I don’t like resolutions. Once something becomes an obligation I tend to lose interest and use every excuse I can to get out of it. I don’t think they’re inherently bad, I’m just bad at them. The only thing I managed to maintain for 2014 was not ironing (for a whole year, that kind of commitment deserves a glass of wine). However, the fact that I am now what is technically know as an ‘adult’ (and have been one for quite some time) has finally hit me. So I’ve decided to set some goals. If I achieve them or get closer to them in 2015 that’s awesome, but I’m not going to beat myself up if not.
To be clear, this isn’t a bucket list. I don’t like bucket lists because it turns life into a to do list as we count down the seconds until we die. It lends a whole aura of desperation and efficiency that seems to get in the way of actually living (at least in my experience), and then there’s huge pressure on these items to live up to your expectations and the meaning you’ve imbued them with as they are THE things to do before you die. This also isn’t one of those mid-life crisis things where I plan to have an emotional break down at thirty. But I am now 25 and I have never had stable income for more than a few months at a time. I’ve jumped from job to job, constantly having to retrain and learn new skills (while still always being on the bottom rung), meaning my writing time has been severely constrained. Below are my plans to rectify that
- Do something that relates to writing every single day. Even if it’s just updating this blog or submitting stories rather than actually writing new stuff, at least my head’s still in the game and it’s habit-forming.
- revamp my query letter and query process and go into this year all guns blazing trying to get an agent and get some more of my short stories published.
- FINISH The Waiting Place. Finish all edits that remain, structural edits, line edits and everything. By the time 2016 hits I will be finished with it (I realise this one is more like a resolution but writing deadlines will help me put this one to bed)
- Plan and research DreamCatcher and, if possible, write the sequel for Nano in November.
- Begin my teaching qualification and keep working in the school. From here on in, teaching will be my day job.
- work smarter (i.e. stop procrastinating and dicking about on the internet or cleaning things that don’t need to be cleaned)
- Really focus on the writing as my main goal in life
- Other miscellaneous things like stop worrying about money, travel etc.
Anyway, we’ll see if this method helps, so far I’ve done writing stuff about every second day but I’ve managed to see some of the flaws in the way I’ve been approaching this so far. Hopefully I can approach 2015 with more clarity and focus, but if not? Well, it’s not the end of the world. All I can do is my best.