• Tag Archives coffee
  • On Coffee Time

    The fun part about these Public Journal entries is I can make them about anything I want.

    Today I want to talk about coffee time, namely morning coffee time.

    I have this bad habit of waking up, eating, then wanting to get right to work. I used to do that but my summer schedule has taught me to slow things down and practice self-care. So I have a (new) rule: no working until after coffee. Like everyone, coffee clears the cobwebs and brings focus to the day. And when you’re a writer, a clear head is an asset and I have to remember that each morning until it becomes a habit.

    I have an erratic sleep schedule. I go to bed early because I’m tired, then I wake up at 1, am up for a bit, then go back to sleep, then wake up at 5ish, then go back to sleep for a couple hours. I wish I could sleep through the night like Melinda but I wake up with stories on my mind. I also suspect it’s this sleep schedule that makes me groggy in the morning hence why the coffee is so important.

    So I’ve slowed things down, in a manner of speaking, and won’t start my day until after coffee and the cobwebs have cleared. I find I’m more productive this way and right now productive is what I need to be even if I’m still on the summer schedule.


  • The Daily Schedule of a Writer/Artist 2

    The Daily Schedule of a Writer/Artist 2

    canister x transmission collections

    Since recovering from being ill–and I’m still recovering–here’s what my current daily schedule looks like:

    Wake up and pet the dogs. I’m usually up before everybody else.

    Post my daily Good Morning post on Facebook and give the day’s positivity rating. The rating is given based on how I feel at that exact moment.

    Make coffee.

    Have a small bite to eat.

    Have coffee and surf the feeds and check email, taking note of which ones I need to respond to later.

    By now Melinda is up so I have more coffee and spend time with her before she has to go to work.

    Work on the current project. As of this writing, it’s proofing the galley for the reissue of REDEMPTION OF THE DEAD.

    Break

    Non-committal work. By this I mean work I can do and get done but not share with anybody yet (i.e. a blog post, the newsletter, YouTube video, etc.).

    Break

    Work on the current project.

    Break

    Review and share the non-committal work

    Personal tasks (i.e. personal correspondence, bills, etc.).

    Break

    Nap

    I may or may not call it a day at this point. Depends what time it is. Melinda gets off work at 4:30 and then it’s time to get ready for supper.

    Evening walk with Melinda and then a quick walk with the dogs.

    Chill out time.

    Bed.

    And that’s the daily schedule of a writer/artist.


  • Status Report – 042320

    status report 042320

    Status Report – 042320:

    We’re working on a schedule shift here where I start my day a little bit later because I find I function better after the mid-morning hours. However, I also was just having coffee and decided to upload the second-to-last chapter of Gigantigator Death Machine to Patreon so my readers there got this week’s update bright and early. If you’re not reading Gigantigator Death Machine, please do. One more chapter to go and the book is done. Once complete, it will remain on Patreon while we start up the second serial novel in a few weeks.

    The plan for the day is to make comics. We’re gaining a ton of ground on Fredrikus. While the drawing is going on, so are other behind-the-scenes items so that come launch, all the necessary ducks are in a row.

    Soon.

    Now, back to coffee.

    This has been your Status Report for 042320.


  • Mild Day in Winnipeg and Goals for the Week

    Main goals for the week include: Continue keeping the Project Rebuild wheel in motion, continue work on the new art print I started last week, and some behind-the-scenes stuff connected to my little media machine. I’m sure secondary goals for the week will pop up, but until they do, these items get the focus.

    Fairly mild morning here in Winnipeg. We got hit with some real cold weather last week but it’s begun to let up.

    Presently drinking coffee and allowing the brain to come on-line for the day.

    Tomorrow, a new entry for the behind-the-scenes tier airs on Patreon. Get an inside look at how things work behind the curtain here at Axiom-man Central by going here and joining my Patreon journey. Thanks.


  • The Daily Schedule of a Writer/Artist

    January 27 and 28 2020 day planner

    It’s been a long while since I wrote the daily schedule of a writer/artist (me, in this case). It might have been in one of the newsletters I sent out in the fall that I last talked about it. Might have been on the blog though I’m leaning toward the former. Anyway, regardless, a new layout of the schedule is probably due so here is what a typical day looks like for me at Axiom-man Central. Of course, like in any life, things happen that can throw a wrench into the following general workday. However, I stick to this schedule as the backbone of my whole operation and make time for it as able on days that get screwy. I’ve long advocated a schedule for creators as one of the important ingredients to making a successful career out of the arts.

    Monday to Friday:

    Wake up – Lately it’s been averaging between 8:30 and 9:30am. Next, roll around in bed for a short while to let the brain come online before checking the news.

