2018 Gift Ideas for Writers

From Kate’s Writing Crate…

          (I forgot to post this list earlier. Sorry about that.)

These are unpaid recommendations—just things I love!

          Two stocking stuffer ideas:

                   Key chain that says “I disappear into books. What’s your superpower?”

Pack of four or five Field Notes notebooks in a variety of colors. Small and slim, they fit perfectly into a pocket so you can always jot down ideas.

         

For inspiration: Framed quotes by favorite authors or by The Writing         Manifesto.org.

For organization: A Question a Day Planner by Eccolo. The planners are lovely and useful plus the questions are great writing prompts.

Big gift: I just discovered desk chairs with retractable foot rests. During three-day-marathon magazine deadlines, I would love to put my feet up after hours of work and take a cat nap. In one of these chairs, I could. Hoping Santa brings me one!

Happy writing in 2019!

Share the Gift of Written Words with Kids

From Kate’s Writing Crate…

                                 

There are many wonderful and classic books to read to children this time of year. My best memories are of my mom or dad or grandma or grandpa reading their favorite books to my siblings and me. We only saw our grandparents a few times a year so spending time sitting on their laps or huddled together on a couch or bed listening to adventures was fun and exciting. These days parents and grandparents can also read to kids via the Internet.

For the youngest audience, there is Harold at the North Pole by Crockett Johnson. Harold, who always has his trusty purple crayon in his hand, goes on yet another wonder-filled adventure—this time to see Santa and find a Christmas tree. I loved that Harold could create whatever he needed or wanted using his imagination and his crayon. If only crayons worked like that outside of books!

For the three to eight set, The Sweet Smell of Christmas by Patricia Scarry and illustrated by J. P. Miller is always a big hit with its scratch and sniff pages. When you think of Christmas as a child or an adult, it’s often the scent of pine and baking cookies that first comes to mind so this book with its six scent pages will create a strong memory for the children you read it to as they experience Christmas along with lead character Little Bear as he and his family prepare for the holiday by baking, getting a tree then decorating it, and receiving a stocking. I can still remember scratching and sniffing those pages as the book was passed around. It made the anticipation of Christmas morning even keener.

There is nothing like the original English adventure novel One Hundred and One Dalmatians by Dodie Smith—not the Disney version—for children about five to ten or eleven. At 199 pages with detailed black and white illustrations, you are whisked away to London and then the English countryside where Pongo and Missis (as Perdita is a different character) in search of their puppies are helped and sheltered by an array of doggy characters including a spaniel in a country manor who shares a delightful tea time with them when they most need comfort. (Serving tea or hot chocolate and buttered toast or Christmas cookies during the reading of chapter 9 is highly recommended.) At a chapter a night you can keep the kids and grandkids on the edge of their seats for 18 nights. Chapter 17 takes place on Christmas Eve in a serene and holy setting followed by the last chapter that continues at the peak of the adventure on Christmas Eve into a happy Christmas Day then into the New Year. As we were a family who had dogs and cats, this adventure appealed to everyone as cats play important roles in the story filled with puppies. We also felt good that the Baddun brothers got their comeuppance—thanks to the Colonel who then promotes himself to Brigadier-General—as well as Cruella and her husband—thanks to their own cat and most every Dalmatian. (Please note that Dalmatians are high-energy dogs so not the best pet for many families although a dog and/or a cat makes a home even homier in my opinion.)

My grandmother loved The Five Little Peppers and How They Grew by Margaret Sidney and illustrated by William Sharp—perfect for kids about six to twelve. Mrs. Pepper is a widow raising her five children in a setting about a hundred years ago. The three brothers and two sisters are a close-knit bunch helping their mother as best they can while still having fun. Life is not always easy and Christmas gifts are difficult to come by and yet the family celebrates all the blessings they do have including their new friend, Jasper, and his German shepherd, Prince, who save the youngest, three-year-old Phronsie, when she goes missing. While there are good times and bad, the family has a happy ending. I believe my grandmother loved this book as more important things than gifts are highlighted in this story. I loved the characters wishing I had an older brother like Ben or Jasper, a sister like Polly, and especially a dog like Prince. (When I grew up, I got a German shepherd just like Prince—my own happy ending!)

Make your holidays more memorable—read to the kids!

