I had a very specific set of writing goals in mind for last year and this year, with the RWA National convention in Anaheim for 2012. I’ve felt like I wasn’t getting any farther on my own and I needed some extra guidance and cheerleaders along the way. So that’s what 2011 was all about. Moving forward with taking baby steps so I didn’t freak myself out.

A few of my 2011 goals were intended to up my writing game (not in terms of craft, but in networking and path to publication):

1. Complete my manuscript (BHT for those following along).
2. Join Romance Writers of America (nat’l, RWASD, & Beau Monde chapter)
3. Submit my manuscript to at least ONE agent.
4. Apply for RWA PRO status.

1. Separate Dreams From Goals.

Dreams are good. They’re the moon and the stars. The most important thing to remember is that they have to be YOUR dreams and goals. If you’re doing them for someone else or they don’t exactly line up with your values, you’re setting yourself up for failure. Take the time to think about who you are, what you want, and why you want it. Don’t rush figuring those things out.

Dream: I want to be published author and see my book on the shelf.
Goal: This year, I want to complete the first draft of a 90k Regency Set Historical Romance novel that’s suitable for Avon Books.

Dream: I want to take amazing photographs on purpose.
Goal: This year, I will publicly do a 366 (It’s leap year!) Photo Challenge with a couple of friends to improve composition and learn to use my camera without relying on the AUTO setting.

Dream: We want a comfortable retirement.
Goal: We need to accumulate X amount of money by a certain date in order to get a return on the principle that’s equal to our current income.

With the dreams, there are many paths I could take to get there, most of them involving a whole lotta luck.  The goasl, if they’re good ones, are going to be much more precise and can be broken down into tasks. A dream is what you want, but a goal is what you need to do to move toward your dreams.

2. WRITE S.M.A.R.T. Goals.

Have someone who knows you and what you’re trying to accomplish go over them and sanity check them. Skimping on this step just sets you up for failure. You can rationalize anything if you aren’t crystal clear about what you want to accomplish and you’ll find all sorts of loopholes, especially if you don’t write them down. Another thing that writing them down and putting them through this checklist can do is find and resolve conflicting goals. I don’t have exact dates for these goals above, but on my master copy, they had precise dates of which they were to be accomplished. I don’t think I went over by more than a week on any of them.

Are the goals [S]pecific? How are you going to accomplish it, if you don’t know exactly what you want to do?
Are they [M]easurable? How are you going to know if you’ve done enough to complete it?
Are they [A]ttainable? How are you going to achieve this goal? What steps do you need to take?
Are they [R]ealistic? This is where having a partner in crime or accountability helps most. We often bite off more than we can chew and they’ll call us on it.
Are they [T]imely and/or time limited? Do you need to do it now? How long do you have to do it for? Do you have a deadline? Even a self-imposed one is better than leaving it open ended. Make sure you know of any other steps that must be completed first.

3. Group Similar Goals.

Make sure you have all the steps necessary and the order in which they need to be done to achieve what you want.

I knew I wanted to be in the PRO groups for RWA in 2012. This means on the PRO mailing loops, attending the PRO breakfasts for my local chapter before meetings, and going to the PRO Retreat in Anaheim. I couldn’t just do those goals in any old order. Ok, the first two I could, but 1 definitely had to come before 3 and 2 before 4. A nice neat little stack of dominoes, if you will. They just tend to fall in slow motion.

You should also be thinking in terms of SHORT TERM GOALS and LONG TERM GOALS. You may also have some medium range goals in there as well. It’s often helpful to pick a date 5 or 10 years in the future and dream big, but true. Then, start dividing that time frame up… What do you have to accomplish to reach the that big goal in half that time? In a quarter of that time? In the next two years? In the next year? In six months from now?

4. Keep Moving Forward.

Keep your goals list handy. Check it frequently. When you’ve completed one task/goal on your list, move on to the next one. Celebrate your victory, but don’t lose your forward momentum. Love that motto from Meet the Robinsons.

One thing with keeping tasks/goals in a logical order for completion is that you don’t have to backtrack. Even if you aren’t planning to accomplish the next step in the current month, quarter, year, 5 years or decade, you should still know what you’re going to need to do to get where you want to be. You need to be prepare if your world suddenly shifts beneath you and you’re left without a plan? Or worse, you have a plan, but it’s irrelevant. By having a forward-looking plan that stretches out farther than you think is necessary, you give yourself something to work towards and you just might find you have to readjust. Likewise, the ground can shift and suddenly you’re back to square one with certain goals. Pick yourself up, dust off the plan and get moving. You’ve already decided you want to be somewhere better. Every journey begins with that first step. Take it.

