I have a hard time knowing when to say when. I’m a bad judge of what’s too much. That’s why I’m over weight. That’s why I had to cut myself completely off from alcohol for a few years. And that’s why I push myself to the point of hospitalization before realizing I’m too sick to keep going. I just don’t recognize my limits.

I’ve been working on changing that.

The first thing I did was stop subbing. Some people might not understand why that’s a bad thing, but it’s tragic for me. I love substitute teaching. I love the kids and the relationships with the teachers. I love having an excuse to get out of the house. It was a hard decision to make, but I literally did not have enough time in my day to get everything done. Since I don’t aspire to teach professionally, it seemed like the right move. In the week since I made that decision I’ve been more at peace than I have been in weeks.

Even with subbing off the schedule however, I’m still struggling to find time for my manuscript. Time to bust out my scissors…and go after the blog.

I have no intention of quitting my blog – I really do enjoy it – but I need to cut back. Right now I blog every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, plus the 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd, and last two days of each month (if they don’t fall on a M-W-F). Not to mention the promotional posts that I put up before author stories and interviews. On some months I’m posting around 15 times!

While I’m sure y’all have nothing better to do than to read the rantings of an pre-published novelist, I have to consider the reason for my blog – it’s a record of my journey into publication. Well, if I don’t start recording less and writing more, there won’t be any publications. It’s time to cut back.

I’m not sure yet when I’ll post, but I’m looking at once a week, plus the regular monthly posts (book reviews would be bonus posts). I’m not worried about losing readers. In fact, I’m hoping that they’ll stop by more regularly (once everyone figures out I’m focusing on quality, not quantity). After I figure out my new schedule, I’ll make sure to let you know (I’ll start as soon as possible).

QUESTION: How do you keep your writing/blogging schedule in check?