Getting up this morning I knew it was time for me to write my yearly wrap-up, but I didn’t have a lot of motivation. On Christmas Eve my car stopped starting in a parking lot and had to be towed home. Getting it towed to a mechanic and repaired will be today’s problem. The day after Christmas I managed to sprain my big toe. I’ll spare you the grizzly details, but I dearly hope none of you ever do something similar. The pain is completely disproportionate to the injury, and every step is a painful reminder that toes are important and do something.
Thankfully, the lovely Andi and I had been talking about writing, life, and 2017. The exact inspiration I needed was sitting in my e-mail.
Looking back at 2016, what did you accomplish as a writer? Of what are you most proud? What didn’t go as well as you’d hoped?
Earlier this year I started keeping a list of work accomplishments. It’s something I plan on continuing because it gives me perspective. With how long so many “tasks” (like writing a book) take and how they tend to flow into one another (from writing to rewriting, to editing), it can be easy to forget what I’ve done and this reminds me.
2016 Accomplishments
- Heavily edited Fey Hearted
- Published Fey Hearted
- Wrote Michelle’s Case Files
- Rewrote Michelle’s Case Files
- Edited Michelle’s Case Files
- Published Michelle’s Case Files
- Finished writing A Witch’s Rite (this book was started in 2015)
- Rewrote A Witch’s Rite
- Edited A Witch’s Rite
- Published A Witch’s Rite
- Wrote Draft Zero of the Fey Hearted Prequel Novella
- Wrote Draft Zero of a science fiction short story
- Reorganize NEConneely.com and created book landing pages
- Rebuilt my desk to be ergonomic (Big thanks to my husband for helping!)
- Formatted Fey Hearted and A Witch’s Rite for trade paperback
- Reformatted Witch for Hire, A Witch’s Path, A Witch’s Trial, A Witch’s Concern for trade paperback
- Reformatted Witch for Hire, A Witch’s Path, A Witch’s Trial, A Witch’s Concern, A Witch’s Rite, Fey Hearted, and Michelle’s Case Files Kindle files to look prettier and be cohesive inside the series.
- Formatted Fey Hearted, Michelle’s Case Files, Witch for Hire, A Witch’s Path, A Witch’s Trial, A Witch’s Concern, and A Witch’s Rite for iBooks, Kobo, Nook, and other retailers
- Published Fey Hearted, Michelle’s Case Files, Witch for Hire, and A Witch’s Path to iBooks, Kobo, Nook, and other retailers
I’m really proud of that list. Several of those things took weeks or months. Others required learning new skills and programs. I did all of that in between moving, getting married, visiting family, having a honeymoon, and being plagued with an ulcer. Everything I’ve just typed is important. They’re the things I need to remember when I wonder where 2016 went.
However, I didn’t do as much pure writing as I’d hoped. That’s the one thing I’d really like to improve upon in 2017.
Looking forward to 2017, what would you like to accomplish as a writer? What might need to stay in place for those things to happen? What might need to change?
In 2017 I want to write 1,000,000 words. It’s a big goal, one I may not make, but everything I write gets me closer to some of my smaller goals (like completing individual books). And the process of trying will be a reward of its own as I get back to the writing and stories I love.
To write a million words in 2017, I need to hold onto my determination and drive while I work on my time management and daily flow. I need to learn when to take breaks and when to look at the a blank page and feel an upwelling of “I Can!” I need to walk forward boldly and with conviction, remembering to prioritize my goals because it’s easy for them to get lost and that’s unacceptable. I need to be a better me and a better writer.