5. But, Don’t Look Down!

Why do we set goals for ourselves anyway? We want to grow, to improve, to enjoy life more. If you shoot for the moon and miss, you’ll still be among the stars. Trite, but usually true. One way to set your goals up for positive change and increase your chances of success is to frame them in positive terms. “Losing weight” always seems to fail… why? It’s not will power, genetics or even that extra slice of cake. Ok, it probably IS the cake, but that’s a different argument. The problem is that it’s a NEGATIVE goal. Look at the wording… LOSE that’s not a positive word. If you want to lose weight you need to think of it terms of what you’ll be gaining and then find the steps to accomplish that.

If you are trying to set goals that push beyond your comfort zone, you need to sneak up on them. Make progress at a rate you’re comfortable with. If I can push myself to do something once, the next time is easier because it lacks the apprehension and built up fear the next time. This is why I made a goals of submitting to at least ONE agent. I gave myself permission to set the bar VERY low and not build expectations into the goal.

One of the PRO Liasons in my local chapter said to me today: “Just like, when you’re climbing up high, don’t look down. Keep looking forward so you don’t get overwhelmed by how far up you are.” I’m really trying not to think how fast things are moving, so I can keep up. Lots of metaphors would fit here — gotta keep those plates spinning!

YOUR TURN: What tried ‘n true tips would you recommend for setting and achieving goals?

And if you’d like to read more about goal setting tips from the rest of my group this week, you can find their blogs here:

* Alexia Reed * Kimberly Farris*
* Angeleque Ford * Danie Ford * Emma G. Delaney *

The Little Ice Age

London Bridge Frost Fair 1814

The Frost Fair of 1814 began on February 1st, lasted for four days. No one knew it  was to become the last Frost Fair in London, but the previous time the Thames had frozen over was in 1795. The city was ready to brave the ice and celebrate with a sprawling festival in the middle of the river.

John Ashton described the frolickers of the Frost Fair in his book, Social England under the Regency. He mentions that they drank in tents “with females,” played skittles, and danced reels. He also includes depictions of more sedate coffee-drinking and gaming booths. Printing presses were set up on the ice to print souvenir cards. The Annual Register noted that the frivolity continued until the ice began to break up forcing people scrambled for safety, not all successfully.

Old London Bridge Demolished

In addition to the climate growing milder, Old London Bridge was demolished in the 1830s and the new bridge supported wider arches, allowing the tide to flow more quickly and freely past. Combined with the embanking of the river that occurred during the 19th Century, this sped up the current and prevented the Thamses from fully freezing over again.

The Frost Fair of 1814, by Luke Clenell.

“Gambols on the river Thames, Feby. 1814″ by the famous caricaturist, George Cruikshank, shows a frost fair in the region of Blackfriars Bridge. As was his custom, no one was safe from ridicule and mockery. To the right in the foreground is a waterman with skittles and behind him a man’s wooden leg has caught in the ice. To the right is a printing press and in the center a woman has slipped on the ice next to a fiddler playing music as a couple dances.

Never Say Never

In true British fashion, in 2003 there was a revival of sorts of the spirit of the Frost Fairs of old. In Bankside, the one-day festival quickly grew to an event that spanned two weekends. The Bankside Winter Festival was modeled after the Christmas markets and featured many other events, including a lantern parade. Unfortunately, it looks as if 2008 was perhaps the last time it was held. I’d love to be proven wrong! It sounds like an amazing time.

More information regarding a variety of other Regency-themed topics can be found on my Regency Resource page. If you’d like more information on a specific place or topic, please let me know in the comments section below.

To help kick off my new interview venture and to celebrate her debut release, Jillian Stone has graciously agreed to answer some questions. She will also be giving away a signed copy of AN AFFAIR WITH MR. KENNEDY (The Gentlemen of Scotland Yard) to one commenter today.

In addition, all commenters on this post will be entered in a special giveaway promotion: Jewelry inspired by the romantic notion of recapturing lost time as the French title ‘Le Temps Perdu’, specifically a Steampunk watch necklace from the Time Travel Collection by Yolanda Pang.

Let’s cyber travel over to Poetic Designs and see for ourselves just how whimsical this watch necklace is!

