Jessica Conoley's Blog: LitUP

The typing on the clickity-clackity keyboard is very fun indeed. I’m at the part of writing where you want to work on it and you’re sad when you have to stop for the day because you have to real life–that is a very nice place to be.

I have 3,628 first draft usable words typed, but I have no idea how many words are in that hand-written notebook. (For reference, a novella is 30k words, a normal length bio/non-fiction book is 50k-ish, and fantasy novels 80k+) I guess I’ll find out when it’s all 1st draft typed done, and I’m okay with not knowing right now.

I assumed I would type the notebook in the order of the pages, but it does not want me to do that. I finish a section which reminds me of something that feels like it should go next, so I flip to my rudimentary table-of-contents in the back of the notebook and type up that section next. It is nice to have the project tell me what to do. It takes a lot of the stress off.

This week’s 7 cards is out.

Be nice to yourself this week. Take your allergy meds if you feel like you’re dying, it’s probably just trees trying to make babies. Try to have some fun, and if something doesn’t feel right don’t try to force it.

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One full handwritten notebook = zero draft of a project that scares the shit out of me is complete. But tonight I celebrate, because 160 handwritten pages makes a writer’s hand tired.

The next step is to type it up on my clickity, clackity keyboard & that should be most satisfying on the typing side of things. Stay tuned for how the 1st computer draft comes together.

This week’s 7 cards is out.

I’m going to try Wednesday night co-working from 7 p.m. – 9 p.m CST for the summer. We’ll see how it goes & re-evaluate accordingly.

Reminder coaching is this Saturday at NOON CST. Hope to see you there. I know at least one of you has some good news to share with the group so we can celebrate together

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My cats have been visiting the vet lots the last week, and that has slowed my writing game… but Monty did join me for 7 cards this week, as you can see from the preview clip. We’re figuring out a new routine & hopefully that means I’ll be filling those final 27 pages shortly.

If you’d like to join me for some consistent writing time, access all the details on co-working here.

I’m teaching in Liberty for MCPL next week, but the class is already wait-listed & live attendance only. If I get to see you there, please say hi!

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There are 27 pages left in the notebook I’m supposed to fill with hand written words before I’m allowed to type or edit them. I have killed 7 pens and bought replacements. It feels like those words will be ready for typing next week at this time. It’s a good feeling.

This week’s 7 cards is up.

Remember you can observe the chaos and stress of what’s going on around you without choosing to amplify it. A reminder to all because I feel I did not do that well at it yesterday. Just keep swimming. You’ve got this.

J

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One of my client’s is writing memoir -type work. I advised his readers would want to see pics of younger him. He hemmed and hawed at the the thought. I said, “if you send out a pic to your email list of 19-year-old you to support your post, I will send a pic of 19 y.o. me out to my email list in solidarity. ”

As promised, here is a photo of me in my college dorm room with my room-mate & my real hair color. It would be 1999. Overalls were all the rage. The shirt I’m wearing had been my mom’s and she wore it when she was in college.

This week’s 7 cards is up.

I’ve killed 4 pens on my new writing project & am at 108? handwritten pages.

Have a good week & don’t forget that the resting part of your day is just as important as the doing part.

J

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After 16 years of seriously writing I may have figure out how to “fast” draft a book. Turns out my fastest way to draft is by hand writing.

In January I started a new project and my intuition told me do not type anything into the computer until this notebook is full. And as I have learned fighting with my intuitive guidance is futile, I have been doing what I was told.

My editor brain is too strong on the computer, and it is impossible for me to not edit on the screen. So the solution is take the project off line until I have 160 hand written pages & then I’m allowed to transcribe & revise. I’m 53% of the way through this draft, and it feels good to be on the downhill side of this project.

Since this isn’t the first book I’ve drafted I have learned a few things to make it easier on myself.

1) The inside front cover of the notebook is for idea notes about scenes I think I want to write.

2) The last page of the notebook is for a table of contents about what I wrote. I number the pages, and at the end of each writing session I make a quick note to remind me about what I wrote on that day’s page.

3) I’ve learned to surrender to whatever comes out. Some days I sit down with the intent to write one thing and something completely different comes out.

Thus far I’ve killed one pen–purple. I write each new scene in a different color. My friend kindly gifted me a rainbow pack of erasable pens. (Eraseable pens have come a long way since 1994–the last time I used them.)

