Deadlines
by Annie West
When I first started writing fiction I didn’t really think about deadlines. Writing was an escape, an enjoyment, a way of avoiding the stresses of the day job by entering the world of romance I’d always loved. I had enough to do trying to tell a story with characters who were appealing and believable, a compelling plot, emotional highs and lows and riveting sexual tension.
Deadlines were the last thing on my mind. They belonged to that ‘other’ world – you know the one, where elegant authors pen their books in snug state-of-the-art studies before going out to meet friends for coffee or long champagne lunches, then return home to answer a little fan mail, perhaps write another scene then stop work for the day.
Yeah, right. Strange how reality is a little different. The world of the published author isn’t quite that straightforward or relaxed. I suppose I could indulge in champagne lunches on a regular basis but I suspect I’d never manage to work afterwards and there would go my productivity. Without those hours actually working on the book, I’d miss my deadline, something no writer wants to do.
As I type this I have a mug of coffee in front of me (far enough away to avoid keyboard spills). It’s decorated with a number of writerly quotes including one of my faves – from Douglas Adams: ‘I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.’ Writers I know nod and laugh a little nervously at that one. Most of us have felt under pressure from time to time to meet a deadline that seems impossible. As we’re in the business of writing, fulfilling our commitments (ie. providing a book that’s probably already been scheduled for production) is a necessity. Yes, deadlines can be extended and often are. Editors are generally understanding and realise that sometimes major events just get in the way of a book. On the other hand I also know writers who’ve been asked to bring their deadlines forward…ouch!
How to deal with these necessary evils? I say evils as I remember with a touch of nostalgia the days when all that drove me to finish a story was the desire the write and the hope of someone wanting to read it.
One multi-published author I know works out how fast she usually writes a book, calculates a completion date and then adds an extra week to her schedule for each member of the family (including the dog), knowing that one if not all of them are going to require major chunks of her attention in that time. Another author negotiates deadlines around school vacations so she can spend maximum time ‘off’ during the summer holidays with her children.
I know authors who regularly write into the wee small hours, longer and longer as the deadline (or dreadline as it’s sometimes called) looms closer. Rick Riordan said: ‘Deadlines just aren’t real to me until I’m staring one in the face.’. Some writers go without sleep in the final days to finish their book. I’m of the other school – the idea of staying up all night to finish an essay an hour before it’s due always sent a cold shiver down my spine, though I’ve come close sometimes. I work better if I feel I’ve got a chance of managing my time through steady output on a regular basis. Sometimes I even make a note of how many pages I need to write each week as a minimum to get the book done on time. Of course, just when I think I’m doing OK, life throws a curve ball in the form of minor or major family crises which interrupt the schedule. But at least, as I hit panic mode I’ve got some of the book already done – such a relief!
How do you handle deadlines or, if you’re not a writer, those big looming commitments? Do you break down the task into little pieces and feel better as you finish each one? Do you relax and take time to map out in your mind exactly what needs to be done then finish it all in one concentrated run? Are you ruled by your calendar or do you forget key dates then have to play catch up? I’d love to hear your thoughts, suggestions and experiences.
To make it enticing to share, I’ll offer a copy of my December Harlequin Presents Extra release: BLACKMAILED BRIDE, INEXPERIENCED WIFE to one person who contributes to the discussion. I’m happy to say this book at least was easy to write within deadline. Once my hero, Dario, burst onto the page, my hardest job was typing fast enough to keep up with him and Alissa! It’s a marriage of inconvenience story where my poor hero and heroine find themselves marrying the very last person in the world they want to spend time with. It’s intense, passionate and emotional. If you want to find out more about the book visit my website or go to eHarlequin where you can read the opening.
{ 19 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi Annie – great blog, I lapped up every word about deadlines. As a journalist in my “day job” I’m used to deadlines, I like them as they force a natural-born procrastinator to get going.
However I find writing fiction a different thing altogether. Like many of us I wrote my debut novel LOVE IS A FOUR-LEGGED WORD without any deadline and with plenty of time. (Time to wonder sometime if I was wasting my time and no-one would ever get to read it!)
