Deadline Reminders

As someone who is forgetful, I have found that using sticky notes to help me remember things has been most helpful.

 

 

I use these for my writing as well. I often grab the sticky notes to write on if I need specific information about a submission call, a reminder to pitch somewhere, a reminder to submit a story somewhere, or if I need to follow up with someone on a certain day.

 

Ever since I started using a planner to help manage my days as a writer and author, the sticky notes have also been useful in another way: Acting as a reminder for deadlines.

 

 

 This particular planner includes a full month spread at the start of each month’s days, so I use this to also note any deadlines for submissions long in advance. Or sometimes I will add deadlines when I learn about them.

 

This, too, has been immensely useful in helping me to stay on top of deadlines coming up.

 

But sometimes, I forget to check the monthly spread! Oops! I try to check it every Sunday, just to see what is coming up in the next week, but of course, I tend to forget to do this. Sigh.

 

Even so, this method of reminding me about deadlines has helped a lot, and I still keep using it.

 

The deadlines I include in the monthly spread are both for submissions I have already committed to via the editor as well as “maybes” that I am interested in, but not sure yet if I’ll have anything to submit to in time. (If I do have anything that might fit with a forthcoming deadline, I will submit to it right away! For example, I had a short story that fit a theme for a submission call, so I sent my story off right after I learned about it.)

 

In the past, I have written my deadlines on calendars, but these days, the planner (and the sticky notes!) work better. I don’t remember to look at my calendar every day but I DO remember to look at my planner every day, so it has been more effective as a reminder of any deadlines coming up.

 

The thing that really made this method stick for me is to make it a daily routine to check my planner. Unlike some other writers, I have something going on EVERY DAY. So I started grabbing my planner every morning when it was time to get busy with the writing stuff. The only days I don’t use the planner is if I’m too sick to do anything or I’m in the hospital. Otherwise, I use my planner every day – even on my birthday and holidays!

 

 

When it comes to trying to remember to do things, I usually make it a part of my routine – whether it’s the morning routine, weekend routine or a seasonal routine. Routines are the saving grace for anyone who tends to forget things. If I make it a routine to grab my planner when I start my writing work for the day, then I will likely notice those reminders. I just need to create a routine to start checking the monthly spread every weekend! Maybe using a sticky note will help too.

Planning for the New Week

When I just started out working as a freelance writer in 1994, I spent my weekends planning ahead for the new week. I would make a list of the markets I pitched as well as brainstorm for ideas on other articles to pitch.

 

In my early days of freelance writing, I sent out several pitches Monday through Friday, hoping something would take.

 

These days, I do freelance writing differently. Instead of writing articles on a variety of topics, I stick to a niche. And instead of jumping at the opportunity to pitch an idea to a market that I feel I COULD write about if I did enough research on it, I stick to the topics that I KNOW I can write about well. I guess after going into different directions and trying everything for a certain number of years, I figured out what works best for me.

 

Not only this, but the bulk of my freelance writing isn’t about articles. It’s about essays, poems and short stories.

 

But one thing I still do even after all this time? Plan ahead for the new week.

 

I still spend my weekends hunting down new places to submit my work to, but nowadays that list is limited to just ONE market.

 

 

That’s right. Just one.

 

I have way too many irons in the fire these days, so I am not able to devote hours of my days to freelance writing like I used to. Nope; I’m either freelance writing, working on my newsletter, reading a book I have to review, writing that book review, creating new content, working on any one of my several books, working on requested edits/revisions for editors and publishers, doing book promo, doing research, or interviewing people for one thing or another. Plus there is the work I do for Twisted Dreams Press! So, no, spending hours Monday through Friday doing the freelancing is just not doable for me anymore.

 

And on the weekends, I do website updates, research for articles, working on the books, and, of course, writing whatever the heck I want to!

  

All the same, ever since I made the decision to get serious about freelance writing, I make it an effort to make time for submitting to the market that I planned to submit to for that day. Even if I don’t wanna! Sometimes, my days get so busy that I’m not able to get around to doing that until late at night. But if I’m going to be submitting a short story to a market at 11:30PM at night, then by golly, I’ll do it! Because I owe it to myself to do it!

 

And, anyway, I already had it scheduled to get done that day. A note I had made long before the day came around reminds me of this.

 

I started by writing on a Post-It Note™ what I would submit for each day of the week.

 

 

 (Note: FFW is FundsforWriters)

Then I started using my planner.

 

My planner has been a godsend in scheduling submissions and reminding me of deadlines. On any one of the given months I open it to, I can see deadlines of anthology calls, writing contests and submission deadlines written on various days.

 

 

And when I plan ahead for the new week, I’ll also use Post-It Notes on each day of the week for markets to submit to.

 

 

That right there is enough to motivate me to get on with that submission, already. No matter how tired I am, how self-conscious, how depressed or anxious I may be, I will look at that note and have a voice in my head screaming, “You’ll submit your work and LIKE it!”

 

Yes, I could step away from all of it. I could say “screw it!” and never submit anything again, but I don’t want to. Freelance writing is just ONE of the things I want to be doing during the week.

 

Plus, that call to submit can turn into an interesting experience!

 

For example, I discovered that an essay I wanted to submit to HNDL Mag was too long. I switched that submission to another market which I thought might not be interested in it. (Well, maybe they will. Who knows. I try not to self-reject!) Meanwhile, I discovered I had another essay I’d written years ago which might work better – if I just cut it a bit. (I had the mental energy to cut 200 words, not 700!) So I fixed that essay up and submitted it instead.

 

With another submission, I realized that it probably would not be a good fit. I mean, they DID have articles on writing, but they were written in a style that matched the blog’s topics. After some reading of their works published and using a little creativity, I rewrote my article in a way that fit their topic and sent it in.

 

I was surprised how these submission reminders have challenged and perhaps strengthened my creativity!

 

I have many more weeks ahead with many more markets assigned to days for me to submit fiction, poetry and nonfiction (articles or essays) to. In fact, one week alone has me submitting nothing but short stories.

 

I really enjoy doing the freelance writing this way. It’s less stressful, less time consuming, and more exciting because of all the surprising information that can pop up along the way.