Back up your files and write down those ideas

We are reminded time and time again to back up our computer files. How many times do we forget? I forgot once and lost two chapters of a manuscript I was working on. It took my husband hours to retrieve it and I still lost several paragraphs that I had to rewrite. Now, I save and back up my writing every time I write something. I probably go to the extreme because I have one main copy and two back-ups, one of which I carry with me everywhere I go. Yes, I am paranoid that something will happen at home and want to make sure I have a copy elsewhere. So, here is your friendly reminder to back up your work now.

My other advice is to write your ideas down immediately. I have a bounded book of blank pages, a writer's journal of sorts, that I keep by the bed. This is for those ideas that I get when I'm in bed watching television, trying to go to sleep, or that pop into my head in the middle of the night.

A few weeks ago, I came up with an idea for the manuscript that I want to work on during NaNoWriMo. I wrote that idea down in that journal. Last night, I was in bed on the verge of falling asleep when I came up with the back cover blurb for that manuscript, along with a working title, and names of characters. I was awake enough to think to myself that I needed to turn the light on and get that information down in the journal. But, I was sleepy enough to tell myself that I would remember it in the morning. Not only did I not remember it this morning, I didn't remember about it until just a few minutes ago and guess what, I don't remember the blurb, the working title, or the character names.

Hopefully, tonight when I lay down to go to sleep, those ideas will pop back into my head again. My advice is no matter how sleepy you are, write those ideas down now or regret it later.

Carol