It's only Tuesday, but I am ready for a confession. When it comes to deadlines, especially deadlines for sending things out, I almost always wait until the last minute. It's somewhat contrary to my nature, because I am efficient in most situations. There's just something about a postmark deadline that makes me feel like that's the day to send it.Judging from the recent deluge of mail in the UA Press office, I'm not alone in this.
Anyone else wait until the last minute? If you don't, please pass along your tips for keeping on top of things. Please.
And yes, this post has little to do with the upside-down trash can that Jay R has encountered above, but I thought you might enjoy his look of utter confusion. That is how I felt when I realized that somehow it has become July, overnight.
11 comments:
I obsess on gettingthings out the door waaaaaaay ahead of deadlines. For my book ms. going out, I simply find a new place or two to send it, decide whether I am going to send there, and have it out in the next day or two.
Of course I wait until the last minute. The ms. might magically get better all by itself without me even doing anything to it, and I wouldn't want to have sent it out already. ;)
I am deeply superstitious about never sending things out before deadline. I just can't do it. Not only might it get better all on its own, but I might actually find time to make it better in the last seconds.
Plus, I am a bit of an adrenaline junkie (too many years working for newspapers) so it makes sense that I have to be in a blind panic to get anything done.
When it comes to grading student papers, I usually start out pretty good. But then I get behind, and by the end, I have 17 papers to grade and only 3 hours to grade them.
PS--I'm still mezmorized by that trash can....
Word Verification: nuubag!
How many fingers am I holding up, Jay?
Either 22 or 5. It depends on which hand I'm looking at.
Hmm, I am *capable* of using excel, and I have a good spreadsheet system going to track my journal submissions (including my BOR one! That y'all so nicely accepted! Whee! Thank you! It still makes me smile, 2 weeks later!), but I hate excel.
For my PhD applications, I made my own little tables in MS Word. Hackneyed, when I have MS Excel to use, but editing in Excel is a bitch.
Congrats on the prog dir stuff. I bow at your feet. If I ever get that first book published and then finish my PhD I will be salivating at jobs like yours.
Stephanie, I LOVE word tables. They are so fun to fill with stuff! I actually use a nasty old word doc with boxes on it for subs. How low tech! But it's better than the sticky notes I used to use.
No, no, never...not me. Always *way* ahead of schedule.
Really? It's July?
I've sent in way early, and I've sent in on the final day. Sometimes I wonder if, if I send things in way early, the editor(s) think(s) that I didn't polish my poems enough, that I gave up a early and should have continued revising till the final hour.
I like when mags encourage to send early, before all the space is used up (thanks, dear BOR editor).
Does it matter if it's early or right on time? Does it influence whether something will be published? Dear God, I hope not.
I agree w Anne: my submission might get magically better, or better yet, I might make it better w hard work.
Post a Comment