I rejoiced when I got a contract for a follow up story HOME IS WHERE THE BARK IS – I had an editor waiting for it and a deadline, just the conditions I liked to work with. But creating characters and situations is so much more intense than reporting the facts. (While at the same time so much more wonderful!) I found I had to go with the muse and if that meant working through the night then it had to be. The best help? That detailed synopsis I had to submit for my proposal! I’ll never complain about having to write one again!
Please don’t put me in the draw for BLACKMAILED BRIDE, INEXPERIENCED WIFE. I’ve already read it and would love for someone else to get a chance to enjoy your wonderful story. I especially liked the beginning when it didn’t seem like that happy-ever-after-ending was ever going to be a possibility for Dario and Alissa! It really hooked me in!
Hi Kandy,
I’m glad my post struck a chord with you. I have a love-hate relationship with deadlines. I enjoy having a target date to work towards but sometimes it can come zooming up far too fast.
Your approach to writing LOVE IS A FOUR-LEGGED WORD sure worked. It’s a great, feel-good romance. I’m so looking forward to reading HOME IS WHERE THE BARK IS. Sorry to hear you occasionally had to pull an all night stint to get there with it. But the combination of going with the flow and having a detailed synopsis seems to have worked well. It can be so helpful sometimes, can’t it, going back to read the original plan.
I’m glad to hear BLACKMAILED BRIDE, INEXPERIENCED WIFE got you intrigued. When I wrote the opening I didn’t know how it was going to end either, though I know it would be happy. The plan in that case came as I wrote.
Hey Annie, great to see you here! And what a great post – especially as I’m currently trying to work some travel around a deadline. Sadly, neither date is negotiable so I just have to pull my finger out and get some words on the page. That’s the beauty of deadlines, it stops you faffing around and makes you actually put something down! I love the Douglas Adams quote, by the way! Because I’m slow and, in spite of my best intentions, erratic, I tend to work out how long it SHOULD take me to write a book and then double it. It’s worked so far although I definitely do the panic 16-hour days as the deadline approaches!
Congratulations on BLACKMAILED BRIDE, INEXPERIENCED WIFE. It’s an amazing story and that Dario is just SOOOOOO compelling! Yum!
Anna, I love your approach of estimating how long the book will take then doubling it! It’s too easy to be enthusiastic about a project and forget that life intervenes in the writing process and you do need time to eat, sleep, and do all the other bits and pieces.
Yes, isn’t the Douglas Adams quote terrific? It makes me feel better every time I read it.
Thanks for the congratulations on BLACKMAILED BRIDE, INEXPERIENCED WIFE. Being told my book is compelling is a great start to the day!
Terrific post, Annie!
Ah, it’s a pity about those mythical champagne lunches. I definitely wouldn’t get any work done after those.
As you know, I’m unpublished (for now), so I don’t have the added pressure of working to a deadline. My day job is very much deadline-based so I consider myself well trained!
I can imagine the impact missing a deadline would have on the publication house’s schedule, though, and it makes me shudder. I know some unpubbed authors who set self-imposed deadlines, but that wouldn’t work for me because I let myself get away with murder! Entering contests with strict deadlines is much better for me.
Hi Vanessa,
Well, it’s not that champagne lunches are entirely mythical – but they’re pretty rare. So special when they do happen.
I think using contest deadlines is marvellous practice for writing to editorial deadlines. As you say, if you set the deadline yourself there’s always the temptation to move it just a little, which defeats the purpose. I’d be so tempted to just waste time I think. Having said that, it’s a wonderful feeling when you’ve met your deadline and you’re out of deadline and you feel free (until a few days later when you discuss the next few deadlines with your editor).
Best of luck with your writing, Vanessa. I know it’s marvellous and I also know you don’t final in the Golden Heart unless you’re doing something right!
Argh, Annie! You’ve said the dreaded eight-letter word…*whispers with a small shudder*… “deadline”! I’m newish to deadlines and have found I have a real talent for the faffing around that Anna mentioned.
In the rest of my life, I’m usually ultra-organised but I haven’t quite cracked the best system for meeting my writing deadlines yet. I think it’s partly because my third book had major revisions while I was in the middle of a long motorcycle trip around Australia. But one thing I am finding is that my muse likes about 4am in the morning. *groan* A 10am muse would have been so much more civilised!
How interesting that you said it was easy to meet your deadline with Alissa and Dario’s story. I can well imagine Dario dictating the direction of the story to you! He’s such a strong hero with that gorgeous soft side that he eventually shows Alissa!
