Goals for the New Year

BY JUSTINA BLAKENEY 

I have a love-hate relationship with the New Year. I love that it’s the equivalent of one big Mr. Clean Magic Eraser—Oh, ate like crap, didn’t finish the side projects you intended, and spend too much time doing absolutely nothing? Swipe, swipe. All clear!—but hate that almost always possibility gives way to failure.

Have you ever met someone who actually met a New Year’s resolution? Like, “Oh this new body? Yeah, I resolved to become a supermodel this year and ate only celery sticks and air between January 1 and today.” No, it’s more like, “Oh this old thing? Powered by two liters of Coke, Monday’s chicken wings, and regret.” Of course, maybe it’s that feeling of the inevitable that always makes me fail.

Or maybe it’s my goal-setting. I hadn’t really thought about this until I read Katy Upperman’s post about her 2014 goals. She talks about the right kind of goals to set, and while she says it much more eloquently the bottom line was this: Set goals you can control. So “get published” is a terrible goal while “revise my WIP” and “query agents” are not. It was like a light bulb burst in my head. Or maybe that was the start of a migraine, but still.

With that in mind, I’m setting the following (hopefully) realistic goals:

1. Revise my Mystery WIP. I wrote this story over the summer, revised during the fall, and sent it out to readers in the winter. My goal is to have this fully revised and polished in the first quarter of 2014, which makes me sound a bit like a corporate employee.

2. Query agents with the Mystery WIP. I stopped querying my other novel because as soon as I started writing this one I decided this was so much stronger. I’m still not sure whether that was a brilliant decision or a colossal mistake, but I do know that even the unpolished version of Mystery WIP is better than my last book, so that has to count for something.

3. Outline another book I’ve been brainstorming. I christen it Dream WIP. And I fully admit I might be an outliner now. Maybe. Possibly.

4. Write Dream WIP. I’ve had this idea and these characters in my mind for years, but could never make the plot comply. Hint No. 1 that you’re doing it wrong: You’re trying to make the plot “comply.” So I ditched the plot I’d been tossing around in my mind and thought up something new, something I love. And I plan to write it while I’m querying Mystery WIP.

5. Finish book series I love. I am a terrible, terrible finisher. In fact, I think I’m so bad at this it deserves its own blog post. How’s that for finishing my thought?

6. Set one day a week to respond to emails. I am also a terrible, terrible email responder. I know this and yet I remain impossibly slow. It’s about time I remedy that.

I’ve seen a lot of people talking about their word of the year—the word they plan to live by in 2014. My type A personality wants to set my word as perfection but that’s dumb and impossible, so I’m overriding my instincts and setting my word of the year as…

PERSISTENCE

I need it as an aspiring author. As someone with a rare and painful disease. As a wife of a guy who’s been bitten by the home-decorating bug and wants all of our furniture to have sports team logos and our blankets the faces of Star Wars characters.

What are your 2014 goals?

The Only Writing Advice You Need Right Now

On the first Monday of the Blog Me Maybe blogfest I had these grand ideas of giving you some really good writing advice. (Because that’s what the schedule calls for and I’m a nerdy rule-follower.)

But then I had the most productive writing weekend ever, and I spent so much time working on my WIP that I didn’t have time to write some brilliant musings on the craft. And I’m 67 percent sure the musings, had I spent time on them, would have been brilliant.

So in light of my super productive weekend, I give you some thoughts on how to write well:

1. Close Twitter. No, don’t minimize it—Click. It. Shut.
2. Ban yourself from Facebook. (Trust me, all you’re missing is updates like, Rain again! Boooo. :( and Ur so selfish. U know who u r! Grr.)
3. Stay away from the Internet. If you need to research something, make a note then go back when going online isn’t punishable by 50 push-ups.
4. Tell everyone you know that you have to work over the weekend. If they give you a hard time for working on your “hobby,” pretend you’re catching up on the day job.
5. Hide your cell under a few blankets and pretend you don’t hear it when it rings.
6. Don’t answer the doorbell.
7. Let your e-mails pile up. If that stresses you out, seek immediate medical attention.
8. Write.

