August, 2022 – The Month of Juggling

good morning, cyberspace!

And just like that, we’ve entered August. I’ve put a lot of time and consideration into how I want to go about this month. There’s so much that needs done, so much I want to accomplish, and so much that’s simply happening in my little corner of the universe–most of which is unfortunately outside my realm of control–that I’ve debated whether or not to just give up on blogging entirely, shave my head bald, and become a lowly goat herder out in the Himalayas. The other side of the debate is rather convinced that we’re entering a midlife crisis, and therefore I have kept my locks and haven’t yet packed up my things for the big move.

So alas. I’m still here, still thriving, and finally sitting down to write a blog post about August. It’s taken some time, but I’ve narrowed my lengthy list of To-Do’s down to three main creative projects for the month, as well as cushioned the rest of my time with “work” work. We’re entering a heavy training period at the coffee shop, which means it’s an all-hands-on-deck sort of situation all month long. And since I’m the Director of Training, my hands are going to be on that deck a lot.

I’m excited, though. This will be a good season. I’m determined for it to be, lol.

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Good Morning, June!: making goals and stickin’ to ’em

good morning, cyberspace!

* sorry about the lack of a post this past week, friends! the end of may was a wee bit chaotic, so I didn’t get anything drafted up to post. we’re back to our standard programming this week, however!

We are officially 6 months into the new year, peasants! Weirdly enough, I’m not freaking out. Usually I’d be all like “OH MY GOODNESS LSKDJFALSKFJSLDFKJ WHERE IS THIS YEAR GOING I THOUGHT IT WAS ONLY FEBRUARY WHAT”, but like…? This time around I’m just kinda “meh” about the whole thing. Which probably says more about my mental health than anything, but ya know. We good. XD

But! Since it’s technically halfway through the year and technically a new month, I’ve decided that there is no better time than the present to make some goals!

I outlined my overall goals for the year back in January in this post, but ever since then, I’ve kept rather quiet about what I’m working on and the progress I’ve been making. Half of this is because I haven’t been making much headway recently. But the other half is because… well, honestly I just don’t have any goals lately.

And that’s a pretty lame place to be, my friends.

So this June, we are making this a month of goals, aspirations, and otherwise dream-crushery! And, to say the least, I’m exceptionally excited.

The In-Between of Publishing

good morning, cyberspace!

Lately I’ve been suffering from a conundrum. Of course, you could probably say that I’m suffering from a conundrum every single day of my life–“what am I?” “what is the meaning of life?” *indefinite existential crisis*–but this particular conundrum is one that I’ve been suffering through for a while now, and therefore I no longer know the correct way to battle it.

So, because everything seems to become clearer when I put my fingers to the keys and type, I’ve decided to write a blog post about it. Because maybe then I can finally understand what is happening inside my head, you know?

The focus of this post may be a little bit messy. (apologies in advance for that. i know how much you guys love my totally professional blogging style. [*awkward cough*]). I’ll do my best to clean it up and form a concise theme once I’m done spewing out the first draft of whatever this turns into, but this is just your friendly neighborhood warning: here there be rambles.

Still with me? Wonderful. Tally ho, soldier.

In Which the YouTube Channel Lives and Dies

good morning, cyberspace!

So…. Hi again! It’s me, Mario, returned from the dead! The past two weeks have been extremely taxing (emotionally, physically, mentally, ect.), but holy guacamole and cheddar is it good to be on the other side of them now. The last time I was on the blogosphere, I told y’all that I was starting a YouTube Channel! And so I did. It feels wonderful to actually have just done it after thinking about it for so long, especially when the fear of failure was so extreme.

And let me tell ya, folks. The imposter syndrome is real on the YouTube. I can tell you that much.

Buuuuuut, as with all things, I have quickly discovered a downside to this lovely thing called vlogging. Actually a few downsides. And today I’d like to talk about them! Because… well… I’ve decided that–right now–being a part of the YouTube community just doesn’t float my boat.

Behind The Scenes of Project Sunset – Writing is Rewriting is Rewriting is Rewriting…

good evening, cyberspace!

*cough cough* Please excuse the construction dust around here, friends! I’ve been reformatting some of this blog’s old pages and behind-the-scenes features, so while things might not look too awful different… there are definitely some new things happening here at the Smudged Thoughts headquarters…

One of which being the revival of the writing update series that I created approximately 3,000 years ago and then promptly forgot about! As one does, naturally.

look, I never said I was perfect, okay XD *kicks the amount of times I’ve called myself flawless under the carpet*

Anyway, back when this series first aired, I named it WIP It–a title I have since come to deeply regret. XD I’m still not sure exactly what I’d like to call this series–or how often I’ll even update this–but for right now I’m calling it “Behind The Scenes”. Because it’s… behind the scenes… of the book I’m writing… aha….

