September Planner from Lisa Latte by Lisa Siefert

monthly planner

for readers + writers

SEPTEMBER 2019 Lisa Latte Books

#AUTHORLIFE #READERLIFE ÂŠ

Pretty

Pages

2019

All

Rights

Reserved

You are only permitted to use the content as expressly authorized by Pretty Pages | Lisa London Books. Except for copies made for your individual personal use only, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, republish, upload, post, transmit, or distribute any content or information from this workbook in any form or by any means without prior written permission from Pretty Pages | Lisa London Books and you are solely responsible for obtaining permission before reusing any copyrighted material that is available within. Any unauthorized use of the materials referred to may violate copyright, trademark and other applicable laws and could result in criminal or civil penalties.

ÂŠ 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

These Rockstar September Goals Belong To

Today’s Date

Today is important because today is the 1st day of the rest of your #AuthorLife #ReaderLife as a #GirlBoss.

how to print

First, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m going to assume you prefer a 2-page layout that you plan to 3-hole punch in a binder like below.

For Duplex Printers

Print this as a 2-sided document. You will need a printer that has the ability to duplex print, meaning that it can automatically print on each side in sequential order. This means page one [the cover] will be on the front and page 2 [this page youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re reading right now] will be on the back. For Single-Side Only Printers

Print only odd-numbered pages: 1, 3, 5, 7, etc. Refeed these originals into your printer blank page cartridge holder with the pages usually facing down and upside down but check your printer to be sure as it varies. And then print the even-numbered pages: 2, 4, 6, 8. This may take some trial and error and if all else fails, simply print the entire thing and manually face the pages in the right direction and use the blank pages on the back sides for notes.

ÂŠ 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

Welcome to my new Pen Name I’m so excited about the Lisa Latte Pen Name and all of the great Cozy Escape awesomeness that Courtny and I are doing - I can’t even tell you how much happier I am to finally to be aligned with what I’m truly passionate about. Just to be clear, I don’t hate Romance books/writing but I have abandoned the Lisa London brand to really focus on the Lisa Latte, Cozy Mystery brand. Why Cozy Mysteries • I love writing fun, light-hearted and quirky characters • I prefer writing 1st person POV heroine only • My baking obsession is totally acceptable • Plus, who doesn’t love a good whodunnit

This

monthly planner

will help you to • • • • •

Get your thoughts on paper Organize your dreams into an actionable plan Set yourself up for girlboss success Plan for the unexpected Prioritize what matters

Are you ready? Let’s go!

Lisa Latte Cozy Mystery Author Planner Boss

Why fit in when you were born to stand out

- dr. seuss

ÂŠ 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

1 | Micro-Planning

ÂŠ 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

Tomorrow becomes never

No matter how small the task take the first step now

-tim ferriss watch todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s video on the YouTube Channel

ÂŠ 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

Step 1 | Choose Your One Thing Multitasking Our brains are designed to focus on one thing at a time, and bombarding them with information only slows them down.

Singletasking Starve your distractions FEED YOUR FOCUS

Negative Impact of Multitasking 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

Slows you down - i.e. it will take you longer to reach your destination while talking on the phone Causes you to make more mistakes - Task Switching creates a 40% loss in productivity Stresses you out - increased blood pressure, heart rate + cortisol levels Ruins your memory - brain health and function decreases Hurst your relationships - even having a cell phone nearby causes communication breakdowns + distrust Makes you fat - you ignore fullness cues until your TV show or movie is over KILLS YOUR CREATIVITY - the working memory requirements used by your brain during multitasking, kill your ability to daydream + eliminates any possibility of having an aha moment

I could keep going but honestly, #7 was what did it for me. A major lightbulb went off for me - Multitasking was stealing the MOST IMPORTANT brainpower skills I needed as a writer and redirecting them to worthless tasks that have nothing to do with finishing my next book. This reason alone is why I’ve switched things around in my life to focus on Singletasking + Batching All Activities

If you’re still not sure what to write about

Watch the Story Decision Video + Download the worksheet at https://youtu.be/IpKSzhz_xNU

