Anna DeStefano's Blog

Here’s what the corner of my desk looks like. It’s the area of my home workspace that makes me want to come back every day and work all over again. Even if you don’t work at home, I know you have a place you love to call your own. Yours and only yours. Because you can relax there and smile and dream and let the rest of the world go.

Email me your happy corner (at anna “at” annawrites “dot” com), and I’ll post it here! Based on everyone’s feedback, I’ll choose a winner and the best “happy corner” wins… (more…)

Yeah, there have been lots of changes out here over the last few weeks.

New website. New blog. New newsletter (and let me just say, lots of new tools and things to learn behind the scenes to make it all flow). I’ve set up Facebook and Twitter (because social networking is what publishers and readers and authors I respect suggest I do next…) Lots of new fb friends and twitter followers.  New categories to publish under on the blog (dream theory and articles and publishing news links). And I’m still tweaking it all.

Now what?

Well, now I remind myself the writing is what it’s all about and I finish The Fireman’s Secret Baby for Harlequin. I’m starting to love this story. It was a difficult shift, back to classic romance from paranormal suspense. It doesn’t help that I’m writing articles and press releases and dear reader letters and so forth still for Dark Legacy. And reading the gallies. And answering questions in email and twitter. But it’s doable. Because this is my job and I LOVE IT!!!

Yes Romantic Times is publishing a behind the scenes article on Dark Legacy (another dream theory blog later today), and the editor’s just finished the ARC for the book and is raving about it. And Borders will have a letter and excerpt up for DL in September, promoting it to readers on their site. All VERY exciting and distracting. Yes, it’s key that I build momentum into the release and beyond to it’s sequel, with my online footpritnts and so forth. But the writing is key. The writing is key. Wake up, Anna! The writing is what’s key!!!

Whatever your job. Whatever your distractions. You have to remember every day what you’re about. What you ultimately want your day to achieve. What feeds you and drives the energy that you need to get the rest done. For me, my day is about being a mother and about writing. The rest is my job, it’s important, but it’s not who I am. That distinction helps somehow.

“Yes, this is important, but it’s not what I’m about. Not ALL I’m about. But THIS–this is what I have to get right, because without it I won’t survive. I won’t be me.”

There’s always going to be a new you and me. Change and upgrades and career rebouts and hard work do that to our lives. But underneath it all, what are you? What drives you? Why do you care? Knowing those answers is what will get the important work done, no matter how distracting the rest becomes.

Ok. Nice rant. I’m feeling much better now… Off to write!!!

Whatever you’re off to do today, make it about you ;o)