The Sunday Circle is the weekly check-in where I ask the creative-types who follow this blog to weigh in about their goals, inspirations, and challenges for the coming week. The logic behind it can be found here. Want to be involved? It’s easy – just answer three questions in the comments or on your own blog (with a link in the comments here, so that everyone can find them).
After that, throw some thoughts around about other people’s projects, ask questions if you’re so inclined. Be supportive above all.
Then show up again next Sunday when the circle updates next, letting us know how you did on your weekly project and what you’ve got coming down the pipe in the coming week (if you’d like to part of the circle, without subscribing to the rest of the blog, you can sign-up for reminders via email here).
MY CHECK-IN
What am I working on this week?
I’m reworking the back end of my first PhD novella this week, taking a new approach based on the research and trying to lock down the protagonist as an iconic character rather than a dramatic one. It presents an interesting challenge – I’ve got to fight my own instincts as a writer and figure out ways to not resolve the protagonist’s inner conflict at the ed of the story.
What’s inspiring me this week?
I’ve been continuing on the Game of Thrones read-through, and making all sorts of notes about the smart things that are being done in terms of set-ups and structure. Martin is really committed to showing you how the character’s change, but I’m continually impressed by the way he shows character movement within a scene by mirroring the opening in the final moments of an exchange.
What action do I need to take?
I need to adjust my new weekly schedule a little for the coming weeks, to take into account my partner being around during the day and needing to use the computer. Also, clearing the decks of any outstanding marking or teaching-admin before the big assignments arrive in a week or two.
I’ve ended up taking a short, unscheduled break from writing newsletters over the last fourteen days. Regular GenrePunk Ninja transmissions will resume
Like many of you, I have good weeks and bad weeks on the writing front. This week has been rocky, and if
Welcome to GenrePunk Ninja supplemental, where I occasionally post foundational essays written before I launched the GenrePunk Ninja newsletter, especially if they’re
8 Responses
What I’m working on: Every week I dread seeing the Weekly Check-in email. I’ve been deleting them without responding for at least a year (I think I responded once.) I feel panicky about both responding and not responding. What I’m working on is justifying the time spent writing, rather than doing something more “productive” (like washing the dishes). I’m responding now because I finally realize it doesn’t matter where I am in the writing “pack”, and that meeting myself where I am in this journey/process is worth the risk (failure, humiliation, etc.).
What’s inspiring me this week: An essay this week on Longreads by Anne Theriault, “Queens of Infamy: Anne Boleyn”. She used today’s youth slang ( “dude”) to illustrate a few conversational scenes set in the 1500s, and she used plenty of gallows humor, and just the right amount of both.
What Actions Do I Need to Take: Shut down my WordPress blog. WordPress was wonderful at the time, but I’ve been away from it so long that I realize it no longer serves my writing needs. I’m moving to Medium.com because I realize it offers me more writing challenges, and more rewards.
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Grammar and/or punctuation corrections welcome.
Welcome back! You rock for facing that fear and signing in! I’m with you completely on meeting yourself where you are – that’s a great way of putting it!
Curious about Medium, having seen a few people go over to it – can you elaborate on the sorts of rewards that platform offers you?
Hi Kevin, You’re kind. Just posting that tiiiiiy little bit about myself among actual writers exhausted me. It’s like my writer-side is a whole ‘nother person I can’t quite square up with. Bizarre.
I’m moving to Medium because as a member I have access to the best of the best writing, whereas on WordPress I have to weed through a lot of writing I have no interest in reading. And I think Medium will give my writing more exposure, which sounds ridiculous coming from the mouth of a person who practically passes out after publishing a itsy bitsy post among real writers, but I’m trying to grow my writer up, to square up who I am in the real world and uh… who I am as a writer.
It’s f***ing complicated lol.
Heading over to read your post from last week.
Welcome aboard. And it totally doesn’t matter where you are in the writing pack – we’re all trying to figure out how to justify the time spent writing instead of other tasks, regardless of how far along we are.
I’ll be passing the Theriault link onto my partner, whose got a huge passion for the Tudor period.
Peter: How’s your weekly planning going at the moment? Also, would be interested to hear how sharing your workspace during the day goes, too. Had Jackie home last week and it drove me a little spare – just having someone else in the space of the house in general after being accustomed to it being empty. But you’ve sharehoused for years… (not that sharing space with your fiancée is the same thing at any stretch)
Sharing the workspace is a challenge, since I’m highly distractible at the best of times. I spent a bunch of last week working out of the house, just so I’d give Sarah a chance to figure out her routine without me rattling around the place, but I broke a toe on Thursday night and that’s put some limitations on where I go this week. The uni office involved a *lot* of walking…
What am I working on this week?
Chaos of preparing to move house continues this week, along with some packing activity. Most of the non-essential stuff is all packed now, so it’ll just be a last stretch of activity in the week before moving. Other than that, working on narrative skills where I can, and increasing revenue. I’ve found during this period of chaos the day job has eaten up more time as I’ve been cautious about keeping them happy. Not sure if that’s a product of just having had my yearly review, or the fact that it’s easier to latch onto their structure in the absence of my own continuity until we settle in in the new place.
What’s inspiring me this week?
I just finished going through Dan Carlin’s monster work Death Throes of the Republic, and it blew my hair back. I made the mistake of listening to it first time around right on the tail of his Wrath of the Khans series, and I was a little numb to his style and the machinations of history. This time around though, it was fascinating. The series of cause and effect cascades over generations that would have been impossible to predict… the perspective on Julius Caesar’s character… loved it.
What action do I need to take?
Zooming out and talking in generalities, it’s making sure that across this period of chaos I dedicate enough time to working on the things that matter. I’m finding it really seductive at the moment to just chill out in the evenings instead of working on side projects or useful research.
Hi Kevin, I went to your website a couple months ago, and read the reviews of your work, and what it’s like to work with you. So I went back just now to your landing page (the red, the city high-rise at night, etc.) to remind myself who you are and swear-to-god, I was instantly, *viscerally* reminded of your integrity and how well-liked you are by your peers and clients.