Weeding Out

I am working hard to do away with feeling compelled to work twenty hours a day. If I’m not accomplishing something, I feel as though I should be. My kids know I’m good at “getting things done.” But do they know anything else about me? It isn’t a question I really want to ponder at the end of the day when I’m tired.

Today was one of those days of getting things done, or trying to. We spent far more time driving to and from places that didn’t have what we were looking for than anything else.

Friday I let go of a project I should’ve let go of a long time ago. Such a relief. It was a project I never really wanted to work on, but accepted just because I would’ve felt guilty not doing so. Today I said a resounding NO to an author who would continue to make changes to her book until the day she died and never get it to print, but would somehow find a way to convince herself it wasn’t her doing so she felt better about it. This is someone who talked me into doing her book for a cut-rate and then proceeded to continue on with changes that should have cost her five-times what she was paying. Her book went to the printer (after nine months) last Wednesday and I’ve never been happier to see something go. She wanted to add yet another few paragraphs so I suggested she ask the printer to do it for her or find someone else willing to. I am a magnet for authors like her. Either that or I’ve always been the only one they could find willing to put up with their nonsense.

I have one book in final stages before galley, one in edit, another slated to start layout (very short and sweet), and one on its way supposedly, but I am in no hurry to get it. I long for the day I can decline to work on them if I want to. I’m not certain at what point I’ll feel secure enough to not work twenty hours a day. I hope it happens eventually.

I had an artist stop by the gallery today when we were there to drop something off. He was in town from California and wanted me to review his work for consideration to put it in. I started to, and then asked if he could come back Monday morning, which he gladly agreed to. I doubt I will have trouble finding enough artists, more likely it will be hard to choose which ones.