I am not a hoarder – quite the opposite. I love to get rid of things I’m not using or don’t need: clothes, household items, papers, etc. There’s constantly a box in my basement for goodwill items. Once I take them to the store, it’s not long before I start another box.
For me, there’s something thrilling about organizing a drawer or closet or space and purging out what isn’t necessary or useful. My husband jokes when I get into organizing mode that the rest of the family should watch out or Mom might organize them all out of the house.
Interestingly this need to organize and purge doesn’t apply to the various manuscripts on my hard drive. And thank goodness for that! As I was going through my edits the other week, I found a spot where my editor felt one chapter ended too abruptly. She wanted me to add more to the scene. To my relief – and luck – I found a continuation of that scene, which I’d written about five years ago and kept on my computer – just in case. Having that scene already written made it easy to rework and plug it into the spot I needed it. So, as much as it pains me to say, there are times when it’s good to keep a little clutter around.
Are you a hoarder or are you all about clearing out the clutter (a get-ridder)? What things are easy to let go of? What things are harder?
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Hey, you want to come over and clean my house???? 😀
I still have old mss on my computer too (and outlines for books I never wrote). You never know when you'll decide to go back and revamp them–or steal from them.
This makes me think of my mom and how she's been cleaning through her closet all this week. I know it's hard b/c she's cleaning out some of my dad's stuff. It's been two years since he died. I can't really imagine how that would be…to throw some things out or give them to Goodwill.
I've made a decision…every time I buy something new clothing item I need to toss something I haven't worn for years. Wonder if I'll stick to it.
~ Wendy
I like to clean things out, but I know I still keep more than I need. It's got to be the Depression-era mentality my grandmother instilled in me. Even now that my first two novels have already gone to press, I'm still having a hard time purging all those former versions. But then again, I was glad I hadn't when I decided to add "deleted scenes" to my website for fun. 🙂
Hi Stacy, It's funny you should mention this now. Yesterday, I decided to get organized. I'm not a hoarder but I do hang on to stuff. I have too much stuff. Too many clothes, too many shoes, (I know some are saying can you have to many of those, yes!) Too many gifts that others have given me and I can't bring myself to get rid of them, even though I don't like them. Too much stuff! You get the picture.
Anyway, I decided to create a blog and pinterest board called Organizers Unite! I'm hopeing it will make me accountable and I'll get everything organized and (gasp) clean.
As for the computer files, I save everything… I hoard those scenes as if they were gold, because you never know when they are. LOL
Thanks again for the post!!
I've been following the Flylady way over on flylady.net because I have a lot of my kids' papers that I've saved (and with eight kids, that's a lot of paper). It was overwhelming to me, but Flylady's motto is you can do anything for fifteen minutes, so I've taken fifteen minutes every day to sort a pile, then when that child comes home from school we go through their sorted pile and reminisce while we decide what to put in their keepsake binder. It's actually been really fun, we've laughed a lot, and my bedroom is now free from any paper pile! Hooray!
As for my manuscripts, I don't even delete my cut files after my books are published! Silly I know, but there's just something secure about having them there.
Great blog!
I can't even watch the story Hoarders without breaking into a cold sweat. My kids know if they leave stuff out on the floor it may thrown out. I'm kind of crazy like that.
I used to be (I'll call it) a saver. I've learned over the years to let things go – baggage we don't need to carry around.
When my kids got older, I separated all of their things into plastic bins. It made life easier.
It's still hard for me to let go of cards – birthday, Christmas…etc.
I love to get rid of old things. I love to organize. It's part of why my day job frustrates me at times because around here, people are obsessed with paperwork. 🙂 But yeah, in my "other" life, I get an energy burst from getting rid of stuff. 🙂
But I hear ya on the manuscript thing. I love it when I find old pieces of scenes which fit in with what I'm working on now.
Stina – Maybe I will! 🙂 It's always funner to clean/organize someone else's house than your own.
Wendy – My heart goes out to your mom – that would be a tough task.
I'm like you – if I buy something new, I try to get rid of something I'm not wearing.
Sandra – I LOVE the idea of deleted scenes on your web site. May have to copy that idea. 🙂
Rhonda – Kudos to you for gettin' organized and blogging about it too!
Julie – That's a great way to cut down on paper – and you're right 15 minutes isn't that bad, especially if it means clutter-free zones. 🙂
Angela – You're not crazy; you're an organizer. 🙂 My kids know when I say I'll pick something up, that means it goes away for a while.
Loree – That's a fabulous idea about putting the kids' stuff into plastic bins!
Melissa – I hear ya! I love that energized feeling of getting rid of things I don't need.
I am like you. I cannot have clutter. But electronically I am a hoarder. I keep old emails, manuscripts and the such.
I love to get rid of old drafts, it helps me purge the awfullness of them! If that makes sense…
Hi Stacy! I try so hard to stay organized,, but its difficult with kids. I purge a few times a year, but my husband collects (sigh)
Love this! I'm kind of both. It's hard for me to get rid of things, but I love to get rid of things! Is that possible?
And I keep "Cut files" for all my manuscripts because I can't bear to delete my little wordies forever. 🙂
That's awesome you had that scene! I think I go in cycles. Right now I'm in purge-mode. But I always have a Goodwill box on the go too!
I love the Goodwill box idea! Genius. And I'm the same way with my writing. I think I have all 500 versions of my m/s on my hard drive (which is consequentially getting too full at the moment). 🙂
Ugh, I can't stand clutter! I'm constantly tossing stuff into a bag for Goodwill or chunking it.
So glad you found your scene! I do love an external hard drive! LOL
Jenny – I like to organize my e-mails/old documents into folders. Yes, I'm odd like that. 🙂
Jessie – Yes, sometimes it's liberating to get rid of less than stellar writing. 🙂 Though if it's really long, I'd probably keep a copy on my computer.
Mina – My husband is a collector too – I feel your pain. 🙂
Rachelle – Most things are easy for me to get rid of, but I'll admit I do hang onto cards/notes. Can't quite part with those yet.
Ali – It's nice to a have a designated spot to throw the goodwill stuff in – I think that makes it's easier to part with things.
Sarah – I've got lots of versions of some of my manuscripts too, but I just can't delete them. 🙂
Jess – It was super nice (and quick) not to have to write the rest of the scene from scratch!
I'm a big time de-junker. I throw out stuff all the time. But then later, when I don't have what I need, that drives me nuts. That's pretty awesome you kept that scene on your hard drive!
I totally keep some clutter around. But not because I like it– it's more of a time thing. In my perfect world, there wouldn't be an ounce of clutter in my house at any moment.
Of course, my computer is a different story altogether….
I really hate clutter! I'm not an organizer either though, so while I throw out things easily, there are places in my house that have things that aren't mine that I can't throw out…grrr! I close the doors to those places. lol For writing, I tend to be a get-ridder too. Very cool that you found a continuation of the scene!
Erin – I've done the same thing! Gotten rid of something, then later sort of wanted it back. 🙂 But more often than not, I don't miss the stuff.
Peggy – Wouldn't it be nice if things just organized themselves? 🙂
Jessica – Ah, yes – those places you can't de-clutter because they may not be yours. I agree that closing the door helps. So do deep breaths. 🙂