We Can Do It! Thianna D Shares Her Secrets To Productivity

Thianna D is here to share her secrets to being an extremely productive writer. A quick peek at her Amazon Author Page is a testament to her productivity. Looks like at least 15 books. 

Let's find out how she does it....

Celeste Jones: Are you a full time or part time writer?

Thianna D: I'm a full-time writer. Oh, that is a wonderful thing to say. Been dreaming about it my entire life.

Celeste Jones:  What other responsibilities do you have to juggle along with writing? Children? Aging parents? Exercise? A disturbing number of pets? Critiquing for other writers?

Thianna D: None of us live in a vacuum, so we all have something. I do have elderly parents I help with. Also, I go to the gym twice a day. In the morning, it isn't so bad, but in the afternoon, I have to take a break from writing and that usually makes me growl. But the responsibilities that to me are the most likely to get in the way of my writing are the editing, marketing, social networking side of author life. I look forward to hiring an assistant to do some of that.

Celeste Jones: Do you have a set schedule for when you write? If so, what is it?

Thianna D: A set schedule? Only when I want to be really prolific. This last fall was rife with edits after edits from several different manuscripts and I lost the writing bug for a while. Total burnout. Now that characters are talking again, I will start setting times to write. I always found 1-5 pm a great time. Now with the gym being right in the middle of that, I will have to change it.

Celeste Jones: Do you have particular productivity goals for each day or week or just go for it?

Thianna D: I only set goals during JulNoWriMo. This last summer, I ended up with 206,000 words written for the month of July. But usually, for me, it is a time limit. So, if I have only 2 hours to write and I buckle down to do it, I can get 5,000-6,000 words written in that timeframe. My average writing speed is 2500 words/hour.

Celeste Jones: What is a typical day (if such a thing exists) like for you?

Thianna D: I have typical mornings, but the rest of the day? Not so much. Mornings are filled with marketing, email reading, social networking, and yes the gym. (No matter what, I get to the gym.)

Celeste Jones:  Do you work on more than one manuscript at a time?

Thianna D: For the most part yes. I have over 500 WIPs. Most of them will never be finished works. About 20 will. When my characters stop talking to me, I like having another story to go to. Plus, since I write several different genres, it is rare for me to want to stay with one consistently. That was one of the great things about JulNoWriMo. Because of the intensity, it kept me on track and I wrote a 120k word story from start to finish in a matter of 2.5 weeks. I've heard they have a NoWriMo in March and I will be participating as I love what comes out of it.

Celeste Jones: Do you use any special writing programs like Write or Die?

Thianna D: Absolutely not. I write hard and fast. And I always push myself when I write. Why use a program that uses negative reinforcement to up my game? I believe in positive reinforcement. Write for an hour? Then do 100 jumping jacks! Now that is my kind of hurrah.

Celeste Jones: What about promotion? Do you have particular time when you visit blogs or use other social media? How do you monitor your time?

Thianna D: For me, that is all mornings. Unless I am in book release mode at which point it becomes an all-day event for several weeks. As for monitoring time, as long as I spend only a small amount on social networks, I'm good. But SNs are the biggest time wasters. As long as I can only go there in the morning and the evening, I can get a lot done.

Celeste Jones: What about your blog? Do you have a set schedule  or just blog when the mood strikes you?

Thianna D: I do love posting every day, but find that only a couple times a year is that plausible. So I try 3-4 times a week now. When I can, I prefer to set up my posts up to 4 weeks in advance so that I just don't have to think about it.

Celeste Jones: What tips or pointers do you have to share to help others be more productive?

Thianna D: First? Only visit social networks like Facebook & Twitter one time a day. And force yourself to stay no longer than 30 minutes. Then walk away until tomorrow. Second? Find another author and have writing events. "Today we will write from 1-3 pm. On your marks, get set, go!" and then see how much everyone wrote. I used to think I wasn't competitive. Turns out? I am. I will always push myself to write faster during those.

Celeste Jones: What books are you working on now? What are your goals for 2014?

Thianna D: So many books! Lol I'm working to finalize the All They Ever Needed series. There is my Corbin's Bend novella Finding Their Bliss that I am tweaking. I am also writing two young adult series and a non-erotic dating service novel. And that is beside all the vignettes I am writing.

Celeste Jones: Anything else you’d like to share?

Thianna D: I think for every author, there is an entirely different system. To be a writer, what you need is the passion and the drive to write. Don't let anything else get in the way of that dream. Write, write, write. And if you want to be a good writer? Writer harder. Don't let anyone else tell you that you can't write. If writing is inside of you? Write!

Keep in touch with Thianna D: 

http://www.thiadesigns.com – My blog

http://www.thiannad.com/ - Author site

http://www.amazon.com/author/thiannad - Amazon Author page

https://www.facebook.com/AuthorThiannaD - Facebook

https://twitter.com/the_weremouse – Twitter

Newest book: Took My Breath Away, 2^nd in the All They Ever Needed spanking romance series.

Sometimes taking control is what you need to do and sometimes the best thing you can do is give that control up.

In the summer between Logan's junior and senior years of college, these two will find out more about each other and themselves than they imagined.

While unhappy to be missing four weeks of Christian's company, Logan is thrilled to spend a month with his father's relatives in New York.  A naturally gregarious individual, he is used to winning people over and getting things right. Unfortunately, the Mannettes are not what he expects and for the first time in his life, he finds himself seriously doubting who he is.

Christian has regained some of his old self-esteem and is taking on new challenges. Besides growing in the relationship he has with Logan, he takes the time his boyfriend is away to learn more about domestic discipline. He learns a little online but it is actually Gregory, Logan's father, where he gains most of his information. Including the fact that his natural strength puts him in a leadership position he isn't expecting.

When Logan returns to a strong, self-assured Christian, it is with complete relief. As discussions turn to domestic discipline and they realize their true roles within their current and future relationship, both of them are able to let their inhibitions go and together their connection grows surprising Logan to an epiphany.