The promotion for AN AFFAIR WITH MR. KENNEDY (The Gentlemen of Scotland Yard) begins here at Impulsive Hearts and Jillian will post the winner of the watch necklace on February 22 at Get Lost in a Story. Comment on any of her blogs or interviews and you are entered to win. Each time you visit a different blog and leave a comment your name gets entered again! For a schedule of her interviews and blogs go to contact/press on her website. Good luck everyone!

1. What drew you to writing Historical Romance in general and specifically to setting stories during the Victorian Era? Your other series is steampunk, what inspired you to write in two sub-genres that are so closely related but also so wildly different?

Regency seemed like a crowded field, and I didn’t want to write about the aristocracy. I also didn’t want to write a mostly character driven plot. I began to notice that a few romance writers were writing in the Victorian period. I was particularly drawn to the Amanda Quick novels, which were historical romance but also incorporated mystery, suspense and occult elements.

Then I got to thinking about Scotland Yard detectives. It seemed to me that Yard men were always portrayed as bumbling inspectors, five moves behind Sherlock Holmes. So I thought, what if there was an elite group of detectives? I began to do some research and found out that there was a division of Scotland Yard created in the 1882 called Special Branch. I added a dash (as in dashing) of James Bond Steampunk and that was the start of The Gentlemen of Scotland Yard. The heroines in each book are fascinating, progressive Victorian women. There is an Impressionist painter, an industrialist and a ballerina/jewel thief/spy!

Phaeton Black, my paranormal investigator started out as an exploration into writing historical paranormal with Steampunk elements. As it turns out I really enjoy writing paranormal, it works my imagination in interesting ways. There is something freeing about using pure imagination!

2. What’s the strangest bit of historical trivia you’ve picked up in your research?

As you know the Victorian era spans 75 years. I write in the late Victorian era, circa 1887–1897. I guess one of the most interesting things I uncovered early in my research was how obsessed the British middle class was with sex. They may have covered their piano legs out of modesty, but they liked nothing more than to talk about sex, categorize it, condemn it and in the case of prostitution, patronize it. In 1887, venereal disease in the military was down from nearly 50% to 29% The Lancet medical journal in 1887 estimated that there were approximately 80,000 prostitutes working in London. This is out of a total population of 2,360,000 or 3%. Women working the streets were a common sight, particularly around the theater districts like Leicester Square and Covent Garden. I love using this kind of research (and a black fog) to create atmosphere/world-build.

These next few questions assume that time travel is possible. So, if you could go back to Victorian England:

3. What modern conveniences would you miss most?

Just about all of them! What would you miss least? My Oral-B battery-powered toothbrush.

4. What would be the hardest for you to adapt to in the Victorian Era?

Women had very few legal and property rights. We couldn’t vote.We were admitted to university but could not earn a degree. I would be a placard carrying suffragist. Would you prefer to live in your steampunk universe compared to either current day or Victorian times? Absolutely! I would become an inventor of steam and clockwork powered machines of convenience!

5. Where would you fit into Victorian society?

I hope I would be tolerated as a bohemian/suffragist/artist/writer. Where would you like to visit most? Explore London from West to East end. Any historical figures you’d like to meet? William Melville, Director of Special Branch, Scotland Yard. Many of the writers and artists working in London and Paris, particularly the impressionist painters.

6. What describes your perfect Romance Hero?

I love to write different kinds of men, but one of my favorites is a brilliant, reserved alpha, who also happens to be a passionate lover. And of course we want to know…Who’s your favorite so far? Zak Kennedy or Phaeton Black? My favorite hero is always the one I am writing. So right now, Phineas “Finn” Gunn is my favorite. In some ways he is my most complex hero to date.

7. If you could, what advice would you go back and give yourself when you were just starting out as a writer?

Enjoy every moment of the process. Write stories you are passionate about.

8. You’ve been a storyteller for years, but took a side trip through an award-winning career in advertising and art direction. How long have these stories been bouncing around in your brain? Which character or situation came to you first that made you realize you had to write these stories?

Five years ago I decided to give novel writing a shot. I gave myself three years to write and market a manuscript. At the end of that period, I would reevaluate. So I spent a year on a medieval trilogy. Right in the middle of book two, I landed on this idea for a romantic suspense novel set in late Victorian London about a Scotland Yard agent––Mr. Kennedy. Both the character and the story wouldn’t let go!

