Author Journey (September 11, 2023)

It’s official. I am absolutely exhausted… And would you believe it, we’ve almost cleaned up the mess from the flooding. Almost… I’m going to need a vacation once this is all done… Well, more like a staycation, I don’t have the energy to go anywhere!
Author Journey (September 11, 2023)
The day job was busy, busy, busy which I had expected thanks to the reliability of the monthly reporting schedule, but it was busier than normal because I had to clean up someone else’s mess. That sounds oddly familiar. Yes, that’s right, it’s just like the basement flood where I have to clean up the mess because someone might not have finished connecting the storm drains for our neighbourhood. Thanks for that, you corner-cutting cowboy! Anyhow, let’s see if I managed to be productive in the areas that really matter!
The Weekly Recap!
Anime Goal – ? Episodes
So, after catching up on Mushoku Tensei II: Jobless Reincarnation and then watching another series, I realised that I had to write up the reviews too, which I didn’t really have time for. So, last week, instead of watching anime, I dived into an old English TV series. Well, I say old, but it was only twenty-four years ago that Spaced aired on TV. I can’t believe it’s been that long. That said, I did manage to watch two episodes of Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead. I even reviewed them.
Manga Goal – ? Volumes
So, it was a step back in the anime section, but then I didn’t need to increase the backlog of posts. However, in the manga section, I managed to up my game from one book to two books, and I wrote reviews for them. It’s all coming together in a slow and laboured manner…
Posting Goal – 1 Post
The only area where I set myself a goal and I blew it out of the water. Instead of producing just one post, I managed to schedule five. Admittedly, I didn’t make a dent in the backlog as I wrote reviews for things I saw last week instead of the weeks prior. Still, it all counts.
Writing Goal – ?
I haven’t done any writing yet and that’s frustrating as the competition I was planning on entering is getting closer and closer. That said, I will continue to try to finish the books regardless of the competition. It was just nice to have a firm target… well, if the universe would lay off for a little while that is.
Drawing Goal – ?
Nothing again! To be fair, my life is a little all over the place at the moment so that’s to be expected. Hopefully, it’ll calm down soon. Please!!!

Tasks | Goal | Completed |
---|---|---|
Anime Watched | ? Episodes | 2 Episodes |
Manga Read | ? Books | 2 Book |
Posts Scheduled | 1 Post | 5 Posts |
Chapters Written | ? | None |
Artwork Completed | ? | None |
Aspirations for the Week!
I’m not sure if it’s the lack of sleep, the weekends and evenings spent moving boxes, cataloguing and photographing our belongings, or something else entirely, but I have had a peculiar thought and I’m not sure what to do with it. Basically, I used to cover seasonal anime as the main part of this blog. It meant that I had to watch and review seven episodes each week. It was fairly constant, but it also meant that once I had reviewed those episodes that was my work done for the week. After that, I could do whatever I wanted.
Then, something happened which annoyed me about seasonal anime. I think it was The Promised Neverland season two that did it, but I decided to move towards older shows so that I could schedule posts ahead of time. That meant that my work was never done. I could keep working further and further into the future. I don’t think this is the sole problem, but it does seem to make sense. I may have to investigate this some more.
Watching Anime
My goal for this week is to rewatch the three episodes of Mushoku Tensei that I saw the week before and review them. I also want to watch another episode of Zom 100 and review it. So, that’s three episodes minimum. After that, I will see because I want to get the backlog under control before I start another series.
Goal: 3 Episodes
Reading Manga
I have a big pile of books from the library and I really need to read them. I’ve paused a load too so there shouldn’t be any more arrivals. It’s another one of those situations where I need to deal with what I have first. I’m going to aim for three books.
Goal: 3 Books
Posts Scheduled
So, just with those episodes and books, I would need to write six reviews plus the next Author Journey. That means I need to complete seven posts or I’m going backwards. I have ten posts in my backlog, but there’s no way I can get through all of them this week. I will try, but it’s really not going to happen.
Goal: 7 Posts
Writing
While wading through all the things in our basement, I found an old box with a bunch of short stories and vignettes that I wrote for a writing class. All were soaked through and couldn’t be saved! I was able to take photos of most of them so I could try to piece them back together. Seeing that has made me more determined to get back to publishing. And that makes me want to write. I’m going to go back to setting myself a goal of five hundred words a day and I need to do that before I do anything else.
Goal: 3,500 words.
Artwork Completed
This is the lowest of my priorities but one of the things I enjoy doing the most. I really want to draw more, especially given how calming I find the process. I think I might go back to doing some sketches with a real pencil. Then, I can employ the Apple Pencil to digitize it and add some colour. I just need to shake things up a little.
Goal: 1 Sketch

Final Thoughts
I’ve been doing a lot of thinking, and I might be over-analysing things, but that’s what happens when I don’t get to enjoy myself. I’m a very internal person who spends a lot of time thinking things through. I love to plan and strategise. If that helps me get closer to a routine that works then so be it. That said it’s definitely time for me to pick a plan and give it a fair chance. Hopefully, this week will be a little quieter. We’ve done a lot of work in the basement and the reporting period in the day job should calm down now. Anyhow, I’ve got lots to think about and do so I’ve got to get on with that. As always, thanks for reading.

I wish I had 1/10 of your energy and organization. Goals? What are Goals?
Thanks. You’re too kind. If I didn’t have goals who knows what I’d be doing!!!
Glad to hear that you’re close to finishing the basement! That kind of thing is murder on motivation.
That’s an interesting point about seasonal anime. I was just thinking about that myself, and what keeps me on track is that feeling of having the week’s reviews in ready — and knowing I’m done! That’s a real motivator for me. It’s interesting to hear your take on reviewing older shows.
And I know what you’re saying about The Promised Neverland. Man, what a kick in the teeth…
Fingers crossed your this week will cut you some slack!
Thanks. It’s been a ton of work and we’re still not there yet. Getting there, but still plenty to do. It is a motivation killer, for sure.
Yeah, it surprised me when I realised it. I’m not quite sure what to do with that thought at the moment, as there are still older shows I want to watch and I want to keep going with the manga reviews, but it’s hard to deny that having a set number of episodes each week to get through makes sense, especially if I can’t keep working into the future. I might try something out next season.
Reviewing seasonal anime can be so rewarding because you find so many gems. However, the stinkers really take their toll when you’re stuck reviewing it each week and it’s still season two of The Promised Neverland…
I hope so too. Thanks
Sounds like you’ve really been through the ringer as of late! I hope things start to turn around for you. Don’t get me started on The Promised Neverland…
Yeah, it’s been one thing after another lately. Hopefully, I’ll get a calm run of things for a little while. And, yeah, that second season… what were they thinking?