of Jurassic Park and every species of dinosaur communicates in song. One of them sounded like the Bee Gees, another like Tina Turner, another like Angry Anderson ...
- I'm in India. I give birth to a little girl. In a narrow alley way. Then I go shopping in a street market with a friend of mine from Australia. I drop my daughter on the ground to take a look at a pair of earrings and forget her when I walk off. (Whoa! Why? I love kids!)
- Moments before I get up in the morning, I've morphed into a concrete slab of footpath. People walk all over me and their footsteps echo through me. I feel heels stick into my ears and up my nose. It doesn't hurt. But it feels kinda numb, there's pressure. And I'm reminded of when my grandmother explained that she could feel the doctors sawing her bones when she had a hip replacement ...
So friends ... stress dreams, do you have 'em? Tell me about them so I don't feel so um ... stressed! :o)
0 Yorumlar