As one year closes and another opens, I like to take time to reflect on the past and think about the future. That is especially true this year since it marks the end of a decade and the beginning of a new one as well. So many things have happened in my life over the last ten years. Just thinking about writing, I’ve had two novellas, six short stories, and six poems accepted for publication. I am excited to see what the 2020s will bring.
As I look back on 2019, I took several steps forward in pursuing my writing goals. In the spring, I launched this blog and have worked hard to grow my online platform ever since. I also wrote a few short stories in 2019 and submitted them, along with some of my older ones, for publication. Over the course of the year, I worked quite a bit on my YA (young adult) fantasy novel and agreed to help write a homeschool curriculum.
For 2020, I’ve set some pretty lofty writing goals, but if I work toward them consistently, I believe they are achievable. First, I would like to finish writing my YA fantasy novel, edit it, and begin submitting it to literary agents. Currently, the first draft contains about 50,000 words, and by the time I’m finished, I believe it will have between 60,000 and 65,000 words. I have the rest of the plot planned out, so hopefully, writing it will go smoothly.
This year, I also plan to revise my unpublished YA Christian novel and submit it to agents or small presses. Additionally, I have to complete my portion of the homeschool curriculum by June, and I hope to promote my blog more on social media and attract more followers. In the midst of all that, I will continue submitting my short stories and poems to literary magazines and possibly write a couple more if the mood strikes me or if I see a call for themed submissions that I can’t pass up.
Achieving these goals will undoubtedly take a lot of work, but I am feeling up for the challenge. Hopefully, I will still feel that way in the months to come. I’d like to wish you all luck with reaching any goals you made for the new year or the new decade. To brighten the beginning of your year, here are some pictures of what my cats were doing while I wrote this post.
Did you set any writing goals or make any type of resolutions for 2020? Let me know in the comments. If you enjoyed this post, please subscribe to see more like it. Happy New Year!