Step 1 | Choose Your One Thing

example

Write 85K words for my next novel

your turn

Step 2 | Block out your monthly obligations 1. Enter all appointments + obligations 2. Enter all hard deadlines 3. Enter all soft deadlines

ÂŠ 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

September

2019

S unday

M onday

T uesday

W ednesday

T hursday

GREEN Writers Events BLUE Holidays PINK Cozy Escape Events F riday

S aturday

Labor Day

Agatha Christie Festival Torquay, UK

Cozy Escape Chit Chat

Creatures, Crimes & Creativity

Courtny’s YouTube Channel Columbia, MD 7pm CST

9/11-15

9/13-15

Cozy Escape Novelists, Inc. Book Club St. Petersburg, FL 9/25-29 Lisa’s YouTube Channel 7pm CST

YOU MAY NOT BE THERE YET

but you're closer than you were yesterday

Step 3 | Timeblock out your week

Use Google Calendar or a Paper Based System to Block out all major tasks + activities to create a more realistic expectation of your workflow

Step 4 | Create Writing + Word Count Goals

example

Month: Finish entire first draft Week Week Week Week Week

1: Outline Complete 2: 20K Word Count 3: 20K Word Count 4: 20K Word Count 5: 20K Word Count

Daily: I will write 5 days/week M-F until I hit 4K words - Sat + Sun will be buffer days in case I fall behind

ÂŠ 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

Month

your turn Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5

Daily

Step 5 | Create a Daily To Do List 1. 2. 3. 4.

Create a Daily To Do List You can start it the night before by adding in all that day’s tasks that were incomplete but still important Add more in the AM after reading your email, checking VM, etc Add more as the day goes on so that you can set that task aside while you complete your current task. In other words, the To Do List is there to ensure you don’t multitask 5. Rinse + repeat this sheet each day

2 | Habit Tracker

how to use the habit tracker

Step 1 | Choose 2 habits youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d like to start Step 2 | Label each page with that habit Step 3 | Color in each day you complete that habit Step 4 | Reward yourself

ÂŠ 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

book recommendation YOUTUBE CHANGE TO LISA LATTE CHANNEL The only way to find me for bookish & author-related videos is on my New Lisa Latte Channel at https://rebrand.ly/lisalatte HALLIE EPHRON’S HOW TO WRITE A MYSTERY NOVEL I love straightforward, right to the point information and that’s what Hallie provides!

“Everybody has something to conceal.” 16

NEW HABITS

example

Top 1-2 Habits

For 2019, I chose 2 new habits I wanted to incorporate into my day: 1. Workout everyday 2. Write everyday

How will you REMIND yourself to start this new habit • For both, I hung an accountability calendar tracker on the fridge since I know for sure, I’ll visit that area without fail. • I give myself a gold star sticker for each day I perform my new habit • I time block it out on my Google Calendar • I add it to my daily to do list • I leave my gym bag on the kitchen island which I pass by everyday, multiple times/day • I have a writing device [laptop, iPad, notebook] in every room

What action will you take to make it part of your ROUTINE • I have an alarm that goes off on my phone everyday at noon to make sure I’ve completed both habits

What REWARDS will you see from adopting this new habit • Daily workouts help me to have more energy and feel better • Daily writing helps me to get more books published

the truth is

you donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t break a bad habit you replace it

with a good one - denis waitley, motivational speaker 18

ÂŠ 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

NEW HABITS

your turn

Top 1-2 Habits

Your NEW HABITS

How will you REMIND yourself to start this new habit

What action will you take to make it part of your ROUTINE

What REWARDS will you see from adopting this new habit

HABIT #1-->>

How to use this sheet

week

Declare your new habit above Each hexagon corresponds to one day in the month Each day you successfully complete your new habit, color that hexagon date in with highlighter, marker, pen, pencil Specify an Incentive Reward for yourself at the bottom