Ensouling Language by Stephen Harrod Buhner

From Kate’s Writing Crate…

          Life has gotten very busy. Besides family obligations, work, and creative projects, Cheryl and I are working on a really big writing project which I will discuss in January.

In my spare time, I am reading Ensouling Language: On the Art of Nonfiction and the Writer’s Life by Stephen Harrod Buhner. The title grabbed my attention as I was browsing for something to read.

I am entranced by this book. I had hoped to write a review for my post this month, but I have only finished five chapters due solely to lack of spare time as I love this book.

In fact, I love this book so much I have bought it for all the writers on my gift list as well as a second copy for myself as I never want to be without a copy. (Off the top of my head I can think of 10 other books with intentional duplicates in my library, but I know there are a few more. I will make that list a future blog post.)

Despite not being able to write a complete review (look for a Masterclass post in the future), I wanted to let writers know about this book now. If the title and/or my comments interest you, I hope you will check it out.

At the end of his “Before Buying This Book” section on pp. xi-xv, Buhner states:

                                                 

This book…is for all the children who stayed up late, covers over their heads, flashlight on, reading when they were supposed to be sleeping…It is for every child who has felt touched by the greatness of this craft and then, when they were, heard someplace deep inside a tiny voice speaking, saying something like, “I wish I could write like that; I wish I could write something that would make other people feel like I just felt. I want to do that too.”

You can and what is more, you must.

          If you have ever felt that way, Ensouling Language by Stephen Harrod Buhner is a book for you.

A Real Piece of Work

From Kate’s Writing Crate…

My respect for every author has increased a hundredfold since I started writing my book seriously. The time, dedication, discipline, creativity, confidence, and energy required is draining and exhilarating simultaneously.

Writing a book changes how you look at a book. It’s no longer just something to read and, hopefully, enjoy, but a real piece of work.

Hundreds of hours are needed to create something people read in a few hours, but that’s how work works—hours to create fashion, seconds to put it on; months to build a boat, moments to set sail, and years to build a skyscraper, minutes in an elevator to reach the top. Not sure we ever truly appreciate the work that goes into anything unless we have done the work ourselves.

What I am sure of is that writers need to make the time to write no matter what on a schedule that gets words onto documents. Then the rewriting begins.

This takes time, dedication, discipline, creativity, confidence, and energy, i.e., work. Writing is work. Successful writing is hard work that takes a lot of time.

“The days are long, but the years are short.”—Anonymous

The work pays off if you make time during your long days to pile up pages so your years are filled with your books, articles, essays, poems, screenplays, short stories, and/or plays.

Do your work. Do it today. Do it every day.

Great News, Bad News, Great News

From Kate’s Writing Crate…

      

                        

               Too long ago I started writing my novel with characters and a plot in mind, but, after writing the two most exciting chapters, I stopped.

              Why? Bored, mostly. Also, not sure how to keep momentum going even with a plot.

              Then, as I wrote last month, Cheryl shared with me that the prolific author Marie Force writes at least 2.000 words a day—every day—in one or both of the two books she has going at all times. (She has five series ongoing plus several single titles.)

              Furthermore, Force is a pantster (writes by the seat of her pants) not a plotter.

              She knows what she is talking about so I decided to do the same.

              Great news: I roughly finished my two partial chapters and wrote eight more writing fearlessly daily—and it was a blast! My characters said and did things I didn’t plan and kept the action/plot moving forward.

              This is the only way I’ll ever write fiction.

              The bad news: I didn’t do it every day. I should’ve as momentum does build and writing daily keeps it going. However, I had my monthly magazine deadlines and a two-week project also due.

              Bills have to be paid so I thought I needed to concentrate on my professional assignments, but this was a HUGE rookie mistake.

              Marie Force is right—2,000 words a day on your book(s) or don’t bother. That’s a direct quote. She wasn’t making a suggestion; she was telling Cheryl to commit to her work—no matter what.

              So I’m sharing with you that you need to commit to 2,000 words a day—2k a day—no matter what.

              I should’ve gotten up earlier or stayed up later or written in any spare time I had to keep the momentum going. Even if my writing was rough or off tangent, the magic and fun would have continued. But I stopped writing 2k a day. Instead I made notes on “new” ideas to make a character have more depth plus opened up a new avenue for the plot.

              It wasn’t enough.

