DEVELOPING WRITER GOALS

So, it's July 1. The year 2013 is half way over. Today would be a good day to pull out that list of personal writing goals for the year and see what you have actually accomplished. What? No list of goals. No plan for success. Don't despair! Think of today as the first day of a new year.

 

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GOAL 1: Continue to develop my platform. I established an about.me presence. Karna Tecla @ about.me I opened a Facebook page. Karna Tecla author  Check these out.

GOAL 2: Revise - majorly revise the novel I am working on. I finished what I thought was a first draft of a novel and pitched it to two editors at a writer's conference, but during several workshops I realized that what I thought was a good edition still needs major work.

GOAL 3: Draft the outline and characters for a novel to write during National Novel Writing Month. Then, write the bare bones of the story. I like NaNoWriMo. It forces me to focus on one project for the month.

GOAL 4: Keep a detailed journal of family life. My mother was diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer June 13. We have been writing down family stories and family history, but it now so much more important to get down.

GOAL 5: Write every day. Whether it is for a current project or for something else. I need to put butt in chair and words on the page.

GOAL 6: READ. Good writers read. I need to get back to my nightly reading.

What is it you would like to accomplish in the next six months?

ANOTHER SUNDAY

Sunday! For some it is the end of the week; for others it is the beginning of the week. Which are you?

Although most calendars show Sunday as the beginning of the week, I find Sunday falls at the end of the week. Let's look at some of the reasons.

First, Sunday is considered a "day of rest." I get to sleep late, and generally, I use the time to recuperate from the hectic week. I can sip my coffee with pleasure and not gulp it down before I have to leave for work or errands. I also make time to play my computer games, read for pleasure, and what ever else I want to do.

Sunday is also the end of my week because I take time for planning: planning meals for the next week, planning activities for the next week, and planning my goals for the next week. How, then, could Sunday be anything but the end of my week.

I generally wash clothes for the next week, grocery shop for the next week, and clean to start the week with a good feeling. If I have eaten healthy all week, I tend to give myself a treat on Sunday (or at least I try to eat healthy all week).

When the alarm goes off on Monday morning, it is a new start - a new beginning - a time to begin. A time to attempt to exercise before I take a shower and get ready for work, and to plan to eat right.