Halfway through the month- Check up

December is halfway over, so I thought I would give a little update on how I am doing reaching my writing goals. As a writer, it's so important to set goals for yourself that are both reasonable and challenging. This not only helps you grow as a writer, but it also helps you stay productive during those times when another activity is calling your name.

Early on in the month, I discovered a nice little Christmas surprise from examiner.com. As it turns out, someone had used me as a referral and it had been credited to my account. I'm actually reconsidering continuing to write for examiner for this very reason. Although the page views are not always great, the writing there is quick and easy and the referral rates are quite good ($50). If you are considering writing for this site, please consider signing up with me as your referral (I'm the Cincinnati Staycations Examiner- Rachel Campbell). I would greatly appreciate it!

I've written two Suite 101 articles so far this month, and my goal is to get to five. Since I am more familiar with the format and style, I'm finding it much easier to crank them out. I haven't written another eHow article yet, although I would like to do at least one. And for demand studios, I am about halfway to my goal.

I'm pretty pleased with how things are going writing-wise this month. The morning sickness has really started to let up, so I think the productivity should stick with me the rest of the month. However, we will be away for Christmas during the last week in December, so I really only have one more week to get everything done! Nothing to get me going like a little challenge.

I also received a call from a magazine I had queried way back in June. They left a message saying they would love for me to do the proposed article but would have to get back to me as soon as they work out what issue it would be in! This is great news and a real motivator to get back into querying magazines. Since print publications pay so much more, it's an avenue always worth exploring, and who doesn't like seeing their name in print?