Eve Devon
  • Home
  • About Me
  • Books
  • Muse Fuel
  • Blog
  • Call Story
  • Contact

When List-Making Goes Bad...

3/3/2013

 
Do you find walking around a supermarket without a shopping list shudder-inducing?
Or starting the week without a To Do list incomprehensible?
What about having a list of goals for the year? Don't you find that practical and on the cute side of target-driven?
Have you reached that "if it's not on the list, it doesn't exist" stage of life?

In this, my list confessional, ironically written in the form of a list, I try to discover if my once agile and awesomely organised mind hasn't become a little too enslaved by the list-making.

What would happen if I challenged myself to go a week without writing a list? Would I forget something so eye-wateringly important, karma would be belly-laughing at the payback possibilities? Would I get to the end of the week and see my self-esteem lying pathetically on the floor, starved of any sense of achievement? Or, would the amount of time freed up by the not making of the lists, mean I had to actually tackle the very stuff I avoided by spending time writing them on a list?

*clears throat* I haven't exactly carried out the challenge. What? I'm not stupid. A whole week without writing one single list? Baby steps, people.

Before listing the lists I write each week I offer you three types of list-makers: The Procrastinator, The Doer and The Stationery Addict.

As a writer I am all three of these. Sometimes at the same time!

I'm trying to remember when the penchant for list-making started. I definitely remember knowing that writing a revision plan, with a list of topics I needed to revise (and the order in which I needed to revise them) was going to be way more fun than the actual act of revising for exams. Early evidence of list-maker procrastinator?

Then there was the first time I had too many deadlines coming up at work. Being able to rely on my To Do list took the pressure off. Methodically achieving the list became my doer's redemption.

Lastly, yes, I am that person who buys novelty stationery. Little odd-shaped notebooks I fill with checklists, top-ten lists, wish lists/bucket lists, Christmas lists. To Be Read lists. Books I've Read lists.

As a writer I'm part plotter part pantser. I work out plot--albeit loosely to leave room for my characters to surprise me along the way. But this does mean I write lists of character traits and on a plotting board I put lists of scenes and lists of plot turns. So in any given week I write lists of the above and:
1) A To Do List. This list contains items that if I don't do, someone wil a) shout at me, b) nag at me, or c) look at me like I'm TSTL. I also list things so mundane I've practically already done them. (Sometimes I have. Not gonna lie--the act of crossing things off the list is strangely satisfying). Also on the list are things I would like to get done. And will get done. When I get sucked into that magical vortex where time doubles.
2) The food shopping list. Time is precious and if I return home missing half the stuff I need, I'm going to a) use unladylike profanities (sometimes fun) and b) have to go out again (not fun).
3) At the end of my writing day I write a list of where I want to take the scene the following day.

Hey. This isn't too bad. To think I was worried about a measly three lists a week. Nothing to see here folks.

Except...

Where does it all end? What if I were to start a List of Lists? Uh-huh. Start writing one of those puppies and no doubt I'm straying into "When List-Making Goes Bad" land.

That smacks of list-making in control of you, not you in control of list-making.

And what if I were to take any one of those lists and start subdividing, alpha-sorting and colour-coordinating???

Wait. That's what you do with charts, right? Phew. Charts are totally different. Charts = Spreadsheets. A spreadsheet isn't a list. Not really. I mean, sure people use them as lists, but
technically...

*heads off to turn "Things I need to do pre book launch" list into a spreadsheet*

Eve


Comments are closed.
    Picture

    Eve's Blog

    In which I mostly write about Me & My Muse!

    Twitter Feed

    Tweets by @EveDevon
    Picture

    Published With:

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Archives

    July 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    February 2019
    March 2018
    February 2018
    November 2017
    August 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    August 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012

    Picture

    Categories

    All

    Picture

    Blogs & Websites
     I Visit

    Jackie Ashenden
    Incy Black
    Ally Blake
    Breathtaking Romantic Suspense
    Cynthia Cooke
    Misty Dietz
    Entangled Indulgence
    India Grey
    Jodi Linton
    Nikki Logan
    Nicola Marsh
    Michelle Smart
    The Pink Heart Society
    Maisey Yates
    Picture

    Goodreads

    Eve Devon's books on Goodreads
    The Waiting Game The Waiting Game
    reviews: 21
    ratings: 31 (avg rating 4.10)

    RSS Feed

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.