It’s hard to believe it’s already the end of Q3. What a hectic, busy, and overwhelming quarter. Looking at my wide-eyed optimism at the end of Q2, I almost have to laugh.
Q3 Goals Completed
I outlined 14 goals three months ago. Of those, I’ve completed half. I’ve got partial credit for a few of them, though.
- Advanced Unicorn Theory peer review edits and manuscript completion are done. That manuscript is now shipped off to the publisher.
- All of the various stages of editing Burnout Recovery are now done, and it’s headed into the ARC phase.
- I’ve got all of my 2025 Morbid Anatomy classes up and going.
- I’ve successfully self-published The Last Red Dragon. The novella ebooks don’t sell as well as the paperback copies of Magic Murder and Machines have. All of the lessons learned will inform next year’s process and ideas for self-publishing.
- I recorded a podcast episode on the Arthurian Legends with Alicia at Trashy Royals.
- I got all of my vaccines. I need to go back in for the second shingles shot in November, but I’m doing well with these.
- I’ve finally cracked the code on consistently yummy gluten-free, high-altitude sourdough bread.
Things that Surprised me
Of course, because life is full of surprises, the best laid plans all get turned upside down from time to time. Outside of the original list, I have also done the following!
- Recorded and published my first audiobook for The Last Red Dragon – this goes into the mix of the things I’m learning about self-publishing and which formats sell better.
- With The Last Red Dragon, I’m also experimenting with selling it on Amazon exclusively, rather than having a wider distribution model. I’m not sure how I feel about this, but I need to have the data to make informed decisions in the future.
- I participated in a Storygraph book giveaway with Magic, Murder and Machines, and now have the book in 275 more hands than it had been before! I’d love to see some reviews out of that process, but we’ll see how that goes.
- I created my Ritual Theory on-demand class this quarter, and have been somewhat successful at marketing it. I’m still learning how I want to do that, and what works.
- I joined an invite-only networking and coaching group that I’m sure I’ll be talking more about once it gets started in Q4.
- I got one piece of flash fiction accepted in a journal, and submitted 3 other pieces through the quarter.
Goals I set that I did not get done
I want to address the very large part of the goals list that weren’t met or were perhaps partially met.
- I’ve still been chipping away at the art for the oracle deck. I’m probably about halfway done with this project. While I’d hoped to do a card every 1-2 days, it’s turning out to take me 1-2 weeks to knock these out. Part of the slowdown is actually because I’m videoing each card’s creation. This sets me up for a future video series (this is the planned sequel to the tarot ritual series) but it does take extra time and thought.
- I have not made any headway on the dissertation-to-nonfiction book. I am trying to clear the path with the unicorn and burnout books so I have time and attention to spend here.
- Similarly, I haven’t cracked the myth retelling novel in the past three months, either.
- The hailstorm house repairs on the EXTERIOR of the house are almost done. I’m still dealing with the water intrusion repairs inside the house. Good times.
- I have not organized a community craft supply swap. I still kind of want to do this, but I run out of both time and energy pretty fast these days.
- I’m still living part of each month out of savings. There are definitely glimmers of where income will grow in the future, but it’s not materializing yet.
- The garden has been disappointing this year. Of all of the plants I stuck in the dirt, only the corn and squash have survived, and neither have produced anything yet.
In my last goal-setting process, I said that my physical body and energy are likely to be the biggest variables. That was certainly part of the case. I’ve had several weeks in the past few months where I’ve had to drive to doctor’s appointments almost daily, and it really cuts into my productive writing time.
What’s working? What’s Not Working?
Of the 100 or so content items, posts, and Patreon scheduled pieces that I planned to create in Q3, I managed to complete around 80 of them. The Patreon cadence and posts are always doable, and now that I’ve settled into creating these against monthly themes, that is even easier to conceptualize and complete. I find creating content for Patreon gives me accountability and structure that a lot of my other projects lack. By coordinating my other projects, like podcasts, class materials, and research with the themes, it feels like I am getting a better idea of the subjects as a whole.
The thing that is working the least, both in terms of my content creation, and my time efforts and plans is just marketing in general. I know have a pretty huge list of things that I could be selling, marketing, and growing, and it’s a lot. I’m hoping the coaching thing I signed up for will help me with conceptualizing this, as well as some accountability in this area.
I’ve started about a dozen different short stories, but writing new fiction is not flowing right now. I’m struggling to get past the first few paragraphs on any single story. I’m also not submitting at my one-story-per-month rate that I prefer.
When I am able to be in my routine, and have a few uninterrupted days per week when I can actually get into flow state, I thrive. I get a lot done. I feel good, relaxed. I can take naps AND accomplish the things I need to do. When I’m having to run a million errands midweek or go to doctor’s appointments all the way in Santa Fe or Albuquerque, it throws me off my groove. The driving and the appointments eat up the active part of the day, and even if I’m home by 3 PM, I’m completely exhausted. I need to better wrangle my appointments and combine these trips so I have fewer of these kinds of interruptions per week.
Q4 2025 Goals
In terms of prioritizing my projects, I had a Patreon poll posted where my patrons could vote on what I should set about tackling next. Some of these goals are informed by that.
- R&R – I’ve got a small vacation planned with Josh in early October. I usually find myself slowing down physically in response to the change in the seasons. So, as we get into the winter months, I’m going to want to set fewer and fewer goals in general
- Getting started on the Tracking Wonder group and its milestones and accountability – hopefully using that as a springboard for my marketing efforts.
- Finishing the Tarot ritual video series (the last Patreon video should be around Halloween!), finishing pre-loading the YouTube air dates for all of those, and conceptualizing what to do with that concept (does it become a book??)
- Moving the oracle deck into the next phase – writing the book entries for the cards, and creating the voiceovers and videos for the cards I’m creating.
- I’m holding some space in my workload and calendar for additional editorial passes and publishing deadlines for Advanced Unicorn Theory now that I know what to expect there.
- I’ve got three new class ideas that I need to submit for Q1 2026 at Morbid Anatomy. I’d also like to diversify the places and platforms where I’m teaching this kind of class, and need to spend some time researching this and pitching it.
- I’ve got a podcast plan that I’m cooking up. It probably won’t officially launch until Q1 2026, but I’d like to get the groundwork, the first several episodes, and the infrastructure in place for that launch.
- Fiction writing is the other thing I’d like to hold some space for in this quarter. Be this new stories, revising existing novels and novellas, or new short story collections, I’d like to get some creative writing done.
- Health-wise, I need to get my second shingles vaccine in November. And I’d like to better organize and combine my appointments so I’m not leaving the house 3 days each week.
- Home-wise, I have more project management, insurance claim wrangling, and planning what I need to do around the house. I can DIY some of it, but I still need to figure out what the whole list is, and who is doing what. I also need to get the fire wood stacked up and split for the winter.
Things that Might Get In the Way?
This is a smaller, slower list intentionally, because I know my physical energy declines with the seasonal shift into winter. I know that when the sun goes down at five or six o’clock, I’m going to be ready for fuzzy socks and a fire. I also really enjoy sinking into the coziness of hibernation season. Bring on the soup and the hot tea!
My health is stable, but I’m definitely still dealing with some autoimmune junk with the shifting seasons. That can make me get tired faster, and have fewer active hours in a day. I really need to be able to spend those hours writing and productive at the computer, rather than driving all over New Mexico!