***

The new 7 cards is up this week. Thanks for your patience while I got it out. I did 10 back-to-back readings on Sunday and I needed some recovery time.

If you’re feeling like things are overwhelming , intense, & fast-paced right now you can blame the planets. 7 planets are in Aries (which you may remember is the god of war) so it’s all intense, act, fire energy right now. & NO planets are in retrograde–which is what helps things slow down.

So breathe. Take time for yourself. Act in alignment with what is authentic to you & if you can manage it, don’t react or add to the drama. You’re doing great.

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We’re seeing big changes everywhere. Energetically it’s a shift of revealing what is broken, so we can rebuild in a healthier way. But the transition period is hard, and it sucks to witness and experience the chaos.

I struggle like everyone else with how do I act in alignment with my values, when it feels like my only options are bad options. The internet & where I hang out on it is one place where I face that dilemma.

I would love to divorce instagram & the Metaverse, but to have an impact and connect with people who need my work it feels like I have to have a social media presence. I do think there are healthier ways to internet, and am willing to explore new ones which is why I’m participating in the beta test of https://communities.social/

It’s a new social media platform that is ad free & attempting to build community connection in an ethical, democratic way. If anyone else is on there please connect with me. You can find by name, Jessica Conoley, or handle @intuitivejess.

I don’t know if communities will work, but it’s the most aligned platform for me that I’ve found right now. And the only way we know if things work is if we try them, so I donated a little to the start up & set up a profile.

This week’s 7 cards is up. My new cat makes an appearance at the beginning, which made me very happy. He’s 90 days into living here & finally starting to relax a little bit.

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I’m seeing it across all my clients and feeling it myself. People who have been stuck; feeling like they couldn’t accomplish anything, are now able to act. It’s not through force, or effort, or self-shame–it’s a very strong, loud compulsion to sit down and act.

This is showing up as working on projects they thought they would never work on. For some it has also meant pivoting to a new genre, or taking their work to a new emotional depth. For example one of my comedy writing friend has pivoted to writing about his war experiences in Vietnam, and it is absolutely fascinating to witness the transition. (Check out Dane Zeller’s latest work here.)

I have been working on a secret project that has told me I’m only supposed to handwrite it until the composition book is filled. Once that is done I will be allowed to transcribe it and cobble it together into a long form piece. It’s work I’ve wanted to do my entire life, but I’ve been too scared to until now. I’m still scared, but I trust my intuition and write in a different colored pen during each writing session and am curious what comes out of it.

This week’s 7 cards is up.

I’m also experimenting with releasing abridged versions of the 7 cards a few weeks after the Patreon version is available on Youtube. If you’re curious, you can check them out at https://www.youtube.com/@jessicaconoley

Have a good week.

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Tomorrow, Tuesday the 17th, is Lunar New Year & this year it feels like the right new year for me to celebrate. I’m super excited to spend my day with a friend on her farm burning things and having a French picnic.

I’m also super excited because the year that we’re closing out is the year of the snake, and my body has apparently taken that literally. My skin has been sooooo itchy over the past month, and I know at least 2 others of you have been experiencing the same thing. If you’re having physical symptoms of shedding, my hope is that tomorrow is a turning point & our body’s start acting like healthy horses instead of snakes growing out of their skin. That the discomfort of things we have outgrown leaves our body and we find a new energy and natural rhythm to move into.

This week’s 7 cards is up, and the free preview is the SHAPESHIFTER card which I pulled for the actual Lunar New Year day. (LNY is also an annular eclipse and a new moon so lots of planet stuff.) A good day to set intentions for how you want to move forward in your life.

I hope you get to see the sun today and something makes you smile.

Jessica

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This week’s 7 cards is up. Group coaching is at NOON this Saturday. It is also a romantic day of love according to the calendar & marketing. Enjoy your love day if you don’t turn up at coaching.

I got to buy a new car this week, so my brain is full of car things & grown up-ing and word stories are not coming to my brain at the moment. It should be all sorted out by next week, and perhaps I can word again.

I am happy to report this car does not eat oil & the heater works, and it has the biggest moon roof which are all the things I wanted. I am even happier to report that my mechanic (who is a best guy mechanic for sure) gave it the thumbs up so I have peace of mind in buying my first used car of my life. Also, I do not understand people who like car shopping. I am very glad this is something I only do every ten years or so.

Have a good week. Enjoy the sunshine when you get it.

J

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