9. Are you a reader? What are some of your favorites?

I used to be more of a reader, now I’m more of a writer! When not reading research, I read across just about all the sub-genres: historical, paranormal, some steampunk, urban fantasy and erotica, but I’m pretty selective. A few favorite authors: Gabaldon, Feehan, Kleypas. This past year I read Flowers from the Storm by Laura Kinsale––blew me away.

10. Your Victorian Romantic Suspense novel AN AFFAIR WITH MR. KENNEDY (releasing Jan 31, 2012) won the 2010 Golden Heart and sold to Pocket Books and your sexy, paranormal investigator novel, THE SEDUCTION OF PHAETON BLACK (releasing April 3, 2012), won the 2010 Romance Through The Ages Erotica category before selling to Kensington Brava. What advice regarding time management and work/life balancing can you share? What’s been the hardest to overcome and what’s made this wild ride manageable?

I have no advice on this subject as I am still trying to figure out how to write novels to deadlines, work on book promotion and have a life. Invite me back at the end of this year when I have completed the PHAETON BLACK books for Kensington, maybe I will have a few handy tips!

Jillian Stone was born a storyteller. A skill that got her into considerable trouble as a youth until she solved the problem by becoming an advertising creative. And the career did seem to suit her as she won many national ad awards including the Clio and the New York Art Director’s Club Gold. What more could she ask for? Create her own worlds? Become goddess of her own universe? Yes! So, she began to write fiction. Her Victorian Romantic Suspense novel AN AFFAIR WITH MR. KENNEDY won the 2010 Golden Heart and sold to Pocket Books. Her sexy, supernatural Steampunk novel, THE SEDUCTION OF PHAETON BLACK, won the 2010 Romance Through The Ages Erotica category and sold to Kensington Brava. Jillian lives in California and is currently working on the next adventure for both series.

Visit Jillian at her website or “like” her Facebook page.

Buy from: Powell’s | Amazon (Kindle) | B & N (Nook)| Indiebound

Your Turn: Jillian loves creating spyware, circa 1887 for the Scotland Yard detectives that is slightly futuristic, like a dry cell battery torch (flashlight) or a gun silencer. These devices were in the process of being invented so a prototype gadget was possible!

What is your favorite spyware gadget from a spy novel or movie?

All commenters today have a chance to win a signed ARC of An Affair with Mr. Kennedy and will be entered in Jillian’s blog tour ‘Le Temps Perdu’ Steampunk watch necklace giveaway.

There have been a few days when I’ve wondered WHY I signed up for this, but I haven’t really had problems with finding a picture to take, even if I resort to my iPhone’s camera. I’ve noticed I’m starting to look closer at items or think about what kind of artsy type photo I can do that would be different and interesting. These are probably good things in the long run. What I need to do is find a camera workshop and run through the lessons.

What you see below are links to my flickr set for the photos I’ll use for this challenge. Click on any photo below to go to flickr and then you can navigate through the set with the “Previous” and “Next” arrows at the top.

Sun: Jan 15, 2012		Mon: Jan 16, 2012
Tue: Jan 17, 2012	Wed: Jan 18, 2012	Thu: Jan 19, 2012
Fri: Jan 20, 2012		Sat: Jan 21, 2012

It could be a book we’ve read, a movie, joke, funny story, a quote, a commercial, a t.v., a compliment, etc – basically anything that happened this week that was out of the ordinary that made us stop and take notice and/or smile.”

1. How my kids still get out of the car at school and say “I love you” even in front of other students

This isn’t an unusual occurrence, but it did make me smile to actually notice it this week.

2. The strong smell of guavas that have ripened after they were brought to us to try

I’ve never had guavas before. Did you know they’re called “guayaba” in Spanish? I didn’t. They smell wonderful and we need to eat them soon before it’s too late.

3. How when it’s cold enough the hedges and mailboxes will “steam” when the sun hits them

Similar to how a pond will steam, but weirder. I dunno, I don’t recall noticing this when I was younger. It’s definitely from thinking “What am I going to take a picture of today?!” I’ve noticed that I get a lot of compliments on my photos (*whispers* you know I only pick the best ones, right?) but it’s not something I’ve been working hard at. It’s all intuitive. I’ve got to do some thinking on why it works for me with photography, but not writing, but I suspect it has to do with 3 factors: practice, internalizing some rules and quantity of output. I’ve thrown away far more pictures than I’ve written pages.

