Propping My Ladder

You know that analogy about the ladder of success?  You spend your life climbing the ladder and when you finally reach the top, you discover that you propped the ladder against the wrong tree.  That’s what I’m trying to discern this week.  Where am I propping my ladder and what, exactly, am I expecting to be waiting for me at the top?

It’s July.  Officially mid-year.  I had some goals that I set for myself with regard to my writing this year and at the midway point, I’ve come up short. I haven’t reached the milestones I had hoped to reach by this point in the year.  I’m disappointed.  Le sigh.

So I’m taking stock.  I think I need to figure out how to keep plugging away at this gig while somehow keeping my hopes and expectations in check. I also need to maintain a willingness to amend my goals as I go.  It’s hard to take the long view sometimes.

A friend of mine gave me Blueprint Your Bestseller a couple weeks ago and at first I was skeptical.  It looked like a book from the 80s or something but I read a chapter over the weekend and I was pleasantly surprised.  It challenges you to write 10,000 words a month.  I have no idea how many words a month I currently write but I like check lists and goals.   Blueprints!  I guess I like blueprints.  Who knew?

So that’s my goal for July.  10K words.  That’s it.  No grand hopes for readership or publishing or chapters.  So far I’ve got 896 words.  Only 9,104 to go.  Pshhh, no problem.

Right?

Wish me luck!