              When my magazine deadline was over and my project was submitted, my novel was cold. I lost my strong connection to my characters. After an unacceptable/unexcused absence, they were giving me a collective cold shoulder.

              I had a tough time starting up again, but then I read Stephanie Bond is Your Personal Fiction-Writing Coach. Having written over 70 novels, Bond shares a lot of great advice and tips although some are better than others. She got me started again—and I’m never stopping unless I decide I don’t want a dream career of writing, hopefully, bestselling novels after all.

              The key to success is hard work—writing 2,000 words a day for your book(s). Every day. No excuses.

             Great news: learn from my mistake and commit from the start. You’ll be surprised and delighted where it leads. Then you can call yourself an author. Is that your dream? Go for it—2k a day!

              

               

What Set Me Off to Rapidly Finishing My Book? Read All About It

From Kate’s Writing Crate…

                                                  

                                                         

              When Cheryl interviewed New York Times bestselling author Marie Force (see today's previous post to read reprinted article), she asked her what it takes to be a fulltime author.

              Force stated that you have to write at least 2,000 words for your book every day—even on weekends and holidays.

              That sounds simple enough. Yet how many of us will do this?

              Force writes two books at a time. She has published well over 50 books so she knows what the key to success is and it’s 2,000 words a day minimum.

              This daily goal works perfectly with my nine pages a day deadline: three handwritten pages for my fill-a-notebook-a-month deadline and six on the computer for my projects.

              To write 2,000 words a day, I write rough copy. I don’t worry about spelling or punctuation. I don’t reread or rewrite much or edit at all.

              Previously, I had written two chapters of my book: chapter 1 with an exciting situation that introduced most of the main characters and chapter 7 which had a big action scene.

              I had a plot for what my characters would do between chapters 1 and 7, but every minute cannot be action-packed excitement so I hadn’t written anymore chapters—bored, I think—until Cheryl asked Marie more questions about her writing process and she shared the answers with me.

              Force is a pantster (writes by the seat of her pants) as opposed to a plotter who plans every chapter. Pansters are happy to sit down and write every day to see what is going to happen. The danger is pantsters might write themselves into corners they can’t get out of plotwise.

              Since I hadn’t written another plotted chapter for my book, I decided to try writing chapter 2 as a pantster—and I had a blast! The characters took off doing and thinking things that surprised me. I could barely keep up with them typing as fast as I could. It was unbelievably fun.

              In the last seven days, I’ve started or added to existing chapters at every session. I’m starting chapter 9 tonight having worked on chapters 1-8. (I’m going to finish the rough draft by my next post.)

              Normally I love to write in the morning, but I find myself writing my 2,000 words in the evenings. I need the pressure of a deadline and, I guess, 2,000 words isn’t enough so I subconsciously added writing closer to the end of the day as I can’t go to sleep until I reach my goal. It’s working so I’m sticking with it.

              For added pressure, I use a timer to track my work. I started at 860 words per hour (WPH). Within five days I crossed over 1,200 WPH. And now I’ve hit 1,400. It would be fantastic to write 2,000 WPH then I can’t claim I don’t have the time.

              This week has been a dream come true. I’m a pantster well on my way to being an author—finally.

             

Cheryl L. Butler writes article about NYT Bestselling Author Marie Force

              Cheryl interviewed Marie Force, a New York Times bestselling author, recently. Force has published well over 50 books—an inspiration to what writers can accomplish.

               Here is a reprint of her published article:  

A Rhode Island Author is a Force to be Reading With

By Cheryl L. Butler   

                                      

              If romance reads are your thing, you’ve probably curled up in your favorite chair and devoured one of Marie Force’s dozens of desirable novels. If you haven’t, you’re about to be introduced to one of Rhode Island’s premier authors who has been keeping readers turning pages fast and furiously since 2008.

              Force, a New York Times bestselling author of contemporary romance, has published well over 50 books including the indie-published Gansett Island Series and the Fatal Series from Harlequin Books. In addition, she is the author of the Butler, Vermont Series, the Green Mountain Series, and the erotic romance Quantum Series. In 2019, her new historical Gilded series from Kensington Books will debut with Duchess By Deception.

