Hindsight 20/20 and Dreaming Forward
The moment has come, dear Reader, to look back on the year that has past, and to look forward to what is yet to come.
This is the moment for dreams.
But first, a brief glance back at what came before. Shall we look back to that post I wrote last year, when I was still young, naive, and optimistically hopeful for all that would come in this new decade? (laughs cynically)
The “eternal optimist” in me suffered horribly this year.
Many of my fellow writing friends enthused throughout the year about how much extra time they suddenly found themselves in the possession of, and how it had helped their creativity.
Friends, I did not receive this fabled “extra time.” Rather, I felt as though I somehow ended up with far less of it than normal. And in many ways, I still feel as though I have less time now than I did last February. But I think I’m finally learning how to live with it and make the most of what time I do have.
I hate to say it, but I do feel that I am still suffering from lingering cynicism (if not outright pessimism) about the future. I also struggle against severe bouts of feeling overwhelmed by all the things and a great desire to just curl up in bed and shut out the world (which I gave in to far too frequently last year, hence the “read 86 books” accomplishment).
However, this past year also brought me closer to the Lord in many ways, and I spent a lot more time in my Bible and on my knees, so He’s still working on me. I asked the Lord again and again if He wanted me to just throw in the towel and forget this whole Author Thing, but I continue to feel Him prompting me to use my gifts and create WITH Him. It may not always be the project I choose or expect, but I feel as though I am still being called to write and share what I write. And so, I continue this journey expectantly.
2020: How’d I Do?
Editing Orb and the Airship
Well, this definitely got started. However, due to rather a lot of ennui, depression, and other various difficulties and unexpected setbacks, I didn’t get nearly as much of this done as I had hoped. I also had a sudden and frustrating setback about two weeks ago when I splashed some water on my computer and fried the logic board. Thankfully, my computer auto-backs up to my Google Drive account.
Sadly, for reasons unknown and uncaught by us, my computer had STOPPED backing up to my Google Drive account on August 31. Which means that of the 65,000 words I had rewritten last year, I lost nearly half of them.
Editing and Publishing Summer Princess
This did happen, actually. I edited and released this new novel — titled An Echo of the Fae — on June 21st!
Writing more flash fiction
Nope. This did not happen.
Mastering a 5.10 at the rock wall
This also did not happen. Can we blame COVID for this one? (I’d love to blame COVID for everything I didn’t get done, because it definitely played a role in my mood/motivation/lack-of-creativity…. but this one I feel I can lay the blame directly at its doorstep). The rock wall shut down shortly after my New Year’s post last year. I did manage a 5.9 (an easy 5.9, but still a 5.9) before they closed. I miss rock climbing and hope they open up again… someday.
Read 30 books
This is one place where I went above and beyond. I finished the year with 86 books, and I posted about my absolute favorites a few weeks ago, you can read about them here.
Be present with my family, even if it means author goals don’t get accomplished.
I forgot I’d written that until looking back on it just now. Well, this one I can say I definitely managed. It may have been forced upon me a bit more than I expected or wanted, but we definitely spent more time together as a family this past year!
In addition to these dreams I had (and accomplished to varying degrees), I also embarked on a new adventure of getting The Minstrel’s Song series transformed into audiobooks! This was not a part of my 2020 goals post, but definitely a massive accomplishment. Second Son has also been recorded, edited, and approved, and should be releasing soon!
2021: Dreams
We don’t call them “resolutions.” Nor do we even call them “goals.” They are dreams. Ethereal wisps that may never come to be, but we dream them anyway. For what are we creatives but dreamers, battling the darkness with what light we can summon?
Editing
Let’s try this again, shall we? I would love to get Orb and the Airship re-written and off to my editors. This year, I’m not going to fool myself into thinking I could somehow get all five books edited in a year, but if I can finish Orb and the Airship, I think I’ll feel like I have accomplished something huge — especially after the setback of losing half of what I did last year!
Super Secret Project
I wrote a super secret project (AND finished it!) in the early part of January, and I would love to get some things done for that, but I can’t say what without giving too much away.
The Prince in the Willow
I am contemplating polishing off my Cinderella retelling and getting it published. I have to talk to my illustrator about it, though, because this is a shorter, more “novella” sized project, so I think having illustrations would be cool, and some of them are already done. We shall see. This is more of an “out there” sort of dream, but it’s on my radar enough to mention.
Flash Fiction
I really would like to write more flash fiction for Havok. And maybe even here on the blog. I enjoy having small projects that I can finish in a day, they help keep me motivated and give me a creative break, which is nice when most of my author-business is wrapped up in editing lately.
Audio Books
This is a pressing, WILL get done in the first quarter of the year, but I need to listen to Yorien’s Hand and Minstrel’s Call and get my editing requests in to my narrator so that I can hit “Approve for sale” over at ACX. I am so excited about this entire series being available in audio form SOON!
Reading
I’ve set myself a 50-book reading goal this year. I think I should be able to hit that fairly easily, and I’m already a few books ahead, so that’s always encouraging
Blogging
I definitely plan to do more blogging this year. I’m already looking forward to this year’s Silmaril Awards in September. And though February is Fantasy Month is going to look a little different (because Fantasy Month is a little overwhelming even in a good year when I’m super excited about it). I’ll have more details about that coming out next week and how you can participate. It’s going to be a little more laid-back than usual, with a theme I think you’ll enjoy. More to come soon!
I also want to write more book reviews this year. I kind of meant to last year, but… yeah… didn’t happen so much. I read a lot of great books, and generally am good at picking things I end up enjoying rather a lot, so I feel like I should share more about them.
Life Stuff + being intentional
I definitely intend to carry this goal of last year into 2021… but maybe actually try to REMEMBER it this year and do it on PURPOSE. grin
I want to continue to spend time with my family and do fun things with them. This winter I want to spend time sledding and ice skating and baking with them. I want to really invest in our school-time. When it gets warmer I want to take my kids camping and spend time at the lake. I want to read them books and study the Bible with them and point them to Jesus and help them grow in their own faith.
And finally, I want to be intentional about my time. This was a goal from last year that I feel I really fell short on. In 2020, I often let time get away from me and sort of let a lot of things slide or fall by the wayside. I want to start picking some things back up, but there are other things I might just leave where they’ve fallen because they aren’t worth picking back up.
And that’s what I’ve got in terms of looking back and looking forward.
How did you do on your 2020 goals? What dreams do you have on the horizon for 2021? What are some of the things you’d love to accomplish or experience in the coming year? Was 2020 good to you, or was it rough? What did you learn from 2020?
Don’t Forget!
The read-up is tomorrow night! For more information on how to register and attend or just watch, visit my previous post HERE.