Right on Track - Why Having a Plan is Better Than Not

I've always been a "list" person. I make lists for everything. It just feels better to have it all written down, like the writing of it is an accomplishment in itself. When I was a teacher, I was the most organized person in the building. I had files, labels, crates, folders, pens, pencils, scissors, Sharpies, bulletin board boarders, and most importantly, I had a system. I drew up charts, created forms, meticulously decorated, and shared my ideas and procedures with my teacher team, who worked with me to create a consistency across the board. I knew where things were; I met deadlines. My desk was tidy, and I had comparatively fewer discipline issues because my students knew to expect structure and routine in my class. It was my domain, my responsibility, and—more or less—completely under my control.

It was awesome.

Unfortunately, since transitioning from working mom to stay-at-home mom, my attempts to convey the same level of organization and functionality at home have been one big epic failure. Instead of getting on top of things and staying there, I'm constantly playing catch-up. Clutter rules, chaos reigns, and control is, um, I'm not sure I know what that is any more.

Why has it been so hard to make it all work at home? There are probably a lot of reasons and even more blame to spread around, but I've had a major epiphany - I need a plan.

A few weeks ago, my best friends drove 900 miles to come visit me. To avoid a last-minute mad rush to clean everything in an all-night frenzy, I pulled out my Handy Dandy Jot-Down-Everything pad and made a list. I wrote down what needed to get done and then assigned myself one or two of those tasks per day in the week before they got here. Guess what? It worked! I got everything done in a leisurely manner and didn't have to give up any sleep for it. Who knew?

Then it occurred to me: Why don't I do this all the time? There is a wise quote that has been attributed to several people, including Ben Franklin, Winston Churchill, and Anonymous (that speaker of all wise things. ;p), which says, "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail." Hmm.. That explains so much about why my house looks like it does...

Now, this is much easier said than done. Creating a workable, maintainable plan/schedule around four other people whose agendas amount to  a) no agenda at all and b) thwart Mom's agenda at all costs has represented a bit of a challenge. I've struggled to come up with a thwart-proof plan.

What does this have to do with writing? Quite a bit, as it turns out. In order to write, correctly and well, a plan is required. I can sit and ponder plot and word choice all day, but this book sure as heck isn't going to write itself! (Apparently, neither do blog posts...)

Here are the things that I've learned about planning for writing:

1. Know your destination. One of the most profound pieces of advice I've come across lately is that you should always write the ending, or at least know how your story ends, before you write the beginning. Of course, now I'm thinking, "Well, duh," but it really struck me because it was something I hadn't considered. I have had vague notions of how I wanted my story to end, but I had been too busy worrying about getting started to even think about where it was all going to end up. I have more concrete plans now... I think.
2. Writing needs to be included on the to-do list. Yep, right next to laundry, scrubbing toilets, and replacing light bulbs. I've found that if I have an actual list to cross off items as I do them, the chances of getting them done rise exponentially. And it doesn't have to be every day—it's just a good feeling to see at the end of the week that I've got more words than I had a week ago. 
3. Set weekly and monthly goals. I may shoot for a time to write, or a certain number of words to get down on the paper (or screen, as it were). Or I may tell myself that I simply must commit to writing one blog post per month and one or two new scenes for the novel. Again, it's not going to accomplish itself, and it's a great feeling to cross that goal off the list when it's done. Try it!

That's about as far as I've gotten. I have plans and goals. I've set a path, and I hope it will keep me "Right on Track." The actual execution is still a bit up in the air, though, because another thing I learned as a teacher and am reminded of on a daily basis is that, in the immortal and infinitely wise words of the poet Robert Burns, "The best laid schemes o'Mice and Men gang aft agley." Personally, I'm happy to accept that we live in a world where there's room for irony—I think it takes some of the pressure off.

Jane's Writing Tip of the Day:

I still seem to be stuck on punctuation—especially comma use. So here it is: The serial comma (the one that comes before the "and" in a list of three or more items) is not optional, folks. Know it, practice it((,)) and don't ever leave it out again. Thank you.

One of my favorite 80s songs ever: "Right on Track" by The Breakfast Club. They've got dancing chickens and everything—Enjoy!

# of proofreads: 22

# of edits: 54