              Candid and witty, Force shares how it all started on her well-designed website, www.marieforce.com. Here fans learn that she graduated from Middletown High School in 1984 and then attended the University of Rhode Island where she double majored in journalism and political science. Right after graduation she dove into life as a writer by working for a small community newspaper. The hours and pay weren’t great, but the experience she gained as well as the comradery she shared with her colleagues made it a good place to start her career.

              A few years later she did something she joked she’d never do after growing up in a Navy town, she married a guy in the Navy. They left Rhode Island and started their new life in Rota, Spain where he was stationed and their adventure began. Here she earned a Master’s degree in Public Administration and started her family. They returned to the states and resided in Maryland where Dan was now stationed and she began working for The Washington Post. Her writing career continued to blossom throughout the different places her husband was stationed as did their family when they welcomed their second child. 

              Their last home during Navy life was in Jacksonville, Florida where they resided until Dan retired in 2001. Soon after, they returned to their roots here in Rhode Island. Though she had been working in a writing/magazine world for many years, she yearned to write a book but notes it was simply a pipe dream to find the time with two young kids and a full-time publishing job.

              She credits her dad for nudging her to make the time, even if it was between the hours of 3am and 6 am! She took his encouragement to heart and began to get a bit more serious about bringing a character she had envisioned for years to life—Jack, an architect with thick dark hair, gray-blue eyes, an engaging grin, and a quick wit. Another couple of years passed after she first began drafting Jack’s story.

              In November 2003, her mother was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. “The next nine months were a roller coaster ride, during which I turned to the book more and more often seeking an escape from the nightmare of my mother’s illness.” In August she had four chapters ready for review and her mother was the first to read them. “I made her cry,” she says. Sadly, her mother died on August 31, 2004.

              That was Force’s wake-up call. She knew the time had come where she needed to feed her passion and her muse and write about the characters that continuously danced in her mind.

              She’s since written five series that have stolen her readers’ hearts and she credits each of them for continued inspiration. “My readers really inspire me to keep producing the books, characters and worlds they’ve come to love which is great for me because I love to write them. I’ve been writing the Gansett Island and Fatal Series for 11 years, and I can’t imagine my life without those characters anymore. That the readers love them as much as I do is truly amazing and humbling. I never imagined having such a faithful following asking me every day when the next book would be released. They really keep me focused and motivated to give them more,” she says with deep gratitude.

              The most satisfying part of this author’s job is hearing from readers who’ve devoured a new book in a series they love. “They also ask me, usually on release day, when the next book will be out. I refer to that as job security,” she laughs adding that having happy readers is definitely the best part of the job.

              Force juggles more than one book in progress. “My writing routine is fairly straightforward—I try to get at least 2,000 words a day on the page every morning, seven days a week, which keeps me on schedule. Often, I write much more than that, many times in two different books,” she shares.

              Out of all her series she says hands down her favorite is definitely Gansett Island because it is such a reflection of who she is and what her life has been like with a large, comical family. “While I only have one sibling, my brother and I have 19 first cousins who made life interesting growing up. I’m still close to many of them today. They continue to entertain me and provide fodder for my big family series. In addition to the family theme on Gansett, the real-life Gansett Island—Block Island, RI—has played a huge role in my life. I spend part of every summer on the island, and draw from those experiences to write Gansett.

              “My favorite character of all time, however, is Sam Holland, my irreverent, rule-breaking homicide detective from the Fatal Series. She is so much fun to write, and I’m still having a blast with her as I write book 14,” she states.

              The one thing Force would like her readers to know is that she appreciates every one of them. “They’ve given me a dream-come-true career with their devotion to me and my books, and I never take them for granted. I try my best to continue to give them books that take them away from their everyday concerns for a few hours,” Force says.

              Force, herself an avid reader, enjoys books from all over the romance genre with author Lisa Kleypas topping her favorites.

              Force isn’t slowing down anytime soon and plans on doing exactly what she’s doing now, writing series along with an occasional single title that’s not part of a series. “I'd like to be able to pursue new ideas while tending to my existing series. In my author bio I state that my life goals are simple—to keep writing books for as long as I possibly can, to finish raising two happy, healthy, productive young adults, and to never be on a flight that makes the news. That pretty much sums up my wish list,” she says happily.

              Just released is Mine After Dark, which is book 19 in the Gansett Island Series. The first three Gansett Island books—Maid for Love, Fool for Love and Ready for Love—are out this summer in mass-market paperback for the first time, and are available in Target, Walmart, B&N, Books-a-Million and many other book retailers.

