Do those who reside under the sign of Gemini all do things in pairs? Gemini is the twins, you know. I was born a Gemini and, while I\u2019m not a twin and I\u2019m not even all that conflicted as far as my moods and personality, I tend to do everything in multiples.<\/p>\n
I have more than one cat. I went to New York for the first time this year\u2014not once, but twice! I have several \u201ctwin\u201d friends. By this, I mean that I can see similarities between many of my friends\u2014pairs of friends who don\u2019t know one another, but who have very similar traits and personalities. Sometimes I even call one friend by her \u201ctwin\u201d friend\u2019s name.<\/p>\n
When I shop, I often buy two of the same item. I even have pairs of clothing items. If I really like a shirt, pair of slacks, or whatever, I\u2019ll buy a second one. This is true of plants, too. I cannot go to the nursery and pick out just one rose bush or just one lavender plant. If I\u2019m going to make a batch of cookies, I bake two different kinds. I have multiple calendars, bird houses and photos of our kitten. <\/p>\n
I almost always have more than one project going on in my office. Currently, I am finishing up a book for authors AND I am revising Catscapades, Tales of Ordinary and Extraordinary Cats <\/em>and plan to bring it out in print\u2014as a perfect-bound book. <\/p>\n Along with this, I have client work scheduled and I am involved every day with SPAWN work. SPAWN is Small Publishers, Artists and Writers Network.<\/p>\n Are there advantages to working on more than one project at once? Maybe for some of us. Maybe not for others. I guess it depends on how a person is wired. If you need variety in your life, you may do your best work when you are not stuck working on just one story\u2014when you have a couple of interesting things going. If you are easily confused or distracted, you may do better when sticking to one project\u2014one topic. <\/p>\n How do you know what are your best working conditions? I guess this has to be figured out by trial and error. But I can tell you that if you are easily rattled by the infinite details of your nonfiction book or novel project, you probably had better stick to one project (even one chapter) at a time. Not all authors can manage the research for the chapter on green travel and the interviews for the section on building green homes while also writing a piece on shopping green for an ecology magazine. You know who you are. <\/p>\n If you need lots of quiet space in which to write your essay for a regional magazine, if you freak out when you have two articles scheduled to write, if you are overwhelmed by the very thought of pulling together all of the facts and ideas necessary to complete a book, you probably aren\u2019t a natural multitasker. <\/p>\n But if you want to develop your writing abilities and, perhaps, establish yourself within the writing profession in some way, you cannot stay completely within your comfort zone forever.<\/p>\n Maybe this is the year that you will venture out a little, take on a new writing project, decide to submit articles to magazines or start the book of your dreams.<\/p>\n If you need help with this, contact me at PLFry620@yahoo.com. <\/p>\n If you plan to enter into the vast and competitive field of publishing, be sure to arm yourself with knowledge. The best and most reader-friendly book I can recommend is The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book<\/em><\/strong> by me (Patricia Fry). This book is in the library system. I\u2019d like to hear from those of you who have borrowed it from your public or university library. <\/p>\n
\n http:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/rightway.html<\/a>.<\/p>\n