(by now it must be obvious that I have no clue what I’m doing.)

good morning, 2022 – my plans and plots for the new year!

good morning, cyberspace!

Happy New Year, my friends! I can’t believe it’s already 2022–or January, for that matter–but here we are on the cusp of another shiny new year, hoping (I think) that perhaps this one will be just a little less terrifying than the past couple have been…

To be honest, I don’t think ANYONE expected the 20’s to be… whatever it is the 20’s have been lately. But hey! We’re making the most of it! And what better way to focus on the good than by thinking about plans and plots for the oncoming year? and simultaneously kicking all terrible things that have happened underneath the rug, ne’er to be seen again. this is fine. Specifically, of course, ones in regards to writing, reading, and any otherwise creative pursuits!

Goal creation is one of my favorite things, especially at the start of a new year. Not only is it new and exciting–the very fuel this chaotic creative thrives on–but it also helps hold me accountable to the very many things I want to accomplish within a calendar year. At least, it should hold me accountable. As we discovered last week, sometimes I’m not very good about staying true to the goals I’ve set for myself. XD But! That’s all part of the learning experience, amiright?

So this morning, for our very first post of 2022, I’m going to pull back the curtains of my mind and show you all a sneakety peakety of what I’m planning for this year!

What will I be writing within the coming months? Are there any new stories in the works? Do I have a publishing plan(lol wut)? What about secret projects? Are there any of those? (trick question. there are ALWAYS secret projects in the pipeline.) There’s so much to be excited about in the coming months–some of which I’m not even covering in today’s post–so let’s dive right in and take a look!

2021 Reviews & Reflections

good morning, cyberspace!

Today, as 2021 draws to a close, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the multitudes of goals I created for myself at the start of the year. January held all the potential a new year can present, and it’s pretty obvious by my intentions for the year that I had… high hopes for how 2021 would progress. XD

Unfortunately, I also have a tendency to forget about these new goals about halfway through the year, but ya know. It’ll be fun to review them and see how many I actually managed to accomplish!

For anyone wanting to read the original post to get a sense of how horribly oblivious Past Kenzie was to the challenges this year would present, here’s a handy dandy hyper link for you to follow through the wormholes of the internet. However, if you’d rather just snatch the highlights and enjoy my PRESENT reactions to such goals as these, keep reading, sailor!

NaNoWriMo, 2021 – Week Two

good evening, cyberspace!

It’s currently the evening of Monday the 15th, and I’m sitting here trying to type up an accurate summary of the past week with an insane amount of difficulty.

The goal? Get this post drafted and posted by the end of the night.

The struggle? This week was a blur and I don’t even know what timeline I’m living in anymore, let alone what happened within the past seven days.

But alas! We are officially entering the third week of NaNoWriMo, and I must not let it slip past without acknowledging the week that came before it! So Week Two Recap, here we come!

Know The Novel – Part Two: Within Project Sunset

good morning, cyberspace!

And we are back with another episode of Know The Novel!–the monthly writer’s linkup hosted by the inimitable Christine Smith! Last month, I talked about the (non-spoilery) details surrounding my current WIP, Project Sunset. This month, we’re going to take a deeper look into the process behind the writing!

If you’re a writer participating in NaNoWriMo–or even just a writer working on a book–I would highly recommend checking out this linkup. You can find the questions to Part One here, and Part Two right here! This linkup is such a fun way to connect with other writers, as well as a much-needed gentle reprieve from the absolute chaos that is writing a book in one of the craziest months of the year, so if you’re not participating already (or if you’ve never read Christine’s blog before), do yourself a favor and check both of them out immediately.

Or, ya know, after you finish reading this post. Because I’m also cool, apparently. XD

NaNoWriMo, 2021 – The First Week

happy november, cyberspace!

I was going to do a whole introduction post for the first day of NaNoWriMo last week, but alas alack, sometimes things don’t go according to plan.

The past two weeks have been silent here on my end of the blogosphere, but let me tell ya, folks: that time away was used for some much-needed rest. I have exactly 0 regrets. XD I’ve definitely missed being present on the blogs, though, and now that I’m back, I thought it would be fun to jump back in with a Weekly NaNoWriMo Recap! It’s crazy to think that we’re already a solid week into November, but I guess time truly does fly when you’re having fun! *awkward laughter*

Let’s take a look at the first week of NaNo, shall we?