Transitions: 2011 to 2012
Last time, our How I Write series, we talked about which books we’d include in a time capsule for 2011. This time, we’re looking at the other side of the calendar and all the introspection and planning that comes with the beginning of a new year. The questions posed were “What did you accomplish in 2011? What one thing about last year would you change? And What are your goals for 2012?” This isn’t a new topic for my accountability group, we start assessing the current year and how we want to change and revise and plan for the coming year with SMART goals back in November.
2011 Accomplishments
I joined RWA at the national and local levels and also joined the regency era specialty chapter, the Beau Monde. I also finished BHT and submitted it to a literary agent. I haven’t heard back but it was enough to get my PRO status for RWA.
We bought a new house at the beginning of the year and have made significant progress on settling in and making it ours.
I made an effort to listen to music on a regular basis and got in at least 60 hours each month. I also got a new digital camera for my birthday and have been playing with it with good results. I also made an effort to reconnect with two of my friends and had brunch with them once a month.
As a family, we managed to do something together for each major holiday/vacation, saw our daughter promote from 8th grade and enter high school and celebrated DH’s 40th birthday. There were trips to D.C./Philly/NYC, L.A. and Jacksonville for educational enrichment, fun and family.
this was about half of what I’d hoped to accomplish but when it’s all listed out it sounds like a lot, considering all the usual health and chaotic interruptions.
What Needs to Change?
Less drifting along and more focus. Like water, I’m prone to take the path of least resistance. My accountability group and several members in my local RWA Chapter are amazing at prodding me along and give me the courage to move forward. I don’t have any good excuses for not chasing what I want.
2012 Goals
So, my big, hairy, audacious goals for 2012… I have more goals than what I’m laying out here, but most of them would bore you to tears. You probably won’t care if we get our bookshelves organized, if I treat myself to a spa day every 3 months, or if I make my annual donation to Juvenile Diabetes Research. Balance is important, but I feel my writing has suffered from having my attention pulled elsewhere or just drifting because I didn’t have clear paths to follow. 2012 is a year to change that.
Without further dithering on, here’s what I’m willing to stand up here and say, THIS is what I WILL accomplish this year:
- Attend the Nations RWA Conference in Anaheim in July. This is a HUGE for me. I’m not good with crowds or new situations. Eep.
- Have 2 mss out to agents & contests by the end of the year. Gotta justify my PRO pin and you can’t get a yes by never asking!
- Migrate my online identity to my name instead of my blog name or a nickname. Again, this is very hard for me, but needs done if I want to be taken seriously.
- Stop lurking and participate with other writers and with local people who energize us. One of the ways I’ll be pushing myself to interact with other writers is doing interviews here on the blog. Expect the majority to be Regency Romance, but I have a couple Victorian writers in mind that I think you’ll love too.
- Participate in a 365 Photo Project for 2012. Look for weekly summaries soon!
You should feel to pester me about any and all of the above if you haven’t sensed any movement from my cave in a while! Seriously.
YOUR TURN: How are you challenging yourself this year?
If you’d like to see what my friends accomplished in 2011 and have planned for 2012, you can find their blogs here:
* Alexia Reed * Kimberly Farris *
* Danie Ford * Emma G. Delaney * Angeleque Ford *
Good luck with your goals! Don’t freak out too much about RWA Nationals. I’m about as introverted as they come and I’ve been to two and LOVED it. Writers are a lot easier to be comfortable around than other groups. YOu’ll be exhausted by the end and need “cave time”, but it really is a blast. I’m going again this year and can’t wait. 🙂
Thanks for the reassurance, Roni! I’m actually looking forward to meeting a bunch of people I only know online. Glad to know you’ll be there!
Beautiful house. Wonderful post. I hope we meet at RWA National.
Thanks, Angelyn! I’m definitely looking forward to meeting a lot of people from twitter and other places online who make it to this year’s conference.
I hate running so I’m challenging myself by training for a 5k this year.
Congrats on accomplishing so much in 2011. My pom poms are ready to cheer you on as you tackle your 2012 goals.
Thanks, Kimberly! I’d eat my sneakers first, but you were so committed to the sit ups and push ups this year, I know you’ll tackle that goal and many others! Make the kids do it with you!
I find RWA Nationals very stressful. Crowded. Expensive. Impersonal. Lots of hormones. And worst of all, banquet food. On the plus side: Lots of free books. A few interesting workshops and guest speakers. I always find the lobby lounge and bars to be the most interesting place to be. You can people watch and badge read.
All you need is a few good friends to get you through it! I say we stake out an area in the hotel early where we always know where we might run into sister RWA members!
I’m always up for some people watching and I’ve heard stories about the lounge and the bar. =) Most of the things you listed are exactly the kinds of things I’ll hate, but you had me at free books. Seriously though, I know I need to up my stakes and having to shell out for conference will push me to have something to show for it the rest of the year. At least we don’t have to fly this year!
You’re getting a great start at your 2012 goals! I wish I was going to Nats this year. It can be overwhelming but the key is taking breaks and don’t try to fit all of the workshops in.