Whether you love New Year’s resolutions or love to hate them, the start of a fresh calendar is a good time to take stock in the past year and think about where you want to go in the next. I’ve become a convert to the benefits of writing resolutions. Setting writing goals for the year helps me focus and keep good habits.
The key to a good resolution is specificity. We all know that vague goals become meaningless. Without measurable goals, the intention to “write more” often evaporates by the second week of January. Create a list. Tack it above your computer, set a daily reminder on your phone, or add it to your Bullet Journal. The list itself can become an accountability partner of sorts.
Where do you want your writing to be at the end of 2018? Some 2018 writing goals to consider:
- A certain word count per day
- Writing for a specified amount of time each day
- Completing a number of stories, essays or chapters
- Submitting your work to a number of publications each month
- Take a writing workshop or class
- Join a writing group and attend each meeting
- Hire a professional editor
- Write a killer query letter to secure a literary agent.
The point isn’t to create guilt or anxiety. Instead, it’s an opportunity to stay on track and see how each day leads you a little closer to achieving your goals.
If you need a kickstart on your writing goals, join my 31 Days of Writing Inspiration. It’s a gentle, friendly reminder of your commitment to your writing practice right in your inbox every day throughout January. I designed it to deliver meaningful bite-size boosts to help you stay on track. Sign up here. It’s FREE.
What are your writing goals for 2018?
Yes great advice! I’m trying to get my writing group (the in person one, but really the online one, too) to realize that everybody has a different method and that’s okay. And different goals. The unifying key, I think, is to SHOW UP. 🙂