How do you feel about lists? I live by them. I have lists of things to do, a list for grocery shopping, a long list of things to write, and a list of deadlines to meet. There are days when I would favor a list of active submissions over a page of prose.

Today I spent my morning with a list of poems that are ready for submission. Well, I thought they were ready, but when I dug into them, I ended up with a list of revisions to make. I made it through the poems with titles beginning with A’s and well into the B’s. The poems, in general, shrunk as the list grew. Revising as I went, I wondered how many poems I’ve submitted before they were ripe, a list I don’t want to think about.

Any other listers out there? Are you too making lists instead of making poems, stories, memoirs, letters? It’s good to stay busy, but if the list becomes a distraction, better walk away from the desk and read a good book, even a mediocre book. And add that book title to your list of books.