I know I’m late typing out my New Year’s writing goals. While most people posted them at the beginning of the month, to be honest, I didn’t really know what mine were going to be.
I had to think long and hard about this, because last year it was as simple as finishing a manuscript and querying it. However, since I decided toward the end of last year, I won’t be querying that manuscript anymore (even though I only sent out a handful of queries), it was time to stretch my brain to come up with new goals.
My latest work in progress stalled at 20k words when I took a much needed break to spend time with my family. That time off was lovely by the way, as writers we get burnt out juggling twelve hats at once, and sometimes we don’t give ourselves permission to take a break. Thinking of how refreshed and great I feel, I decided to formulate some very broad goals this year:
1.Enjoy the writing process: There’s no pressure to get a specific amount of words down, or even write every day. Don’t lose so much sleep that it takes away the joy and causes stress.
2. Be open to new or unexpected opportunities: I tend to plan and stick to rigid expectations, and so instead of trying to control things which are completely out of my hands, I’m just going to see what opportunities turn up. Every year I kept telling myself, this will be the year I achieve x, y, z. I’m keeping my hopes alive but not pressuring a time frame.
3. Press forward and never give up! I’ll continue to work on my new manuscript, revisit old manuscripts (only the ones worthy of revisions), and press forward.