4. The way my friend answered the phone when she recognized my number”

I could hear the smile in her voice when I called to check up on her. She’s been sick, but brightened to know someone was thinking of her.

5. “Shit the Dowager Countess Says”

It amuses me that the hysterical comments that Dame Maggie Smith’s character on Downton Abbey says has basically turned into a meme. I love the way that character is written and how she’s played. Love her.

YOUR TURN: What have you discovered that tickled your fancy lately?

And if you’d like to read about what caught the attention of the rest of my group this week, you can find their blogs here:

* Alexia Reed * Kimberly Farris*
* Angeleque Ford * Danie Ford * Emma G. Delaney *

One thing I’ve noticed, is that I still feel like I have my old camera in my hand. I’m stingy with “film” and I keep trying to advance the film with my thumb after I push the shutter button. I realized this after being surprised by taking over 80 shots at the park Thursday afternoon.

What you see below are links to my flickr set for the photos I’ll use for this challenge. Click on any photo below to go to flickr and then you can navigate through the set with the “Previous” and “Next” arrows at the top.

Sun: Jan 08, 2012		Mon: Jan 09, 2012
Tue: Jan 10, 2012	Wed: Jan 11, 2012	Thu: Jan 12, 2012
Fri: Jan 13, 2012		Sat: Jan 14, 2012

Many new writers eagerly dive into the deep pool of craft books available. How do you know what's useful for YOU?

1. Write What You Know

Simple, yet brilliant! You won’t find advice much plainer than that. Could anyone ever write about things they don’t know?

Hold on, people do it all the time! Science Fiction and Fantasy couldn’t exist otherwise. We can also hope serial killer books aren’t autobiographical!

This advice is so vague it’s nearly meaningless. Many new writers aren’t likely to mentally add on phrases like “emotions you’ve experienced”, “people you’ve known”, “situations you’ve been in”, or even “environments you grew up in”, which is a much more useful way to think of it.

And don’t let that short list fool you! There are a kazillion things you could include, but a new writer in search of the magic formula may not recognize what’s left unsaid until much later, possibly not until after they’ve been rejected for the umpteenth time for doing exactly as they were told and cranked out another Mary Sue or Gary Stu navel-gazer while muttering, “But it’s all I KNOW!”

So sit down and brainstorm a list of things you know and have experienced. Dig deeper. Don’t go for superficial stuff like how to do your day job. That might come in handy, but the characters and stories are far more interesting. Dig deeper. Reach deep down and pull up everything you love to remember. Then dive into those dark corners where the things you hate to relive lurk. Dredge it all up. Those raw emotions are what make characters come alive on a page, whether they’re human, alien, anthropomorphized woodland critters or whatnot.

Want plausibility and credibility? Dig deep and show us what you know.

Another tidbit here is, don’t throw around what you do know so it feels like a lecture or worse. What you know should support, embellish and enrich your story, never weigh it down, jump out at or patronize the reader.

2. GMC: Goal, Motivation, Conflict

I recently won a copy of Deb Dixon’s GMC book and this commentary isn’t really about her work as written, but more about how her acronym is proselytized on the streets of Writersville.

Many new writers ask for plot advice and get handed three letters: G, M, and C. If they’re lucky, they’ll get told what they stand for as well. Everyone always emphasizes knowing the GMC for your characters, but rarely explain why or how to use them to your story’s benefit.

Do yourself a favor, get your info from the source! No three letters encapsulate your magic pill. Even once you know what they stand for and how to use them to your advantage, they’re just another tool in your writer’s toolkit. A screwdriver isn’t the right tool for every job.

3. Start The Story As Late As Possible

This one refers to where to start your story along with the familiar refrains like “Start in the middle of the action!” and “Start right before a significant point of change for your main character!”

All good, and sometimes taken to extremes by the true believers who really DO want to be helpful, but if it doesn’t MEAN anything to you, it’s not very helpful. You may not know exactly what that point is yet. It’s ok to feel your way along when you’re just starting out. Many published authors have said they write the first five chapters and throw the first two or three out in their edits. Some others argue, you have to know how the book ends before you can properly write the opening. The important things are “starting it” and “finishing it”! Once it’s down on the page, THEN you can fix it. Which brings me to the next piece of advice.

4. You Can’t Fix a Blank Page

Ahh… La Nora speaks. And she’s absolutely correct. You can’t fix anything that’s not written down. Does knowing that help? Does repeating it as a mantra help you get words on the page? Me either. Maybe it’s one of those paradoxical truisms, where the more you repeat it, the more likely you’ll be doomed to experience it.

