THE TRIALS OF AN INDIE AUTHOR: WORKING WITH MULTIPLE DEADLINES
As an indie author, I can tell you that one of the things that really changed the landscape for me, was learning how to manage working with all the different deadlines. I'm sure this applies to trad pub too, but since I've only ever been indie, I can only speak of that. I know not everyone is able to manage to work on multiple projects, and might, therefore, not be able to manage having multiple deadlines, but for those of us who can and do, I thought that I would give you some insight into how I make it all work for me.
I will have been published for twenty years in August. At the moment I am revising four projects and editing one, just to give you some idea of the deadlines on my plate. Of those five projects, two have set deadlines coming up, one has a deadline in the middle of the year, and the remaining two are a long way off deadline wise, so I don't need to worry about them so much.
It sounds like a whole lot, and it is, and while my ability to plan and dedicate certain days to each have saved me when it comes to working and juggling those deadlines, it doesn't always stop the anxiety and stress that come with this life. I'm constantly worried that I might drop the ball with one of the more upcoming deadlines, and even the ones further off can sometimes feel like they're bearing down on me. I don't say that to be told that maybe I should drop a project here or there and only focus on the ones with more urgent deadlines, I am happy with the way I work, and it's the way I work, so I know that dropping one or two would just add to my stress levels.
My point is simply that there are ways to work, and you personally will know yourself best, and you gotta do what works for you. Just as I know that dropping this or that will impede my ability to function, you might know that there is no way you could ever work on more than one, or maybe two, projects, and both ways of working are valid and should be respected.
So how do you manage? I'm going to give you some of my tips!
#1 PLANNING MIGHT HELP
I say might because I know that for some people, planning isn't possible. It's not the way their brain works, and to do so would just make them even more stressed, and who wants to add to stress? I will say that I have found planning to be a perfect way for me to quiet the anxiety constantly in the back of my mind. It allows me to know when and what I'll be working on, it allows me to think ahead and tick things off, which gives me a nice serotonin boost. It gives me the chance to see, at a glance, just what I need to get done for the remainder of the week/month, and it's just a way for me to stay organised. If it works for you, embrace it, if not, then I hope you're able to find something that does help.
#2 PRIORITISE IF POSSIBLE
This one might seem obvious. After all, if you're planning, isn't it built into that? I mean yes, it can be, but for those who can't plan, this might be an option for them. If you have a project that's due sooner, make that your main focus, put as much time into that as possible, and use the other projects as a buffer should you need that as well. By this I mean, one of the reasons I work on multiple projects, beyond deadlines, is because I find it hard to focus on just one at all times, my brain loses interest and I miss things. Hence my juggling act. So if this is you, then make sure that you put the more important one, or ones, above the others, and get the majority of your work done on them.
#3 BREAKS AREN'T OPTIONAL
While it might seem silly to add in breaks here, especially with those deadlines looming, they need to be part of your working life. Yes people can push themselves through, but if you're constantly doing that, you will end up burned out, or worse, and will find that you can't do anything, and what's going to happen to all those deadlines then? So even if you think that you can't possibly spare time, try and slip them in there somewhere, because you do need them, and they will help you in the end.
So there we go, those are my three tips when it comes to working with multiple deadlines. I need to get back to editing, and from there, into my downtime for the day. I hope you're able to find a way that works for you, and good luck!
Any questions? Lemme know in the comments!
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