The stack of blank paper is yelling. Write ME! If that M. Clifford guy can do it, so can you!
What is this? Let's check the cover art. Advice on writing. Projects I'm working on and what's to come, updates, and all that jazz. Practices, like my proc...
It's been raining for a few days and it's amusing to me how much a little rain affects my mood. Especially since I grew up in Illinois where 9 out of 12 months were trash-ola. But it's particularly frustrating I suppose because it's that time of year. Time to take down the Christmas decorations. And no matter what they all say, packing up Christmas is not fun in the rain.
We keep our numerous green and red bins in a storage space a few blocks from our place. I don't mind the decorations being out a little longer. Lord knows Starbucks is gonna wait as long as they can before pulling those popular holiday drinks from the menu. But there's something about managing our storage space that irritates me. Probably because it reminds me of how irresponsible I can be with my use of space if I'm not careful.
However, the pre-Christmas and post-Christmas trips to storage are different. Because Christmas is when I'm on top of things (with the help of my wife) and it feels wonderful. Your precious belongings fit neatly into one of many color-coordinated bins that stack solidly on top of one another and return to their proper spot in the storage space. The door closes, the lock locks, and I walk away knowing my things will remain right there in good condition until yuletide comes swinging back around.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
The opposite side of that coin is... well... the rest of the year. The "shove it in there, close the door, and run" season.
There are overflowing bins and buckling boxes full of stuff that I KNOW I have to go through and promise myself I WILL go through... once I have time... It's somewhat funny that this is a problem for me in the physical sense, but not so much in the digital. And I can thank one of my college professors for that.
The year was 2007. I was in my second AutoCad drafting course, where we worked tirelessly on more advanced and complicated construction documents in a dark windowless room full of desktop computers. Many of these construction documents had to be x-refed (which is short for external reference, which basically means hyperlinked) to other drawings. And like hyperlinks, they connect you to a very specific location. So... if you're not keeping track of WHAT is WHERE at all times... your drawings are going to be shit and you're gonna have a headache in the near future.
In this particular case, folder management HAD to be clear. So one of the first lessons he ever taught us was the value of having accurate and organized digital storage and workspace.
I've carried these lessons into my writing. And I desperately need it because, like most of us, I have documents like "Final Draft", "Final Final Draft", "Final Final Draft REAL", "Final Final Draft FINAL", "FINAL DRAFT NOW", "Final Draft 2023"... and the list goes on. It honestly just never ends and Past Mike pisses me off so much.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
