Channeling Doctoral Days This Weekend. Horns Down, Charging Ahead, & Making Things Happen.

I just spent two, incredibly inspiring days with 100s of writers and educators during the UNLV YA Lit Summit. The highlight for me was Gilly Segal and Kimberly James presentation, where they discussed six years of friendship, what it's like to co-write a novel, how they researched I Am Not Dying With You Tonight, and the ways their fiction has eerily come to life at this moment in history.

We also were given their insight, wisdom, emotion, and truth, which will remain with me for life.

The graduate research course, CWP summer programs, the conference, and a crashed porch has me with very few cells left to fire, but I have to get on it, because that is what I'm committed to do. I have a writing project due in two weeks, and my accountability partners need my part by the next time we meet. For the first time in a long while, I have a non-ZOOM, non-committed day, and I plan to use it to my advantage. I'm going into ram mode...

...that's the mode I was in for 1,460 days as a doctoral student, and 365 days in my first year as the CWP-Fairfield. I lived in my office, I budgeted every second of my day, and I went after what needed to be accomplished. Of course, I've done this for years, but ultimate ram mode kicks in when the time comes to charge forward with extra-might, and that time is now. I wish I could be rewarded with a cartoon version of myself knocking all the items off my to-do list at the end of it all, but truth be told, I'm not hitting the to-do list except for one item today. Tomorrow, I'll get to the recommendations, readings, plans, article to peer-review, grading, and maybe even some house-cleaning.

Today, it's doing some serious work to create the shittiest first draft possible. It's been planned for a while now...it just needs to be composed. Then, the sculpting begins.

Happy weekend, folks. There's so much the world needs right now. I certainly hope you're doing your part with love, integrity, semblances of good, empathy, and joy. We need all of that right now.