I think all people are a work in progress, and writers—as far as I am aware—are people too.
As an author my career and craft have been an organic things. I started writing as a teenager, and while I did have some training, did some courses, I still am largely self taught. I stumbled, I took some bruises, but at this point in my life I am pretty confident that I can write a variety of fiction, finish projects, and produce something some people will enjoy reading. Even pay for it.
However, what I have never been very good at is being organized. It is something I wish they taught at school actually! But like my writing craft, these organizational skills have been discovered along the way, and I have moved organically towards getting better at it. Not perfect, just better.
This year, I have set myself some goals that cover producing more, and doing it more efficiently. Tee Morris wrote a great blogpost about the new year being a time to form your commitments for 2016, but not resolutions. For writers words are important, and something about the word ‘resolution’ has always seemed fragile to me.
Resolutions are things we tell ourselves we want to do, while commitments seem more concrete. We make plans on how to achieve those commitments. So here are mine for 2016 and the tools I plan on using.
Produce More Words
While I do have writing as my full-time job, I have been feeling lately that I am just not making enough of the time. I can write about 1,000 words in half an hour, which is pretty damn good actually. However, because of that speed I somehow have been lax in pushing forward on a daily basis.
So instead of getting angry with myself, I am going to make a commitment to get 3,000 words per day out. That’s probably a mere two hours work, and that still leaves me plenty of time to manage audio production, the social media platforms, and self publishing.
Tools: Write or Die is a brilliant app for me. I know it isn’t for every writer, but having that relentless timer going gives me the push I need. I do it in 1,000 word sprints, and then later go back correct spelling errors made since I am going so fast, and flesh out the scene a little more.
Manage My Time Better
I have been using whiteboards, and to-do lists for this, and I have been getting better at it. However I think this year is the year to step it up. People who work in offices have schedules, and a boss to tell them off when they aren’t producing. I am going to let my schedule be the boss of me this year and see how it goes.
Tools: Continuing to use the whiteboard—because there is nothing more exciting than rubbing things off it. In addition this year I am going to give Habitica a go. It’s a program that rewards you for tasks completed, and it’s almost like an roleplaying game. I love that idea. I’ve given it a go before, and let it lapse. I think the whiteboard experience has primed me to use it better this time around.
Publish at Least Three Books in 2016
Words need to be out there, and this year I’m going to release some backlog stories. The Ghost Rebellion will be out May/June. Verity Fitzroy and the Case of the Silver Pharaoh will be out in August. This is the Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences spin-off series, with a young, feisty, tinkerer girl, trying to find the mystery of her parents’ murder. It’s a bit Young Indiana Jones, and a bit the Secret Seven. Then I am planning on releasing another book for Christmas. I have a couple to choose from, but haven’t settled on which one I will pick yet.
Tools: I have plenty of great tools for self-publishing, and plenty of friends who are editors and cover designers to assist.
So there you have it; my commitments to you, dear reader. I’m looking forward to this year, and getting things done. Along with all these things planned, Tee and I are also attending a good amount of conventions, and events. Hopefully we’ll catch you at one, and you can ask me how I am going on these!