When You're Just One Guy…

…you can work on only one thing at a time. Multitasking is great for multi-core CPU’s, but for us humans with one brain and limited attention/focus bandwidth, switching from one task to another can be less than smooth.
 
Depending on the particular projects, I can often put in time on both writing and programming in a single workday, usually with a before-lunch/after-lunch split. I can use lunch as a clutch/buffer to prevent grinding gears. But then there are projects that soak up too many mental resources and I’m constantly pondering them, consciously or subconsciously. When one of these happens, I’m pretty much limited to a single train of thought. Launching a new software project is like this. So is publishing a novel (which includes all the editing, copyediting, formatting, and so on). Once a software project is underway (that is, most of the concentrated design work is out of the way and I’m mostly implementing), or once the novel is released, I have some untapped mental resources that can be reallocated.
 
Hmm. Now I think of it, I’d probably take less than 2-3 weeks to outline a novel if I focused on it full time rather than in 1-2 hour “slices”.
 
… everything has an opportunity cost. Since you can only work on one thing at a time, choosing what you work on means you’ve just chosen *not* to work on a whole host of other possibilities.
 
While I can sometimes write on a novel at the same time as I’m working on a software project, I’m not going to try to write two novels at the same time. Grinding gears switching back and forth would be too distracting. Same thing with trying to work on multiple software projects on the same day. I’ve *done* it, but I’m not convinced it was a good idea. Most of the time, I’m working on one thing at a time. Which means that even though I can see how I could benefit from making a client-server version of The Journal, I’ve already chosen to work on an Android version. Then an Ipad version. Then maybe a Mac version or maybe I pick up the client-server idea. Did I choose “wisely”? I don’t know. I think I’ve made the best choice I can *right now*, and I’ll stick to it. Because I have to. I can’t work on two things at the same time, and if I constantly shift back and forth nothing gets finished.
 
I admit it: I’m human.
 
Right now I’m focused on getting GoSH3 (which I think has finally found a title: Tiger Trouble) published. Yesterday I finished the final edit. Today I’ll start copyediting. Then formatting and the rest. The book won’t be available before the end of September as I had originally planned, but coming out in October isn’t too bad.
 
Once I get GoSH3 out the door, I’ll be focused on getting The Journal for Android project up and running. Once I’m out of the initial design/learning Java stages, I expect I’ll be able to pick up Gunwitch3 and continue writing it. It’s impossible to know for certain when that will be, but it will happen.
 
-David
 
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