9 16 23

5 12 19 26

6 13 20 27

7 14 21 28

Incentive 20

reward

ÂŠ 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

<<--HABIT #2 How to use this sheet

14 21

week

20 27

week

Incentive ÂŠ 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

reward

the starting point

of all achievement is desire

- napoleon hill subscribe new videos every Monday

https://rebrand.ly/lisalatte 22

ÂŠ 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

3 | Word Count Tracker

how to use the word count trackers Step 1 | Declare your Word Count Goals Step 2 | Enter Actual Word Count Step 3 | Use the Daily Sheet - rinse + repeat style like the To Do List

ÂŠ 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

Word Count Tracker

Date

Day

9/1

Sun

9/2

Mon

9/3

Tues

9/4

Wed

9/5

9/6

Fri

9/7

Sat

9/8

Sun

9/9

Mon

9/10

Tues

9/11

Wed

9/12

9/13

Fri

9/14

Sat

9/15

Sun

9/16

Mon

9/17

Tues

9/18

Wed

9/19

9/20

Fri

9/21

Sat

9/22

Sun

9/23

Mon

9/24

Tues

9/25

Wed

9/26

9/27

Fri

9/28

Sat

9/29

Sun

9/30

Mon

Starting WC

# Words Written

Ending WC

Total Words -->

Pomodoro Method Set a timer for 25 minutes | Write for 25 minutes, no distractions | Rest for 5 minutes| Rinse + Repeat

hour 1 hour 2

100 words 200 words

hour 3

300 words

hour 4

400 words

hour 5

500 words

hour 6

600 words

hour 7

700 words

hour 8

800 words

total

ÂŠ 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

4000 words

did you know that businesses that plan ahead

PERFORM 60% BETTER than those that donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t

learn more

https://authorgirlboss.com 26

ÂŠ 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

4 | Reading Tracker

how to use the reading trackers Step 1 | Select a theme for the month Step 2 | Determine your TBR List Step 3 | Track your chapters read by day Step 4 | Go back to your TBR List and give each book completed a one to five star rating

ÂŠ 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

Everyone’s TBR List wil be different I read about 2-3 books per week but I’m single with no kids and work from home and I don’t cook so my free time is much different than someone who is a mom, someone with a long commute, or someone with a boyfriend or husband they need to cook for and clean up after. How much time do you really have for reading? So try to be realistic - having only 1 book on your monthly TBR list is perfectly acceptable! Or moving books from one month to the next because you didn’t make it through them is totally fine, as well! Books should be FUN and enjoyable, not stressful or make you feel guilty. To help inspire you, here’s my TBR for September I split mine out by themes

Lisa’s Monthly TBR

nancy drew + the hardy boys in anticipation of the CW debut of Nancy Drew in October, I’m re-reading one new Nancy Drew book each weekend in September

9/1

9/8

9/15

9/22

9/29

book cozies our Cozy Escape book club theme for fall is bookstore/library cozies so I’m obviously going to read our pick of the month but I’m also going to read the 3 others that weren’t chosen because...why not!

9/7

9/14

9/21

9/28

Your Monthly TBR

cozy escape book club september JOIN US for Book Club Discussion DATE Wednesday 9/25 TIME 7pm CST RSVP at https://www.crowdcast.io/e/september or Join LIVE on Lisa’s Channel

RATING

book author date

color in the # of stars

book author date book author date book author date book author date book author date 30

reprint this page as needed

Create a Reading Schedule

book author date

example

death by coffee

alex erickson finish by 9/22

chapters total #

29 chapters

divided by # of days

3 weekends

you plan to spend reading this book

chapters

to read per day

ÂŠ 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

10 chapters/weekend

reprint this page as needed

Chai Cinnamon Swirl Bundt Cake

I might be one of the few people left from the 80’s who’s still in love her Bundt Cake Pan. I put everything in it - it’s either that or the muffin pans.