              She also has several upcoming books currently available for preorder:

August 14: Outrageous, Book 7 in my Quantum Series

October  9: Five Years Gone, a new single title

November 27: Fatal Invasion, Book 13 in my Fatal Series

January 29: Duchess by Deception, Book 1 in my new Gilded Series (and her first-ever historical romance)

March 26: Fatal Reckoning, Book 14 in my Fatal Series

              Her website is continuously updated where you can also sign up for her newsletter. In addition, for more enjoyment and a few good chuckles, you can find the author and her husband (Marie’s biggest fan and supporter) on You Tube Live where the two banter about all kinds of fun topics on “Live with Marie and Dan.”                    

Deadline: Nine Pages a Day

From Kate’s Writing Crate…

                             

              I gave up filling a notebook a month in June. I thought it would give me more time to work on my other writing projects, but I just proved to myself again that it is not more time I need, but more deadlines.

              Deadlines and pressure are my driving forces to write. If I have a deadline, I don't miss it. Projects just for fun or on spec don’t create enough pressure although I enjoy finding out what I have to say. I need deadlines.

              Since no editor or publication is waiting for my projects, I need to write for more disciplined deadlines. Word counts do not work for me, but page counts do. I write about three pages a day in my notebook to fill one each month—this keeps me unafraid of the blank page and exploring ideas.

              I’ve now given myself a nine-pages-a-day deadline—three to fill a notebook a month and six on other projects. These can be handwritten or on the computer as my muse demands.

              Cheryl and I are discussing working on a project together so I’m adding that to my list. I finished a short story. I’m working on my book (90% completed), my screenplay, essays, and another short story.

              These nine pages are in addition to my monthly articles and essays for the magazines as well as my editing responsibilities.

              I’m a writer/editor. All of my working time and some of my spare time should be spent writing and editing. It’s what I do. It’s who I am. But it’s not enough. This nine-pages-a-day deadline is the only way I’m going to accomplish my project goals.

             

             

Creative Deadline

From Kate’s Writing Crate…

          I just completed another short writing project, but still have many other unfinished projects I’m working on. Why is completing creative projects so challenging? 

          In my case, it comes down to time and deadlines. I meet all professional writing deadlines, but for my projects without “real” deadlines I don’t always make enough time in my schedule.

          Also, I’m a queen of writing short pieces (under 1,500 words). I can get those done in seemingly no time as long as a deadline is looming. 

          However, I want to know what I have to say in longer formats. The only way to discover the answer is to write past my longest word count—about 10,000 words—and see where I end up.

While rereading Steven Pressfield’s essay “The Artist’s Life” on page 165 of his book The War of Art, I’m now inspired by this creative deadline:

“…Don’t cheat us of your contribution. Give us what you’ve got.”

That’s a deadline I’m excited to meet.

Writers' Retreats and Future Plans

From Kate’s Writing Crate…

                             

              Cheryl and I meet on a regular basis to share what we are writing, books and articles that inspire us, and plans/dreams for the future.

              At our meeting last week, I brought a list of topics and publications we could submit pieces to along with a raw cookie dough hack—replace the egg in any chocolate chip cookie recipe with an egg-sized amount of vanilla OR butterscotch pudding from a pudding cup. You cannot bake this dough, but no chance of salmonella while eating the raw dough. Delicious! (No eggs in the house, but I did have a pudding cup and so this hack was born.)

              Cheryl shared she wants to go on a writers’ retreat. She’s dreaming of an uninterrupted week or two in a cabin to work on both of her books: a novel and a nonfiction manuscript. No one can blame her as she is the mother of eight and uninterrupted time is rare.

              After a long lunch and exciting discussion, we each went back to our regular working lives with family obligations, errands, and waiting for repairmen, etc.

              A few days later, I was out with another friend and we decided to shop in Barnes & Noble. I took the time to peruse several sections and selected four books. I also wanted some writing magazines, but I didn’t want to hold my friend up so I just grabbed my favorites and got in the checkout line.

              Later when I arrived home, I pulled out the magazines. In a sign of “it’s meant to be,” Poets & Writers’ cover story was all about writers’ retreats. I immediately emailed the websites of the closest ones to Cheryl. Don’t know if she will get there this year or next, but planning is half the fun.

