I was hoping to have my horror novel ready by October and then by the week of Halloween. Now, these dates have slipped by, and I don’t seem to be any closer to the finish line. I need to stop making tentative goals. In November, my only goal will be to improve my creative process.

I don’t have a consistent morning routine. This often wastes the most productive hours of my day.

I don’t use a cellphone, but like most people, I write on my computer, and this is where I also use social media, watch YouTube, and surf the net. This is a major problem. I’m often distracted, before, during, and after I try to write. I took a break from the internet for three days and vastly improved my productivity. I need to figure out some kind of balance.

I would like to learn a number of skills so that I can do them myself (proofreading, copyediting, cover design, marketing). This is overwhelming and will take years of practice. I’m not starting from scratch, but I’m unclear on the best way to improve. The obvious answer is to just start anywhere and learn what I can. Once I have a better handle on the topics, I can create a study plan for myself.

I’m reading enough fiction books, but I could do a much better job of learning from them. I need to start taking more notes and jotting down more ideas.

That’s a lot for one month. Even if I address only one of these problems, it should drastically improve my artistic output. I’m sure I’m not the only one who feels time is running out.