    Coffee – Go down to the bunker and turn the computer on. Go back up to the main level and get coffee while the computer is loading (older machine so takes a bit to warm up).

    Patreon – On a day a Patreon post is scheduled, I do this first and get it done for my patrons. For example, today was the latest chapter of Gigantigator Death Machine so that was posted before writing this entry. Market Patreon entry.

    Blog – Skip previous step if a non-Patreon day. Write and/or edit blog entry. Take any required picture(s) and post. Market blog entry and set up in the broadcaster a couple of extra notices about the latest entry to air throughout the day on the social feeds.

    Break – Maybe around 15 or 20 minutes. Used to change mental gears. On the break I’ll either read something or play a game or fiddle with something around the house.

    Email – Check email and respond, if needed/able to.

    Work – Writing, drawing, editing, freelancing, book production, marketing, etc. Could be all of those or just one of them. Depends what’s on deadline and what isn’t. Work until 4 with a couple breaks thrown in there between tasks to rest the eyes and/or hands and get blood moving throughout the system. I’ve been trying to give careful attention to lunch because I get so wrapped up working I forget to eat then around 2 I start to feel real sick. A bad habit I’m working on. Back to the job: Pressing work is in my day planner so I consult it every morning so I know if I’ve set the day aside for something(s) specific. Whatever the day planner says I’m doing is priority one for the day. If the day planner shows the day as open, then I work on the next thing due. If things are due more or less around the same time, then I pick whatever I’m leaning toward at that moment.

    End of day – Around 4pm. Start shutting things down; possibly do a couple small tasks that had to wait until the end of the work day for whatever reason (i.e. a quick marketing thing or a phone call or whatever).

    Evening – Cooking is my thing so after the work day is done, I put on my chef’s hat and start thinking about what I want to make for dinner. This involves scoping out the deep freeze and scanning the pantry for ideas (though I usually start getting ideas mid-afternoonish). Then I cook dinner and let the day’s issues–if there are any–melt away. Once dinner is done, the evening is mine to do whatever with whomever (I usually hang out with author Melinda Marshall and this ranges from playing games to reading to TV to going for groceries, etc). On other nights, Melinda and I hang out with my boys.

    Bed – 10pm or thereabouts.

    Saturday:

    Wake up – Somewhere between 9:30 and close to 11am.

    Coffee – Enjoy a cup of coffee with Melinda.

    Newsletter – Head down to the bunker to send Saturday’s newsletter.

    The rest of Saturday and all of Sunday are days off, and it typically takes until late Saturday afternoon for me to put the week in my back pocket. Saturday evening and all of Sunday are used to do next to nothing and purposefully not think about work so my brain can heal from the week and be sharp for the week to come.

    And that’s what a typical week looks like here in the Great White North.

    To touch on what I said above about this schedule being the backbone on days things don’t go as planned, on such days I still let this overall schedule float in the background of my mind so that when a window of time opens up amidst that particularly goofy day, I can still do what needs doing or at least get a start on those things so the day isn’t a wash.

    Right now, this schedule works well and hasn’t changed much since I last talked about it. It will no doubt change somewhere down the line since life isn’t stagnant, but this method works for the time being.


  • Notes from the Underground

    Art PileThis is a hello message going out into the blog-o-sphere letting you know I’m still alive and am working on various things as evidenced by the picture for this post. We’re doing a combination of writing and artwork over here, slowly but surely chipping away at the obscene amount of projects on the docket. No, really, there’s a ridiculous amount of work to be done and I’m not sure there’s enough coffee and uppers in the world to see me through. I am also not immortal so if you have an in on a mechanical heart that won’t conk out on me, let’s talk.

    However, it is my pleasure to report that work is being done and things are looking good in terms of achieving the end game of all this. If you are a subscriber to my newsletter–which you really should be–you’d see what I’ve been up to week to week. For those of you who are not, this blog entry is for you. (Though, again, you really should be subscribing to The Canister X Transmission. All the cool kids are doing it.)

    Further, despite having some medical issues occur that have knocked me on my backside and tried to take me out of the game, we’re still going strong here in a top secret location that is known only to me and the dog at my feet.

    In summary, for the artwork side of all this, follow me on Instagram because that’s where items are posted.

    For the wordsmithing side, you’ll just have to watch the newsletter and this blog for announcements. Actually, the occasional Instagram pic of what’s going on shows up now and then so there’s that, too.

    It’s a blizzard out there today and I’m about to go into it for something I need to attend. Got my snowshoes ready.

    Take care.