2013 Year in Review
Alrighty then. Despite my grumpy/contrarian post yesterday (I'm
feeling much better today, thanks), it's my nature to end the year with a
review, and start the new one with a fresh list of goals. This review
certainly shouldn't make anyone feel "less than", due to the sheer
number of things I didn't hit the mark on last year.
We'll talk
about goal/achievement comparison and why it's unhealthy tomorrow, K?
So...here's
my list of resolutions from last year. I'll just go down the list and
strike through those that were completed, and give a quick commentary on
the ones that weren't. Ready? Here we go:
Writing- Serialize only published or waiting-to-be-published workTotal fail. Tried it, missed it, went back to it. We'll revisit this tomorrow.
- Minimum of 1k words per day, 5 days per weekI have no idea - I don't keep track of word count, only scenes finished. So fail, and unnecessary.
- Writing time 11pm - 12am Mon/Tues/Thurs/Fri, & while the dog food "incubates" on WedsYeah...no.
This past year I decided to write in shorter snippets on my breaks at
work, and then a longer session right after work, which is better
because that's my optimal "awake/alert" time.
- Publish at least one story every monthAnother
fail...because I still haven't mastered the art of tailoring my stories
to specific lengths, and I also have focus issues. Another one to be
revisited, though perhaps not in this exact form.
- Write one short story/novelette per month along with other drafts.See
above - I have plotting issues (namely, I'm a pantser, though I know I
can still learn better structuring techniques to make stories fit).
Business- Get accounting in order and maintain monthly bookkeeping scheduleI did this for about 6 months, and then bombed again. *sigh* Guess what's going back on the list?
- No Anthologies- Cut blogging back for all blogs (schedule out serials/excerpts so content is largely automated)- Once monthly BSB newsletter, newsletters for author names on new releases only.- Light promo, review copies, site updates, formatting & cover art evenings while watching TV.
Personal- Make time on the weekends for hobbies- Keep up with housework weekly- Continue morning yoga workouts- Workout at least 3x nightly per week - focus on strength & toningFail on this...but still managed to lose weight and stay healthy, so not as big a deal as it could be.
- Reorganize morning routine for better efficiency- Archive tea & nail blogs
So,
out of 16 resolutions for last year, I completed 9...which is actually
better than I thought I did. Go me! Normally my goal lists (daily,
weekly or yearly) end up about half or less complete, so that's not bad.
You'll
note that many of the resolutions I missed the mark on were writing
goals...and a lot of that is because I'm just not experienced enough as a
writer to tailor stories for specific lengths yet. And honestly, in
this day and age there's no real reason I have to be, since a story can
be whatever length it needs to be and doesn't have to conform to any
specific word count (though longer stories do sell better, and I think
it would be good, creatively speaking to have that kind of control over
the craft).
I
also side-tracked myself in a couple different ways last year - one was
taking on an impromptu project that ended up being far more
time-intensive than I thought it would, and the other was going back to
the serial drafts, rather than forcing myself to learn a new, possibly
more efficient way of writing (or learning how to split the difference,
anyways).
And of course there's
that whole bookkeeping fiasco I just can't seem to get a handle on. But I
need to, and I will. Somehow, someway. It simply has to happen.
Overall
though, it was a good, productive year - I published 12 new titles of
varying lengths under my three names, and released several audiobooks as
well (with two more in production). I also picked up my crochet hobby
again, learned how to knit, and rediscovered the joy of getting away
from the screen in the evenings/on weekends and doing something with my
hands. Yes, sales were down this year, and that might have been because I
was less visible online, but it could have been a zillion other things
as well. No way to know, and no sense worrying about it now.
Tomorrow,
the 2014 list, a discussion on comparisons, and some links that I think
you'll find interesting and/or helpful as you go about setting up your
own goals for the new year.
In the meantime, feel free to share how your 2013 went...I'd love to hear about it!
Enjoy
this post? Support your author:
feeling much better today, thanks), it's my nature to end the year with a
review, and start the new one with a fresh list of goals. This review
certainly shouldn't make anyone feel "less than", due to the sheer
number of things I didn't hit the mark on last year.
We'll talk about goal/achievement comparison and why it's unhealthy tomorrow, K?
So...here's
my list of resolutions from last year. I'll just go down the list and
strike through those that were completed, and give a quick commentary on
the ones that weren't. Ready? Here we go:
Writing- Serialize only published or waiting-to-be-published workTotal fail. Tried it, missed it, went back to it. We'll revisit this tomorrow.
- Minimum of 1k words per day, 5 days per weekI have no idea - I don't keep track of word count, only scenes finished. So fail, and unnecessary.
- Writing time 11pm - 12am Mon/Tues/Thurs/Fri, & while the dog food "incubates" on WedsYeah...no.
This past year I decided to write in shorter snippets on my breaks at
work, and then a longer session right after work, which is better
because that's my optimal "awake/alert" time.
- Publish at least one story every monthAnother
fail...because I still haven't mastered the art of tailoring my stories
to specific lengths, and I also have focus issues. Another one to be
revisited, though perhaps not in this exact form.
- Write one short story/novelette per month along with other drafts.See
above - I have plotting issues (namely, I'm a pantser, though I know I
can still learn better structuring techniques to make stories fit).
Business- Get accounting in order and maintain monthly bookkeeping scheduleI did this for about 6 months, and then bombed again. *sigh* Guess what's going back on the list?
- No Anthologies- Cut blogging back for all blogs (schedule out serials/excerpts so content is largely automated)- Once monthly BSB newsletter, newsletters for author names on new releases only.- Light promo, review copies, site updates, formatting & cover art evenings while watching TV.
Personal- Make time on the weekends for hobbies- Keep up with housework weekly- Continue morning yoga workouts- Workout at least 3x nightly per week - focus on strength & toningFail on this...but still managed to lose weight and stay healthy, so not as big a deal as it could be.
- Reorganize morning routine for better efficiency- Archive tea & nail blogs
So,
out of 16 resolutions for last year, I completed 9...which is actually
better than I thought I did. Go me! Normally my goal lists (daily,
weekly or yearly) end up about half or less complete, so that's not bad.
You'll
note that many of the resolutions I missed the mark on were writing
goals...and a lot of that is because I'm just not experienced enough as a
writer to tailor stories for specific lengths yet. And honestly, in
this day and age there's no real reason I have to be, since a story can
be whatever length it needs to be and doesn't have to conform to any
specific word count (though longer stories do sell better, and I think
it would be good, creatively speaking to have that kind of control over
the craft).
I
also side-tracked myself in a couple different ways last year - one was
taking on an impromptu project that ended up being far more
time-intensive than I thought it would, and the other was going back to
the serial drafts, rather than forcing myself to learn a new, possibly
more efficient way of writing (or learning how to split the difference,
anyways).
And of course there's
that whole bookkeeping fiasco I just can't seem to get a handle on. But I
need to, and I will. Somehow, someway. It simply has to happen.
Overall
though, it was a good, productive year - I published 12 new titles of
varying lengths under my three names, and released several audiobooks as
well (with two more in production). I also picked up my crochet hobby
again, learned how to knit, and rediscovered the joy of getting away
from the screen in the evenings/on weekends and doing something with my
hands. Yes, sales were down this year, and that might have been because I
was less visible online, but it could have been a zillion other things
as well. No way to know, and no sense worrying about it now.
Tomorrow,
the 2014 list, a discussion on comparisons, and some links that I think
you'll find interesting and/or helpful as you go about setting up your
own goals for the new year.
In the meantime, feel free to share how your 2013 went...I'd love to hear about it!
Enjoy
this post? Support your author:
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