:)
Sharon
Great blog, Annie! As an unpubbed writer, I love meeting contest deadlines and the sense of achievement that follows. It must be a huge relief to hand in a book on time – for you and the editor. :)
I love how you had to keep up with Dario while writing BLACKMAILED BRIDE, INEXPERIENCED WIFE. What a great hero, even helping you meet your deadline!
Hi Sharon,
I think we all faff around in the face of work to do, at least a little. I’ve been trying to rewrite a major scene all morning and I’m not as far through it as I’d hoped.
Laughing here at your 4 am muse. At least she shows up! Mine gets enthusiastic just when I’m due to stop work and cook dinner…
Oh, yes, you’re right about Dario. He did dictate the story a lot, or he tried to. I had to do some hero wrestling. But fortunately Alissa’s a good match for him so he didn’t drag the story too far in one direction.
Hi Cheryl,
Isn’t it a wonderful sense of achievement when you meet your target and get something in on time! Whew! I love the feeling of freedom the next day.
You know, I didn’t think of Dario in terms of a helpful hero before. Thanks for that. I’ll bear that in mind next time I get one like him. He was certainly fun to write.
Champagne lunches – sigh – you’re talking my language, Annie! Whenever I meet a deadline, I do have a tendency to celebrate with a glass (or two) of champagne. It’s a nice little spur – I find I work well under a reward system :-)
I’m like you — the thought of a deadline looming too quickly when I haven’t enough words down could quite possibly make me freeze. Where possible, I set my deadlines for a month longer than I think it will take me to write the book. Yes, I have been asked to bring a deadline forward, and yes I have had to re-write a book — but so far that month’s grace has saved me. So far…
Hi Michelle, it’s lovely to see you here, and to discover you use rewards too.
I’m so glad my deadlines have been relatively fixed so far, without them being brought forward. It’s hard enough sometimes to meet them. Did I mention I have abook due tomorrow? Better go and focus on it.
Sorry to chime in late! Last week was a crazy blur with sick kids and all the holiday rush to get things updated before the new year.
Annie, thank you so much for being here! Once upon a time (before the kids!) I loved deadlines and could easily set goals and make them. But for some odd reason, no matter what your good intentions or how pushed and devoted you are (or even if you stay up REALLY late at night!) sometimes you can’t make them.
Has anyone else found that? Or am I alone and maybe just not as organized as I believe myself to be? ;-)
Lovely post. I’m not sure I like deadlines at all in writing. I think it’s a free flowing process for me and deadlines hamper the creative flow. The one time I allowed myself into a situation where I had one I couldn’t write a single word!
Annie, great post. I love the cover of your new book. Do you already have your 2010 schedule?
Anna, big fan! I adore your books and hope you continue writing the most realistic historicals I’ve read in a long while.
Hi Heather,
Oh, I know about those blurry weeks. I’ve just had one. Am still reeling from it, so commisserations!
Sounds like you’ve reached the stage where it’s got to revisit your deadlines. Sometimes it’s the only way, especially if you want to stay sane. Good luck!
Hi Tracy. I’m glad you liked the post. I do understand what you mean about deadlines hampering the flow of writing. That’s why I think having a deadline that’s almost unmanageable might make me freeze and it’s important for me to get started early on my projects. On the other hand, knowing that an editor is waiting to read my story is a great incentive to get moving!
Cassondra, it’s a lovely cover isn’t it? I’m glad you like it. It reminds me of a scene from the story, even though Alissa isn’t wearing a red bikini there, but I’m not quibbling. I just love the look of the guy they’ve got there as Dario – definitely the way I’d pictured him!
Schedule for next year? I’ve got the first couple of releases at least:
‘Forgotten Mistress, Secret Love-Child’ comes out in the US mid April.
‘Scandal: His Majesty’s Love-Child’ (with a hero who I think is my sexiest sheikh yet) in July. After that I’m not sure.
Time’s up now and I need to pick a winner for my book. It’s as difficult as ever so I’ve resorted to a random draw.
CONGRATULATIONS, TRACEY! You’ve won a copy of BLACKMAILED BRIDE, INEXPERIENCED WIFE. If you email me at annie@annie-west.com with your postal address I’ll pop it into the mail for you.
Thanks everyone for the warm welcome here. It’s been great fun.