A Loose Plan by Brenda Leyland

 

Image by Gizelle Kei from Pixabay

With summer gone by in a blur and September nearing the end of its allotted 30 days, this last quarter certainly has arrived in a hurry. And, in keeping with the pace, I am writing this post on the fly, as I don't have much spare time these days to ponder or plan more thoughtfully. Still, there is just enough room to squeeze in a '90-day project space' before Christmas (Sep 23 to Dec 21). It's long enough to achieve something, yet short enough to see the end in sight with a good chance of not losing all momentum.

So, what do I still hope to accomplish before the year's end? My list is a loose, slightly incoherent, collection of hopes for tiny steps forward.

1. Help Mom settle into her new home where she won't have to cook for herself ever again—which makes my almost-91-year-old mom (and all our family) relieved... and happy. Continue to tie up loose ends from the move and sort out unexpected glitches (of which there has been a pile to deal with). Continue to support and lend a hand and ear when and where needed.

2. Walk every day with my hubby. Being sure to enjoy the beauty of Nature around me as the season changes: watching the leaves flutter down like butterflies; crunching through the murmuration of leaves skittering across the road in shifting gusts of wind, spying glimmering vees of geese or a harvest moon on a clear night.

3. Try to slow the alarming loss of muscle mass happening in my aging body. I do cardio every day but now I'm definitely adding resistance, core, and strengthening to my routine.

4. Clear the clobber. From my desk; from my online files and social media; from the corners, cupboards, and rooms of my house (not to forget the basement and garage). I first stumbled across the word "clobber" in British novelist Rosamunde Pilcher's book, Winter Solstice. The person using the word had been referring to the collection of someone's life stuff left after they'd passed on. That word "clobber" tickled my funny bone. Although it wasn't quite so funny after having helped dear friends and my 90-year-old mom dismantle their homes this year as they prepared to move into small suites in assisted living facilities. The pressure and the stress of decision making for them, as well as those who came alongside to help, make me eager to get on with my own clobber clearing.

5. Read. For relaxation, comfort, and calming of my mind from all frets, worries, and to-do lists. I enjoy seasonal and historical novels. Nature anthologies. Poetry. Mysteries. Memoirs. Plus, I wouldn't mind focusing more on my ever-widening collection of books 'Yet Unread'.

6. Begin the dismantling of 40 years of journaling stored in over 200 notebooks. I saw someone recommending that people should, instead of endless scrolling on social media, dip into their own journals and notebooks for encouragement and ideas on what to write about. I like the idea of researching my own journals for writing fodder.  

7. Continue to write for my It's A Beautiful Life blog with the idea of perhaps transferring to writing on Substack at some point (still need to research that out). Continue to guest post here on the InScribe blog.

8. Think about how I could repurpose many of my blog posts (the number hovers now around 1500) to curate into a 'body of work'. Blogging has been my favourite place to share my writing—my blog has been home for my writer's soul for close to 20 years now.

9. Rest. I can't help anyone else if I don't take care of myself first. And listen for the word I need for each day: "Step here... and here... and here." Take things one day at a time when things get overwhelming. Not everything needs looking at, thinking about, or dealing with today. 

10. Remember to laugh. For the joy of the Lord is my strength. And humour goes a long way in restoring one's mindset. I remember years ago at work, when my office was piled high with photocopy boxes filled with incoming correspondence to deal with, I felt the Lord willing me, cajoling me to laugh at the piles. I also remember it was an effort, but I felt Him smiling at me... willing me to try. And I felt a lifting of my overwhelmed heart. I knew He was going to be there to help me through it all. And He was.

Note: The memoir I was determined to finish this year is on hold. There are no plans to pick it up in the near future. Other needful things presently take up my time and energy.

Brenda writes from her desk by the window that overlooks her garden, the sky, and the birds. You can find her 'slice of life' writing on her It's A Beautiful Life blog. She is also on Facebook and Instagram (under Bren Leyland).

 

 

Twenty-Six Before Twenty-Six by Steph Beth Nickel

 

It may seem a little early to post about the upcoming year, but I recently came across Karin Nordin PhD on Instagram.

Each year, on November 1, she creates a list of things she wants to accomplish before January 1 of the following year. Note: To silence the perfectionist, this content creator says the purpose of the list is not to accomplish everything on it, and if we complete even one task, she encourages us to consider it a win.

While we are 12 days into November, there is still time to create our "Twenty-Six Before Twenty-Six" list.

I have included my list below. Hopefully, it will encourage and inspire you to make your own. Note: The following list is in no particular order.

1. Create a barebones outline of the rest of the YA novel I'm working on.
2. Write at least 25K additional words of this novel. (I'm participating in NovNov, ProWritingAid's answer to the now-defunct National Novel Writing Month [NaNoWriMo]).
3. As much as possible, clear my calendar of other responsibilities so I can write at least 1K words six days per week in November.
4. Complete the current draft of my novel before the end of the year.
5. If I get the draft completed, recruit at least three beta readers to give me feedback two months after receiving the manuscript.
6. Declutter our main floor. (My hubby will be laying new flooring throughout. So, this is the perfect opportunity to do so.)
7. Seek to sell at least some of the things we don't intend to take with us when we relocate in Saskatchewan.
8. Schedule Substack posts through the end of the year.
9. Schedule social media posts through the end of the year.
10. Prepare at least one manuscript for self-publishing.
11. Complete the revisions of my devotionals based on the gospel of John.
12. Write at least three guest posts for blogs I contribute to.
13. Work on plans for next year's InScribe writing contest.
14. Take my friend out driving at least 4-6 times. (She needs her license to get a job.)
15. Visit with another friend who is housebound.
16. Make significant headway on the book I'm coauthoring. (We are working on suggested revisions from the potential publisher.)
17. Do resistance training or Pilates 3+ times per week.
18. Go for a walk or hike at least twice per week.
19. Eat more fruit and vegetable.
20. Drink more water.
21. Cut back to one sugary drink per day.
22. Send Christmas gifts to kiddos, who live either out of the province or out of the country.
23. Prep and send Christmas cards by December 1.
24. Write a Christmas poem for my church family.
25. Get together with my "church son" and his family, as we do each year in late November or early December.
26. Connect with my sister at least once a week.

And since I wouldn't classify myself as a perfectionist, I will be thrilled if I get those 25K words written in November.

How about you? Are you going to create your own list? If so, what would be your top three priorities?

Steph Beth Nickel is the former Editor of FellowScript and the current InScribe Contest Coordinator. Steph is an editor and author and plans to relocate to Saskatchewan from Ontario to be close to family in 2026. (Headshot Photo Credit: Jaime Mellor Photography)

Photo credit for the graphic: Download New Year's Day, 2026, Greeting Card. Royalty-Free Stock Illustration Image - Pixabay