So every year I make a list of goals (things that I can actually accomplish. It's more of a year long To Do list as opposed to resolutions)
And at the beginning of the next year I get to look back and see if I accomplished them.
So here we go!
2014 Goals:
1. Write a new novel. We have to work on something new for the MFA, but actually finishing the whole thing is what I'm going to aim for. I'd really love to finish it before my second semester, but we'll see how things are going and how crazy my life is.
Result: Accomplished! I finished my WIP (tentatively titled Monsters Within) in early November
2. Write at least two short stories. I've been sitting on two that I want to write and I originally planned on doing them while I was querying ATR, but it turned out I didn't query it very long so I didn't have the time. So now I want to make the time to get these buggers written and hopefully submitted somewhere
Result: Failed. I'm still sitting on these stories and really looking forward to when i'll have some time to get them down.
3. Read 105 books. I somehow managed to read 103 last year. Was it a fluke? No frickin' clue. So I guess we'll find out in 2014 if I can do it again. Aim high or go home, I guess.
Result: Accomplished! I actually read 142 books, though a fair amount of them were picture books and graphic novels
4. Look into teaching a class. For awhile now I've thought about teaching a query letter workshop at The Loft, our local writing center. But I've never been a teacher and I have no idea how to put together a lesson plan or anything like that. I'd like to spend some time figuring out the logistics, so I can maybe put in an application this year or the next to teach some query skills in the future. Just trying to pay it forward and all that junk.
Result: Semi Accomplished. I guess I don't know specifically what this one meant. Was just looking into it enough? Because I did that. Or was I supposed to actually teach one? Because I didn't do that.
5. Redo our basement bathroom. Not a writing goal, obviously, but our basement bathroom needs a complete overhaul due to water damage. It's a very small bathroom, but we've never done drywall before so there'd be a bit of a learning curve. Of course, as always, our motto is "I could do a lot of things if I had money." *nods head seriously*
Result: Accomplished! It took longer than we hoped, just because there was a leak we couldn't fix on our own, so there was a delay while the plumber came out, but after that it went pretty quickly. And besides some wonky mudding in a corner, it looks pretty awesome, if I do say so myself.
So that's it! How did your 2014 goals go?
And at the beginning of the next year I get to look back and see if I accomplished them.
So here we go!
2014 Goals:
1. Write a new novel. We have to work on something new for the MFA, but actually finishing the whole thing is what I'm going to aim for. I'd really love to finish it before my second semester, but we'll see how things are going and how crazy my life is.
Result: Accomplished! I finished my WIP (tentatively titled Monsters Within) in early November
2. Write at least two short stories. I've been sitting on two that I want to write and I originally planned on doing them while I was querying ATR, but it turned out I didn't query it very long so I didn't have the time. So now I want to make the time to get these buggers written and hopefully submitted somewhere
Result: Failed. I'm still sitting on these stories and really looking forward to when i'll have some time to get them down.
3. Read 105 books. I somehow managed to read 103 last year. Was it a fluke? No frickin' clue. So I guess we'll find out in 2014 if I can do it again. Aim high or go home, I guess.
Result: Accomplished! I actually read 142 books, though a fair amount of them were picture books and graphic novels
4. Look into teaching a class. For awhile now I've thought about teaching a query letter workshop at The Loft, our local writing center. But I've never been a teacher and I have no idea how to put together a lesson plan or anything like that. I'd like to spend some time figuring out the logistics, so I can maybe put in an application this year or the next to teach some query skills in the future. Just trying to pay it forward and all that junk.
Result: Semi Accomplished. I guess I don't know specifically what this one meant. Was just looking into it enough? Because I did that. Or was I supposed to actually teach one? Because I didn't do that.
5. Redo our basement bathroom. Not a writing goal, obviously, but our basement bathroom needs a complete overhaul due to water damage. It's a very small bathroom, but we've never done drywall before so there'd be a bit of a learning curve. Of course, as always, our motto is "I could do a lot of things if I had money." *nods head seriously*
Result: Accomplished! It took longer than we hoped, just because there was a leak we couldn't fix on our own, so there was a delay while the plumber came out, but after that it went pretty quickly. And besides some wonky mudding in a corner, it looks pretty awesome, if I do say so myself.
So that's it! How did your 2014 goals go?
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