Avianne: September 2015

20 Things To Do When You're Bored

9:00 AM

Author Interview | Cassandra Morgan (Chartile)

9:00 AM

Today we have a super fun and interesting interview with the author Cassandra Morgan. I recently did a review of her book Chartile. If you are interested in checking that out you can visit the post here.We will go ahead and jump right into it!

What are you currently reading?

The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison

I actually don’t have a lot of time to read, so I’m addicted to audio books. I listen to 15-30 minutes of an audio book before bed every night, and I listen to various writing podcasts during the day in my car.

Do you have a writing ritual? I know some authors like to use certain pens, or wear certain things to get their creative juices flowing.

I do my best work on my bed. I have this cushy, micro-suede back rest (that my cat likes to attack, so that sometimes makes writing interesting if he’s being hyper that evening) I like to use. I just set that up against my headboard, laptop on my lap, and no less than one kitty within an arm’s reach of a pet.

What inspired you to write this story?

When I was an early teen, my friends and I would go into the woods behind our houses in the subdivision we lived in, and we would play these role-playing games. The story stemmed from those games we used to play, at least the core of it. I decided over a decade later, after I couldn’t get the story out of my head, that I wanted to write it out and put it out there to the world. A few things changed from the original, but the core concept and core characters are all there.

About how long did it take you to write Chartile?

3 freaking long years! I worked a retail job most of the time I was working on the first book. The hours were unpredictable, so I didn’t always know when I would or wouldn’t be able to write. Now that I have a more set 9-5 job, I can schedule my time more easily. The second book is coming along much faster than the first.

What was it like the first time you held your physical book or saw the finished book?

It was a little surreal, but I immediately started nit-picking everything and figuring out what I needed to tweak before releasing it onto the market. I highly recommend for any self-published authors who do Print-on-Demand, it’s worth it to order a physical copy as part of your proofing.
So, by the time my first case of “real” books came, the special-ness had kind of worn off and it was all business.

What was the first story you wrote about? No matter how silly it was!

I come from a family of writers and English majors. I remember typing out gobble-dy-gook on my uncle’s type writer before I even knew my alphabet. I’d then walk into the next room, proud as could be, and make my family listen to the story I had just “written”. I couldn’t tell you what these were, but I have been coming up with little stories since I was at least three-years old, because that’s about as far back as I can remember.

The first story I clearly remember writing was in the fourth grade. We had a Writer’s Workshop once a week. The story was The Unicorn and the Ligar. It was about a unicorn who went on an adventure to save her father who was being held captive by the evil Ligar on the other side of the enchanted forest. I think I did it for an actual assignment. It was from that point on I remember many of my English teachers pushing me very hard and holding me to a higher standard than a lot of my other classmates. So, I think my teacher at the time might have spread the word amongst the school system for the teachers to keep an eye on me. I went to a very small school. The town I grew up in was so small, it technically was considered a village, so it wasn’t very hard for word to spread like that.
I’m grateful for it.

If you had a chance to do to do the process of writing Chartile over what would you do differently?

I think I would have had my editor go over it a second time. I think I would have also organized an editing team vs just beta readers.

I hope you guy enjoyed this post as much as I did! Cassandra gave some really good responses. If you can't get enough of her check out her links at the bottom of this post. Don't forget to follow this blog by entering you email in the side bar.

Cassandra's Social Media

Blog//Buy Chartile//Facebook

Read the first 2 chapters of Cassandra's book Chartile here.

3 ways to be more productive

3 Ways to Be More Productive

5:36 PM

Do you ever feel like you can never get the things you need done? Then you feel disappointed because you weren’t able to accomplish what you wanted. I used to be just like that until I started doing these three simple things. I have notice a significant difference in the amount of work I can get done, and my mood. This post isn’t just going to tell you how to get more things done, but it’s also going to tell you how to feel like you have gotten a ton of this done even if you haven’t. This will over all help you feel better about your accomplishments for the day.

Make To Do Lists

There is nothing more satisfying to me then crossing tasks off a to-do list! To-do lists keep you from straying away from the things you need to do. It also gives you the feeling that you can actually get done with all your tasks. I know that when I don't make a list I feel like I have a never ending list of things to do.

To really make your to do list effective write down really specific things. Let’s say you need to write a blog post, don’t just put down "write blog post". Instead put down "research post topic”, “draft post", make post graphics", and "Publish post". It mentally makes you feel better to cross off 4 things instead of one. Plus if you don't do everything you need to do in order to publish your post you can still cross off some things. It’s almost like patting yourself on the back for getting some of it done.

Set Lower Standards For Yourself

Now I don't mean set lower standards for yourself morally. I mean that you shouldn't expect yourself to do be able to do everything. If you always find that you can never get everything completed it’s not that you’re lazy. You are more than likely expecting too much out of yourself. This can cause you to feel bad about yourself even if it’s not really your fault. Let’s say that you need to write a post, film a video , send newsletters to your email list , and organize your office. You can film a video and send out your newsletter one day then write your post, and organize your office the next day. You shouldn't put all this stress and pressure on yourself to get a lot of things done. Plus if your pretending to be superwomen one day and get done more than you expected you will feel so proud of yourself.

Reward Yourself

This is a very important step that so many people skip over. If you give yourself small rewards it will keep you motivated to finish you work. Sometimes you just need a minute to breath and clear your mind before your continue. I love to reward myself by taking 10 minute breaks every so often. During this time I like to listen to whatever song I’m obsessed with (Currently: Calvin Harris- Sweet Nothing Remix by Diplo &Grand Theft ) , get a snack , or even do a quick Pilates workout (link to my favorite 3 minute workout below). Taking these small breaks can easily keep you going for 30 minutes more than you would have if you had not taken a break.

Follow these three steps and start noticing results immediately! If you only take one thing from this post please remember to take care of yourself. We get so caught up in the 1 million things we have to do that we really wear ourselves out. I hope you found this post to be helpful! If you did don't forget to leave a comment below and follow this blog by putting your email in the side bar.

3 Minute Turbo Workouts// Check out my Recent Video

Book

Book Review| Chartile by Cassandra Morgan

9:38 AM

20 Things To Do When You're Bored

Author Interview | Cassandra Morgan (Chartile)

What are you currently reading?

Do you have a writing ritual? I know some authors like to use certain pens, or wear certain things to get their creative juices flowing.

What inspired you to write this story?

About how long did it take you to write Chartile?

What was it like the first time you held your physical book or saw the finished book?

What was the first story you wrote about? No matter how silly it was!

If you had a chance to do to do the process of writing Chartile over what would you do differently?

Read the first 2 chapters of Cassandra's book Chartile here.

3 Ways to Be More Productive

Make To Do Lists

Set Lower Standards For Yourself

Reward Yourself

Book Review| Chartile by Cassandra Morgan

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