I’m all for “giving yourself permission to write a crappy first draft” and “good writing is really rewriting”, but just adding to the performance pressure of getting what’s in my head onto the page by pointing out the fact that I don’t have any words down yet really kills those creative juices.

So write that crappy draft. All. The. Way. Through. Discover what the story wants to be about before you stop it dead in its tracks by questioning it or worse forcing it into becoming something it’s not.

Does this mean pantsing is the right way to do it? Not if it doesn’t work for you! I’m in awe of people who can write that way, but plotting is an equally valid approach as long as you get past plotting and get down to writing. Otherwise all you have is a colorful stack of note cards, a pretty collage or a spreadsheet with lots of blocks filled in and still no story.

Trust me, people, I speak from experience here.

5. ‘The road to hell is paved with adverbs.’

Stephen King is the master, therefore if he says it, we must be taken to extremes! “The road to hell is paved with good intentions” means we must never be nice?

That faulty logic is why I’m against anything artistic stated as an absolute. Adverbs weaken verbs, but some are necessary. Inexperienced writers can take simple boundaries and fashion them into straightjackets.

My music theory professor always said “You have to learn the rules before you can break them.” Yep, goes right up there beside the “There are three rules of writing a novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are.”

There are rules. There are guidelines. And there are things that work or don’t. Writers SHOULD know how to effectively use words. Writers need a common language to critique and improve their art. You should be able to not only hear what works and what doesn’t, but describe why it does or doesn’t for you.

It also helps reduce confusion or talking at cross purposes with other readers and writers. Must you know what your 3rd grade teacher insisted you memorize for your grammar test? Pffft. Use what works for your style, voice and story. Will it always work? Maybe, maybe not, but just because someone said “Delete every adjective, adverb, and instance of ‘was’ and ‘had’, doesn’t mean they are correct or you’ll be kicked out of Writerville if you use them effectively. Check what you enjoy reading. Betcha anything those authors break “The Rules.”

YOUR TURN: What is the best or worst piece of creative advice you’ve ever heard, and why?

And if you’d like to read about what the rest of my group considers good &/or bad writing advice, you can find their blogs here:

* Alexia Reed * Kimberly Farris*
* Angeleque Ford * Danie Ford * Emma G. Delaney *

The art of tying a cravat is certainly a lost one. Just look at how many men need help tying a regular necktie, which is the modern, simplified version of the fancy cravat worn by the dandies as they sought to out peacock each other in all matters sartorial. I must say, in looking for images to use with this post, guys, you can’t go wrong with a cravat if you want to look dashing and elegant while sweeping a girl off her feet. Don’t scoff when you’re forced to wear one for a wedding. Wear it with style and panache! But be advised, you may end up in the parson’s mousetrap next!

A very nice example of a Mail Coach Knot.

Tying the Mail Coach Knot

Named for the mail coach drivers who wore them as part of their uniform, this knot is simple enough to require no assistance in type, yet quite distinguished looking. No one would want to hold up the dashing fellow sporting one of these!

1. Hold one end of the cloth in your right hand and the other in your left so the cloth is stretched out.
2. Find the midpoint of the cloth. Place the midpoint of the cloth at the front of your neck. Wrap the right side of the cloth behind your neck so the right end of the cloth comes out on the left side of your neck, draping over your collarbone.
3. Wrap the left side of the cloth around the back side of your neck so that the end comes out on the front right side. Continue crisscrossing your cloth, layering the cravat so that it covers your entire neck. Leave at least a foot of slack on the ends of the cloth for tying.
4. Bring the ends of the cloth to the front. Place the left piece of cloth over the right piece of cloth to create an “X”. Pull the end of the top layer of cloth through the hole made at the top of the “X”.
5. Tighten the knot at the top of your neck. Arrange the top layer of cloth so that it covers the bottom layer and hides the knot. Spread the top layer of cloth so that it lies flat against your chest.

Tying the Napoleon “Knot”

This knot is not well documented except in Neckclothitania, published in 1818. It is very casual in demeanor, as it is little more than a simple crossing of the ends of the cravat. A cavalier hero would certainly be able to pull this one off. His heroine would require little assistance in pulling it off as well.

