Looking Back, Looking Foward

I can’t believe it’s 2015. I know we’re several days in already but I still look at the calendar with some awe that it’s another new year.

I had a lot of lessons learned in 2014 as far as my writing life went. As the year wore on and my patience grew thinner and thinner for the career, I realized I needed to make some changes if I was going to continue to call myself a writer. My volunteering for the local RWA chapter was coming to an end. I decided to leave the Plotting Princesses for a while. And I allowed myself to go on hiatus for a couple of months. I read a lot of craft books toward the end of the year and didn’t write.

There was something very liberating about letting go of those commitments and the stress I put on myself to continually write. For the first time in a very long time, I felt so…free.

Another thing I did was sign up for Holly Lisle’s Ugly Baby workshop. Don’t know what that is? Click here. Reading the first month’s goals gave me a lot of food for thought. And so I decided it was time to get back the rights to some books that had expired contracts. I will be doing something with them in 2015!

I also decided to write some short fiction. By short I mean under 10,000 words. I have completed a short story – my first in I don’t know how long. There was something very liberating about writing that short fiction and knowing that it will, eventually but a tie-in to a novel I’m working on.

I guess it’s obvious I got back to writing. 🙂 After doing none for nearly eight weeks, I started back in December. I got the itch to write a new epic fantasy story about a shape-shifting dragon, a lost prince, a false king and a dragon hunter. I hope to have the first draft completed in the coming months.

My wish for 2015 is to be more serious about the writing and treat it for what it is—a business. I’ve set up a new post office box. I’m not going to allow myself to be distracted by the need/want/urge to volunteer to do things I really have no business doing. Because what it boils down to is this: only I can make it happen. No one is going to do it for me. There are no shortcuts. And as much as I would love to be one of those lucky authors who makes thousands in one month, I just don’t see that happening for me.

I know what my reality is and that means I gotta get my butt in the chair and get the words on the page. I’m going to give myself a break and not stress out when I don’t accomplish as much as I want. I’m going to allow myself to just WRITE and sometimes write shit. I’m going to allow myself to make mistakes, to try new things, to see what works and what doesn’t. I’m going to allow myself the time to see if I CAN make this writing thing work as a full-time gig. It may take me two years or ten. But you know what? It’s okay. I’m okay with that. And it took me a long freaking time to get to that point.

So here’s to 2015! A wildly productive 2015. A new year dedicated to doing what I love—writing once again the stories *I* want to write. Reclaiming the joy for the written word and the storytelling. I’m very excited about all the possibilities.

Bring it on, 2015. Bring it on.