Cake INGREDIENTS

3 cups all-purpose flour 2 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1 and 1/2 teaspoons salt 1 and 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature 1 cup packed light or dark brown sugar 1/2 cup granulated sugar 5 large eggs, at room temperature 1/2 cup full fat sour cream, at room temperature 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 3/4 cup milk, at room temperature optional for topping: brown butter icing, salted caramel, or maple icing

Chai Cinnamon Swirl Ingredients 3/4 cup packed light or brown sugar 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 1 teaspoon ground ginger 1 teaspoon ground cardamom 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a 10-inch bundt pan. 2. For the cake: Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl. Set aside. 3. Using a mixer beat the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar together until creamed, about 2 minutes. 4. Add the eggs, sour cream, and vanilla and beat on medium speed until combined. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. The mixture will look curdled; that’s ok– it will come together when you add the dry ingredients. 5. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, add the milk, and beat on medium speed until the batter is completely combined. Batter will be thick, yet silky. 6. For the chai cinnamon swirl: Mix the swirl ingredients together in a medium bowl. 7. Pour half of the cake batter evenly into the prepared bundt pan. Sprinkle the swirl ingredients evenly on top– it will be a thick layer of swirl! Cover evenly with remaining cake batter. 8. Bake for 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean with just a couple lightly moist crumbs. This is a large, heavy cake so it might take a little longer in your oven. 9. Once done, remove from the oven and allow to cool for 2 hours inside the pan. 10. Then, invert the slightly cooled bundt cake onto a wire rack or serving dish. Allow to cool completely.

Kinda like Cinnabon Icing Ingredients 1 stick softened butter (4 oz) 1/2 pack softened cream cheese (4 oz) 1 cup sifted powdered sugar 1 tsp vanilla extract 1 tsp fresh lemon juice

1. Cream together butter and cream cheese using an electric mixer 2. Intermittently sift in 1 cup of powdered sugar Beat for 10 minutes, or until the frosting is light and fluffy. 3. Next add the vanilla and lemon juice and beat until incorporated.

Tunnel of Fudge Chocolate Bundt Cake

They used to sell these as a box mix at the grocery store - I do miss them!

Ingredients

Cake Glaze 1/2 cup boiling water 3/4 cup heavy cream 2 oz bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped 1/4 cup light corn syrup 2 cups (10 oz) all-purpose flour 8 oz bittersweet chocolate, 3/4 cup (2 1/4 oz) Dutch-processed cocoa powder finely chopped 2 cups (8 oz) confectioners’ sugar 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 teaspoon salt 5 large eggs, at room temperature 1 tablespoon vanilla extract 1 cup (7 oz) granulated sugar 3/4 cup packed (5 1/4 oz) light brown sugar 20 tablespoons (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray a 12-cup bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray with flour. 2. Place the chocolate in a small bowl, then add the boiling water. Let stand for about a minute, then whisk the mixture until smooth. 3. Sift the flour, cocoa powder, confectioners’ sugar and salt together into a large bowl. 4. In a measuring cup, whisk together the eggs and vanilla until combined. 5. Beat the butter and both sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. 6. Add the egg/vanilla mixture and beat on low 7. Pour in the chocolate mixture and beat until combined 8. Then gradually add the dry ingredients, beating just until combined. 9. Bake for 45 minutes

To make the glaze: Add the heavy cream, corn syrup and chocolate to a small saucepan. Set over medium heat and cook, stirring frequently, until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. © 2019 Pretty Pages | Lisa Latte Books

Remember to RSVP *** links below ***

JOIN US for a fun Cozy Escape Chit Chat DATE Friday the 13th! 9/13 TIME 7pm CST RSVP at https://www.crowdcast.io/e/cozyescapechitchat or Join LIVE on Courtny’s Channel

JOIN US for Book Club Discussion DATE Wednesday 9/25 TIME 7pm CST RSVP at https://www.crowdcast.io/e/september or Join LIVE on Lisa’s Channel

Join the Cozy Escape Book Club

FOR Cozy Mystery Lovers - including readers, writers, your cat JOIN our monthly newsletter WHEN It goes out on the 15th of every month LINK to join https://rebrand.ly/cozyclub

ENTER TO WIN a Planner Haul Giveaway DEADLINE TO ENTER Friday the 13th at 4pm CST OPEN to INTERNATIONAL contestants! WINNER will be announced during the Cozy Escape LIVEstream Chit Chat - you can RSVP at https://www.crowdcast.io/e/

cozyescapechitchat

HOW TO ENTER Go to https://vyper.io/c/15709xsqph