And that’s it.

Oh, and if you’re feeling cheated because I didn’t really give you advice on how to write, check out this post on your best writing advice or this post on your outlining tips. See? I’m the kind of evil genius who uses your intelligence to make me look more intelligent. It’s amazing.

On that note, leave a writing tip in the comments for your fellow writers.

RTW: Beating Writer's Block

Road Trip Wednesday is a blog carnival, where YA Highway’s contributors and readers post a weekly writing- or reading-related question and answer it on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s take on the topic.

This week’s prompt was: How do you beat writer’s block?

Writer’s block and I have a long history, most of which has been spent on the first paragraph of any story. I think I’ve mentioned it before, but I’m one of the unlucky suckers who can’t move on until the first line, first paragraph, and first chapter work.

So I’m used to the block, and now I just have a minor problem when the words won’t come to me. Which means I end up first like this:

And then like this:

True story.

When it hits, I usually read. It seems the best way to take my mind off of the fact that my story’s going nowhere fast. Plus, reading always puts me in the mood to write.

Or I’ll vent to my husband. Usually that ends up in brainstorming, which usually helps me get over the hump. Usually.

Sometimes I’ll even take phone calls, which is crazy for me, not just because I don’t answer my phone while writing but also because I hate talking on the phone. Like, only a little bit less than I hate mayo.

What do you do to beat writer’s block?

The Life of the Writer

INT.  TRACEY’S APARTMENT - NOV. 2010 - NIGHT

Tracey flops down on the couch next to The Man.

TRACEY

I’m going to write a book.

THE MAN

I’ll read it when you’re done.

TRACEY

Sounds great!

INT.  TRACEY’S KITCHEN – DEC. 2010 – NIGHT

Tracey dances a jig in the kitchen. It resembles flailing more than dancing. The Man looks on, confused.

TRACEY

I finished the first draft!

THE MAN

So when can you publish it?

Tracey stops dancing. She takes a swig of water, then sits on the floor.

TRACEY

I don’t know, forever? You don’t just finish a novel and send it off.

THE MAN

Why not?

INT. TRACEY’S LIVING ROOM – MARCH. 2011 – EVENING

Tracey’s on the couch. She’s talking on her cell phone.

TRACEY’S MOM

So, when is your book going to be ready?

TRACEY

I’m still revising it. It’ll be a while, Mom

TRACEY’S MOM

Well hurry up!

INT. TRACEY’S LIVING ROOM – MAY 2011 – DAY

The Man comes home from work, kicking his shoes off so they fall in the middle of the hallway. The Man approaches Tracey, who is typing at her computer.

TRACEY

How was your day?

THE MAN

Good. Tiring. Yours?

TRACEY

I got a ton of writing done tonight.

THE MAN

For your book? So is it ready to publish?

Tracey rolls her eyes and returns to the screen in front of her.

INT. TRACEY’S BEDROOM – JUNE 2011 – DAY

Tracey lies on the bed. She’s talking to her mother.

TRACEY’S MOM

So your sister told me you sent her the story again.

TRACEY

Yeah, I made a ton of revisions.

TRACEY’S MOM

After that you’re done?

TRACEY

Not even close. These are just my first revisions.

TRACEY’S MOM

Oh come on, I’m dying to read it. Hurry up.

TRACEY

I’ll do my best.

Tracey sighs.

Apologies

Dear anyone I offend while staring off into space,

It’s not you. You don’t have mustard on your shirt. Your skirt’s not tucked into your tights. You don’t have a booger hanging out of your nose ... at least not that I can see from here.

I’m looking in your direction but I’m not looking at you. (Well, yeah, I am. But not in the sense that I see you. Or that I’d recognize if you started motioning to me.)

See, here in my brain, I’m making characters talk and act out scenes. There’s a world I’m creating. When writers do that from scratch it takes so much brainpower that other bodily functions, like the ability to move the eyes or head, cease functioning.

It works great for us writers. Not so great for you.

Accept my most sincere apologies.

Tracey