Happy New Year, all! Hope everyone out there had a wonderful holiday season.
As has become my own little tradition, this post will be all about goals. I’ll be laying out what I hope to accomplish during the course of the year, as well as what I hope to do this month. It’s like double coupon day at the grocery store. Only instead of saving money on your groceries, you get to read an extra-long list of my goals.
Many of these goals will be no different from last year’s, as I pretty much failed to achieve each and every one of them. Oops. This year, however, I hope to do a bit better. Which shouldn’t be hard considering, again, that I pretty much failed to achieve each and every one of them.
In the interest of time and making this post as short as possible, I’ve decided to add a little bullet point at the end of each goal to detail what I’m planning to do on each particular goal during the month of January.
Are you ready? I know I can’t wait…
The 2020 Goals
—Publish Love & Other Lies
More affectionately known as the Terrible Romance Novel, this WIP has been creeping toward publication for a while now. With a little luck, 2020 just may be the year it sees the light of day. I still have to write a blurb for it, though, so it could really go either way.
- January’s goal: Write the first draft of a possible blurb
—Complete first draft of Full Circle
Otherwise known as Book Three of my fantasy series, I added a good 50,000 words to this manuscript during last November’s NaNoWriMo event. I still have a loooooooooong way to go. Like, just so long. The plot continues to give me trouble. I know where I would like it to start and end, but everything in between is just…not right. Yet, anyway. I’ll figure it out eventually. I hope.
- January’s goal: Complete Part One (note: it is, by far, the most complete of the novel’s three parts. If I can just work out this pesky timeline issue, this goal is totally doable. I hope.)
—Write the first draft of the Terrible Romance Sequel
Yep. There’s a sequel. My goddaughter (who loved the Terrible Romance Novel) would like to read another installment, so I decided to write one for her. Or try, at least. There isn’t very much of it yet, but the goal here will be to really begin the first draft during NaNoWriMo in November. So I have some time yet.
- January’s goal: Jot down any ideas I may come up with during the course of the day, but for now this project’s on the back burner. I mean, did you see the second goal?!?
—Read at least 52 books
I have seriously dropped the reading ball the last few years. I don’t know why, but I’m seriously lacking in focus. I’m sure it has absolutely nothing to do with the amount of time I spend playing that Harry Potter Wizards Unite game.
Anyway, I’m maintaining hope that one book a week isn’t too much of a stretch.
- January’s goal: Read four books
—Walk at least three miles per day
The one goal I actually managed to achieve last year! I’m hoping to keep that momentum going this year, as well as adding in some yoga and other aerobics to my fitness routine. You know, to keep things interesting and to prevent me from becoming part of my couch and/or desk chair.
- January’s goal: Log 93 miles and complete at least one 15-minute yoga workout each week
—Declutter and Downsize
This will come as a shocking surprise, I know, but I am a scary hoarder of office supplies…and a few other things. This year, however, I aim to eliminate some of the clutter. Starting with the closet in my office. That is a super scary place that my significant other is currently not allowed to even look in. So I should probably change that. If I can. Once I go into that closet, though, I may never find my way back out…
- January’s goal: Clean out and organize the office closet
And on that not-at-all ominous note, I’m outta here. I have a lot to do this month. And this year.
What was I thinking?
Did you set any goals for the year? Want to do some of mine for me?
Let us know if you will move to blogging here permanently!
Terrible Romance Novel might finally see the light of day and you’re working on a sequel? Cool – make it so.
I don’t know if I’ll actually make it so, but I certainly intend to try. 🙂
Best of luck with all your goals! I’ve always been intrigued by the Terrible Romance Novel, so that’s exciting how it could end up being published this year! And I can relate to dropping the ball on reading. It takes longer for me to get through a book anymore, which is depressing. One book a week is awe-inspiring to me!
As for my goals, they aren’t anywhere near as impressive as yours. I just hope to complete a commission, premiere a webcomic, and maybe start drawing a certain reboot. (Maaaaaaybe.)
Hope 2020 is treating you well so far!
The To-Do list for the Terrible Romance Novel is much, much shorter than last year, so I think it’s entirely possible that it’ll be ready this year. Of course, I am still me, so if there’s a way to delay (or ignore) it, I’m sure I’ll find it.
Hey, I like the site! 🙂
You can totally read 52 books this year. So many good ones out there! Aim for a mix of really short ones and a couple of tomes. 🙂
I’m decluttering and downsizing as well this year. It’s both scary and freeing.
Good luck with all of your goals!
Thank you—the site is a work-in-progress, and I’m doing it on my own (for now, anyway) so I hope that it will slowly improve.
My first planned read this year is a graphic novel with, like, fifty pages. And I still haven’t even opened it yet. I hope to improve upon that, too. 🙂
I’ll add this blog to my feed reader so if you do move, I won’t miss any posts.
Good luck with your goals. I made mine, but haven’t blogged them yet.
I considered not blogging about my goals this year, but I like how making them public keeps me honest. And it does help motivate me because I HATE having to write a post about failing to reach my goals. Maybe I need to set some easier goals?
It’s the first time I’ve added a new site to my blog reader in a while so of course it’s just the upgraded blog of one of my friends 🙂
I’d totally be willing to do some of your goals for you. It means I don’t have to work on mine.
Goal swap!! It could be a new craze to sweep the nation!
Oh, so you’re over here now. My Feedly has been updated so I can find you.
Good luck with your goals. You didn’t fail last year. You inched forward. That’s all any of can do, really.
I did inch forward. That is true, and I am happy for that progress. I just would really like to find a way to make some actual strides this year that can’t be measured with a 12-inch ruler. 🙂
Having set no goals for 2019, I managed to achieve them all.
Let’s see if I can do as well this year.
See, I need to start doing that. There’d be so much less pressure on myself that way.