Organization

I'm working on a proposal for a workshop for RWA Nationals...I won't tell you what it's on. The idea is just too delish. LOL But I will tell you that every time I turned around this past week (including while writing the workshop) I found myself talking about organization.

I have a notebook for the 3-book series I'm working on for Entangled. Not because I forget the truly memorable heroes and heroines, but because this series takes place in a small town and ... well, small towns have people and people have parents and brothers and sisters and eye color, hair color, cars and jobs. If I mention it in a book, it gets recorded in the notebook. So that when they pop up in book 2 and 3, I can easily find them and get all the facts correct.

I also began creating a cheat sheet of important events and plots points. I wrote down the chapter and sometimes even the page number of important events in the story and the plot points/turning points. When revising, I found myself saying...has he told her about his grandfather yet? And all I had to do was flip open the notebook to the important events/plot points pages, and voila, I had my answer.

I'm careful about how I name my documents in my computer. I like the date, but sometimes I'll add a marker. Like: June 10 2014 version took out the lettuce fight. (I really didn't take out the lettuce fight. It was too funny.) But when I'm looking for a specific version of the draft (like if I realize I need to put the lettuce fight back in...I know to look before that draft.

I'm also a stickler for folders in folders in my saved documents. I belong to a group called the Chocolate Box Writers. (Thanks for that smattering of applause. We are a fun group.) I manage our newsletter. We're only on our second issue, but in my documents section of my "big" computer, I have a file folder marked Chocolate Box, a subfolder for the newsletter, a subfolder in the newsletter subfolder for covers to go into the newsletter and a subfolder for text.

That might seem nitpicky, but if you need to find someone's cover really quickly it's easier to dig through 3 files than 14 items in a folder.

I do the same for my books. Because I like to write series I have a series folder...Donovan Brothers...Book 1, Book 2 and Book 3 each gets a subfolder. Within each book's subfolder is a proposal folder, along with a chapters folder (which is where I store the actual book). After I get comments I create a revisions subfolder.

I have blog folders...my own blogs and guest blogs...so that if I ever need to reuse one I can find it quickly. I have a folder of biographies. I name them 100-words, 2 paragraphs, long, light hearted, serious. LOL So that when someone asks me for a bio, I can find the one they want quickly. I can also see when they were last updated...and know if I need to read it over before I send it.

Life is just so much easier when you're organized, if only for ease of finding things. And, really, organization takes a second...sometimes looking for something can takes days or hours...if you ever find it at all.

So, do yourself a favor. Buy a spiral notebook for every project, albeit a series or a standalone book. Keep track of your characters. Keep track of your plot points. Keep track of everybody's hair and eye color. You will be so glad you did.

Happy Monday...From the Beach! Yes, I actually did get that vacation!

susan meier