1. Stretch your cloth in front of you with one end in each hand to find the midpoint.
2. Put the midpoint of the cloth on the back of your neck. Bring the ends of the cloth to the front.
3. Cross the ends of the cloth around your neck so that they drape over your shoulder or chest in an “X”.
4. Add a safety pin or brooch to the top of the ends to keep them in place or drape the top layer of cloth over the opposite shoulder.

The Barrel Knot.

Tying a Barrel Knot

One of the more “old fashioned” styles you see cravats worn in at weddings. Neat and tidy, yet not overblown or ostentatious.

1. Place the length of cravat cloth around your collar so the right side is a bit longer than the left.
2. Create a loose loop with the cloth, right side over the left, and pinch the ends of the loop together in an “X” , leaving two loose ends free.
3. Wrap the right side over once more, creating a loop around the “X”.
4. Pull the loose left side end through the loop you have just made and pull as tightly as desired.
5. Use your fingers to straighten the knot and cravat and position it against your shirt.

More information regarding a variety of other Regency-themed topics can be found on my Regency Resource page. If you’d like more information on a specific place or topic, please let me know in the comments section below.

I’ve made it a goal this year (along with two other members of my accountability group) to do a 365 Photo Challenge. How did I let them talk me into this on a Leap year? So far, so good though.

What you see below are links to my flickr set for the photos I’ll use for this challenge. Click on any photo below to go to flickr and then you can navigate through the set with the “Previous” and “Next” arrows at the top.

Sun: Jan 01, 2012		Mon: Jan 02, 2012
Tue: Jan 03, 2012	Wed: Jan 04, 2012	Thu: Jan 05, 2012
Fri: Jan 06, 2012		Sat: Jan 07, 2012

2011 Accomplishments

I joined RWA at the national and local levels and also joined the regency era specialty chapter, the Beau Monde. I also finished BHT and submitted it to a literary agent. I haven’t heard back but it was enough to get my PRO status for RWA.

We're homeowners again!

We bought a new house at the beginning of the year and have made significant progress on settling in and making it ours.

I made an effort to listen to music on a regular basis and got in at least 60 hours each month. I also got a new digital camera for my birthday and have been playing with it with good results. I also made an effort to reconnect with two of my friends and had brunch with them once a month.

As a family, we managed to do something together for each major holiday/vacation, saw our daughter promote from 8th grade and enter high school and celebrated DH’s 40th birthday. There were trips to D.C./Philly/NYC, L.A. and Jacksonville for educational enrichment, fun and family.

this was about half of what I’d hoped to accomplish but when it’s all listed out it sounds like a lot, considering all the usual health and chaotic interruptions.

What Needs to Change?

Less drifting along and more focus. Like water, I’m prone to take the path of least resistance. My accountability group and several members in my local RWA Chapter are amazing at prodding me along and give me the courage to move forward. I don’t have any good excuses for not chasing what I want.

2012 Goals

So, my big, hairy, audacious goals for 2012… I have more goals than what I’m laying out here, but most of them would bore you to tears. You probably won’t care if we get our bookshelves organized, if I treat myself to a spa day every 3 months, or if I make my annual donation to Juvenile Diabetes Research. Balance is important, but I feel my writing has suffered from having my attention pulled elsewhere or just drifting because I didn’t have clear paths to follow. 2012 is a year to change that.

Without further dithering on, here’s what I’m willing to stand up here and say, THIS is what I WILL accomplish this year:

1. Attend the Nations RWA Conference in Anaheim in July. This is a HUGE for me. I’m not good with crowds or new situations. Eep.
2. Have 2 mss out to agents & contests by the end of the year. Gotta justify my PRO pin and you can’t get a yes by never asking!
3. Migrate my online identity to my name instead of my blog name or a nickname. Again, this is very hard for me, but needs done if I want to be taken seriously.
4. Stop lurking and participate with other writers and with local people who energize us. One of the ways I’ll be pushing myself to interact with other writers is doing interviews here on the blog. Expect the majority to be Regency Romance, but I have a couple Victorian writers in mind that I think you’ll love too.
5. Participate in a 365 Photo Project for 2012. Look for weekly summaries soon!

You should feel to pester me about any and all of the above if you haven’t sensed any movement from my cave in a while! Seriously.

YOUR TURN: How are you challenging yourself this year?

If you’d like to see what my friends accomplished in 2011 and have planned for 2012, you can find their blogs here:

* Alexia Reed * Kimberly Farris *
* Danie Ford * Emma G. Delaney * Angeleque Ford *