Goal Setting for the New Year

Since I was a kid, I've always been a big list-maker. One of the most satisfying experiences, in my opinion, is making a list of all the things I hope to accomplish in a day/week/month/year and ticking them off one at a time till they're all done. I love that sense of completion I get from looking at a list upon which every task has a corresponding checkmark. I also learned early on to break up large jobs into small tasks so that I could simultaneously give myself achievable goals and positive reinforcement that would see me through to the end. This system has stood me well as a writer as well.

I have very ambitious long term goals, but the only way I'm going to see them to fruition is by setting a series of short term milepost goals that will lead me in the direction I want to go.

With this in mind, here are my goals for 2014 (yes, I realize this is a long list, but they're all attainable given the proper planning):

Writing Goals

• Find representation (In process) for the book series with the goal of publishing Book 1 within a year
• Meanwhile, write manuscript for Book 2 between January and May.
  • Write summaries for each character's storyline, with their key scenes detailed
  • Outline the chapters in order, interweaving those storylines
  • Organize the book into 3 acts (30-35 thousand words per part) in order to give the story structure
  • Create the Scrivener project for the book
  • Set a schedule for each week with a deadline for completing each of the parts (one per month?)
  • Maintain a record of words completed each week
  • When first draft of each section is complete, take a couple of days off and then do at least 3 rounds of revision
  • Update outline as needed until the entire manuscript is complete and ready to begin editorial process
• Write at least 2 short stories in the summer of 2014 (related to the novel? unrelated?) and shop them for publication in the fall
• Determine what manuscript I want to work on during The Stanley Hotel Writer's Retreat

Social Media Goals

• Set a weekly/monthly schedule for regular blogging/posting
• Learn how to use analytics to determine content goals
• Find an admin assistant for my FB and Twitter to help manage postings if needed

Personal Goals

• Schedule exercise into my weekly calendar 3 x per week and take it as seriously as I do my writing goals
• Expand my container garden to grow more than just tomatoes this year
• Reorganize my laundry room and consider purchasing new equipment
• Learn to crochet
• Dedicate one room for hobbies and organize supplies
• Spring cleaning during the week of Spring Break to sort clutter, then store, toss, or donate as appropriate
• Read 50 books using Goodreads to keep track of my goal

Notice that these are goals, not resolutions. Resolutions seem to always be broken. I am going to do these things, not just say I'm going to. Getting out my calendar now to make my plans. 2014 is going to be a good year.

What are your goals for the New Year?

Where I've been (Among other things)

Writery Things
During the month of November, I was quiet here, but my writing life has been extremely busy.

In October, I had a conversation with an agent, and she recommended to me that I increase the length of the novel in order to make it more marketable to mainstream publishers. Thus, I spent the three weeks leading up to Thanksgiving completing a 30,000 word addition to the text. The manuscript draft is now in the hands of my editor. After taking a week to catch my breath, I've begun planning the sequel while I wait for the annotations to come back. I'm also taking time to do some research, and I can't wait to use what I learn in the next book. Once my editor is finished looking through the text, I'll make corrections and then send it off with hopes of finding representation.


I'm also very excited to announce that I'll be attending The Stanley Hotel Writer's Retreat in October of 2014! It's a week-long retreat at the hotel that was the inspiration for Stephen King's The Shining. The event has been written up on FEARNet and on FANGORIA®, and I absolutely cannot wait. I haven't been to Estes Park in years, and to spend the time doing something I love with great people in such an inspiring location is a dream come true.

Readery Things 

The book club I lead has been reading classic horror this year, and we just completed Bram Stoker's Dracula. We've been comparing the book to various onscreen interpretations, including the new NBC television series. Everyone agrees that while the show departs significantly from the text of the novel, we love what the writers are doing and find Jonathan Rhys Meyers depiction compelling and exciting. If you haven't had a chance to catch this great show, I highly recommend it.


At the beginning of the year, I set myself a challenge to read 50 books, which works out to approximately a book a week, and I'm seven books away from reaching that goal. Many of the books I read were part of a series. Last year, I read all of the George R.R. Martin A Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones) series, and this year it was Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark Hunter series that dominated my reading list. This year also saw the end of Charlaine Harris' Southern Vampire Mysteries, an ending that was bittersweet for me. I kept up with Karen Marie Moning's Fever series by reading her newest and thoroughly entertaining installment, Iced (I'm very much looking forward to reading Burned once it's released). I also read Cassandra Claire's Mortal Instruments series and the Beautiful Creatures series by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl. Several standalone novels were part of my reading list, including most memorably Neil Gaiman's The Ocean at the End of the Lane which was stunningly lyrical and heartbreaking.

Doggy Things (Because Layla is annoyed at not being the center of attention)
I'm just going to leave this here. Her face speaks for itself.

 
Your Turn...

Tell me stuff!

• What are you reading/writing?
• What's the best thing that's happened with you this year so far?
• What are you looking forward to next year?
• What is your pet doing right now?