New Stuff!

I am now dumping my virtual shopping bag on your virtual bed and showing you all of my nifty purchases from the past few days. Ah, I love the internet.

That’s a batik-print jacket from Coldwater Creek. It was on clearance in their outlet store, plus I had a 70% off coupon. I so rock. I’m trying to expand my collection of jackets and blazers because I have very few good layering pieces and I’m trying very hard to make outfits and not just throw on a shirt and pants every day. Even though I work in an office where I am the only female and I could just as well come to work with no make-up and frump-dump “lounge pants” on and no one would notice at all. Sigh.

I bought two other jackets at Coldwater Creek while I was there. Heehee. I couldn’t resist.

Annnnd I also went to Target… and bought some t-shirts that aren’t online so I can’t show you pictures. So sad.

By the way, if any of you are wanting to go shopping at Coldwater Creek, here’s a coupon for you. It’s a good one, I promise, but you have to use it before midnight tonight!

2006 Writing Report Card

My 2006 Writing Goals & Resolutions look like this, now that the year is almost over:

1. Finish a marketable manuscript.
a. Write a first draft by conference (end of July).
b. Self-critique. No being lazy!
c. Submit to one good contest.

2. Present at conference.
a. Practice pitching. A lot.
b. Give out all business cards.
(Well, I’ll give myself credit for trying.)
c. Meet new people: network network network! (E for effort.)

3. Get 3 requests for fulls. (only got 2)
a. Send out queries!
b. Follow up.

c. Keep sending queries. Don’t give up! (Hm, yeah, I kinda gave up after a nasty pile of rejections came back.)
d. Research editors and agents. (I should have done this to jump-start my next round of query-sending.)

4. Sell manuscript.
a. Be professional and polite always.
b. Update website.
c. Write thank-you notes.

5. Start on a new project, no matter what!

I suppose I did pretty well, but this year, now that I know how much goals & resolutions help with that whole Writing Thing, I’m going to make better ones. Stay tuned.

Last Year In The Life Of Sonja: The World’s Shortest Fairy Tale, 2005 In Review Survey