by Kathleen Ernst
Do you make resolutions each January?
For many years I belonged to a critique group. We organized an annual weekend
retreat so we could focus on whole novels instead of the twenty pages we each
brought to our monthly meetings.
And for quite some time, one retreat ritual was the declaration of our
writing goals for the coming year.
We had to name goals that we
had the power to achieve. “Hitting
a best-seller list” wouldn’t work, but “Finishing my novel” would. It seemed like a fine plan.
Only trouble was, many of us found our projects shifting
as the year went by, and we often didn’t meet our specific goals. After a while, we let the tradition
lapse.
Since then I’ve been wary of setting making
resolutions about writing. My
basic plan remains simple: work
hard, hit deadlines, and try to make each book the best it can be.
Still, there’s something about a new year that calls
me to introspection. So, here
goes:
In 2013, I will endeavor to improve my work by
analyzing books I love, reading and writing poetry, and taking pleasure in the whole
complicated, messy, unpredictable process.
In 2013, I will also endeavor to find a healthy
balance between writing and family time, friends time, and other important
parts of life.
How about you?
Whatever your goals, stated or not, I wish everyone a wonderful 2013!
3 comments:
I'm striving for that healthy balance goal, too, Kathleen. It's so easy to get sucked into sitting in front of the computer for hours in the morning and skipping my exercise session. So, I'm going to try to be better at exercising more regularly.
This!: "taking pleasure in the whole complicated, messy, unpredictable process."
We'll see how well we do, ladies!
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