              In the next three weeks, I am submitting two pieces to two of the magazines from my list. If they are published, I will let you know.

              In the meantime, keep writing and submitting your work, too. Look into writing retreats near you. In the summer, some colleges offer MFA programs as well.

              Stay inspired. Keep working on your writing careers in any way you can.     

Writing Advice from a Successful First Time Author and a Songwriting Couple Who Just Won an Oscar

From Kate’s Writing Crate…

                             

CBS Sunday Morning highlighted writers today: a first-time author as well as a husband and wife songwriting team. They gave some great advice to other writers.

Ready Player One was written by Ernest Cline. It’s his first novel and his first published work—and he won the author jackpot! In just 24 hours he accepted a lucrative offer from a publisher. He was also told that the movie rights were being auctioned. Steven Spielberg bought them. Cline then wrote the screenplay and was the technical expert for the movie on all things about the ‘80s.

As described on CBS Sunday Morning, Ready Player One envisions a dark future in which people spend most of their time plugged into a virtual online world. The plot is a high stakes scavenger hunt with clues from 1980’s pop culture.

Cline notes, “I am a testament to what happens if you be free about what you love, and why you love it, and not afraid or worried about what other people think about what you love or your passions. Just be bold and celebrate the things you are passionate about and amazing things can happen.”

He’s still amazed every time he speaks with Steven Spielberg, a hero from his childhood.

In the segment titled “In Harmony,” Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez are highlighted for writing eleven songs for the animated movie Frozen. (They credit their two daughters for the inspiration.) The couple is working hard on the Broadway version now after winning an Oscar for their song “Remember Me” from the animated movie Coco.

They met at a songwriting workshop in 1999 where Bobby was working on his puppet musical “Avenue Q” which Kristen loved. It was a big success. At the beginning, their romance had ups and downs, but their career together has produced many hits.

Bobby’s advice, “You need to create from joy, from the part of you that loves what you are doing.”

I just wanted to share this advice from writers living their dream lives.

(There were several other stories worth watching in the episode—a profile of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. who was killed 50 years ago on April 4, an American tragedy; a heartwarming story about Jamarion Styles, a 14-year-old basketball player who lost both hands and most of his arms to an infection when he was a baby; and actor/director John Krasinski, a self-described scaredy cat, working with his wife, Emily Blunt, on the horror movie A Quiet Place. Also a segment on innovations in stained glass and a look at Google and Facebook and how they can affect people.)

The Power of Lists

From Kate’s Writing Crate…

          I love lists. I love writing down the things I have to do, but I love crossing them off the list even more. Mostly, I make lists for big projects, deadlines for the magazines, family stuff, and events.

          My daily errands and chores don’t need to be on a list. I know what I have to accomplish, but I decided to start making the lists anyway—why not? I love to cross off things. I’m now including on my lists small things I always mean to get to but don’t like clean out the junk drawer or donate some items.

          Funny, if it’s on the list it gets done a lot sooner.

          So now I’m making different lists—a bucket list for this year as well as for my life; places to visit with family and friends, a list of writing projects; a list of books I really want to read; cleaning/organizing lists for office and kitchen; and anything else that comes to mind.

          On my daily writer's list:

write at least three pages longhand in my monthly notebook;

read a page of The Writer’s Devotional by Amy Peters each day for a year;

randomly open Writing Fearlessly by William Kenower and read a passage or a page or a chapter for inspiration;

read from at least one other book as well as articles, essays, and/or poems;

write for at least one of my projects—book, screenplay, essays, or articles;

write my weekly Thursday essay for magazines and my blog posts or at least come up with topics;

fill out my Thought a Day Journal;

and plan, write, and/or edit the magazine issues for next month.

I do cross off every item on this list every day. I use The Ultimate Author’s Editorial Calendar and Writing Planner by Jennifer Ruggiero Schultz to keep organized. [Unpaid recommendation] It is big and unwieldy, but her daily page layout of lists works for me. Plenty of room to add tasks and track projects as well as record titles and page numbers of what I read, topics for essays and posts as well as what I wrote for specific projects, essay, blog, etc. Also places for lists of meetings/appointments and calls/emails, too.

There is a lot I want to see and do and accomplish—and I will get to all of it if it’s on one of my To Do Lists because I can’t wait to cross it off!