“When Colleen asked if I might want to write a guest post, I had no idea what to write, because I’m on a pretty big deadline, and most of my valuable words are going into the book right now, which leaves me very little of worth to say at the end of the day. And I’m not even kidding. By 11pm on any night of Deadline Week, I’m down to one-syllable words.

Just ask my husband.

So I thought that instead, I’d show you what my deadlines look like. So here goes. The start to any deadline week is pretty much pure panic, at which point I turn to my daughter’s magic orb with the following question: “Will this book be a total disaster?”

Inevitably, the orb speaks the truth, and I have to remind myself that this is the first draft. It’s allowed to be a disaster. The point of the first draft is just to get the story on the page. Er…the screen.

It doesn’t have to be very good until the next draft. Seriously. The catch is that you have to allow yourself enough time to get through the second draft before the book is due. Which becomes a problem when you realize you’ve painted yourself into a corner in the manuscript. That’s the point at which I start frantically texting my critique partner.

(The green texts are mine.)

And if she doesn’t answer those texts immediately, I’ve been known to go on Twitter and tell her to check her phone. For the past couple of years, a big part of all my deadlines has been marathon writing days at Panera Bread with Jennifer Lynn Barnes.

We both put on noise canceling headphones and earn our food and drink refills by making word count goals. I’ve written as many as 5,000 words in seven hours at Panera. My record for days in one week at Panera is three. My record for meals in a day at Panera is two-and-a-half. (Breakfast, lunch, and a fruit cup.)

After all that Panera-ing and sitting in a chair with my laptop, what I really need is a trip to the gym.

Instead, because there isn’t time to go to the gym until I turn the book in, what I get is this:

With this latest deadline, I’ve been reminding myself to stop every thousand words or so to stretch and get some exercise. Sitting for long periods of time is bad for your joints and your circulation, and I’m not getting any younger, so… 😉 During those last couple of days before the book is due, I spend the vast majority of my time curled up in my recliner or on my couch with this view. (My MENAGERIE ARCs happened to come in the day I took this pic.)

Right before a deadline, I hate to take time out to cook, so my husband makes dinner, and my breakfasts and lunches include these open-and-eat staples:

And finally, the day (and night) before a deadline typically look like this:

I have a book due on July 1st. I finished the rough draft last week, at 85,000+ words. The next few days for me will look like everything I’ve just shown you.

Wish me luck!”