An Abridged History of Resolutions and GIVEAWAY of DARK GODDESS ARC!
I love resolutions. I am a firm believer in setting goals and striving to meet them. Studies have shown that goal-oriented people have a much higher level of success than those that have no clear direction of where they want to be in the future. It's common sense. You can wander in circles or you can set yourself on a path towards a particular destination. Resolving to start down that path is the first step to getting there. If you wander aimlessly, you might find the path, but you probably won't.
I once resolved to write a book. That was New Years 1991. I set to work on a bad werewolf romance. I know! Werewolves, in 1991. Maybe it would have been the beginning of the paranormal romance trend that is so popular today. Maybe the timing was all wrong for a werewolf romance. We'll never know. I stopped at chapter three.
Fast forward to New Years 1996. I had just experienced a life changing moment over Christmas break. I couldn't wait to get it down on paper. I resolved to write a novel that led up to that exact, heart-breaking, bittersweet moment when the girl realizes that the guy who might just be the love of her life, feels the same way about her. Twelve years too late. I got 75 pages this time. Hardly a complete novel, but closer.
New Years 1997. Armed with 75 pages, I decided the story would work better as a movie script. I resolved to write the script and make the movie myself. It was all very ambitious. Voila! I finished a script. It was awful. Fortunately I was distracted enough by law school to NOT make a bad film with amateur actors.
New Years 2007. What can I say? Law school was very distracting. I resolved to finish the book I started in 1996. I sat down and started from scratch, writing here and there when I felt like it. I only got about 50 pages, but I was writing.
New Years 2008. I resolved to finish the book. I didn't do much until September 2008. That's when I realized that my book was a YA romance. Heck, that's when I realized what YA was. That's when I decided what my book needed was a few werewolves. And then I wrote. And wrote.
New Years 2009. I resolved to finish the book, but this time, I already had 100 pages. I started reading publishing blogs and learning about the industry. I resolved to get a professional opinion about my work. To go to a conference. In May 2009, I had more than half a book, and I entered contests to win critiques. I got a 50 page critique from a published author, and a 30 page critique from an agent. Both were encouraging. By November, I had a first draft of what would become BANDIA. In December I went to my first conference.
New Years 2010. I resolved to join a critique group. Query agents. I did them both. I rewrote the first book (goodbye werewolves). Then wrote a second book.
What changed? When did I change from someone who dreamed about writing to someone who did it? Why now? The truth is I don't know what finally clicked for me. But the impetus was always, always, a wish to get to a destination that wasn't reachable until I resolved to put one foot in front of the other and head down that path. And then resolved again to keep going.
As you make writing resolutions this year, recognize that you will succeed at some, and not at others. I'm here to tell you it's okay to fail. You've set yourself down the path. You'll learn from your false starts. The key is resolving to start again. And to keep at it until you accomplish your goal, whatever it is.
And I haven't forgotten the giveaway! Leave a comment before midnight January 8, 2011 for your chance to win an ARC of DARK GODDESS by Sarwat Chadda. This is a wonderful book that I'll be reviewing next week, a paranormal story filled with action, a touch of romance, and complex questions about what it means to be human.
Now go forth and accomplish!
I once resolved to write a book. That was New Years 1991. I set to work on a bad werewolf romance. I know! Werewolves, in 1991. Maybe it would have been the beginning of the paranormal romance trend that is so popular today. Maybe the timing was all wrong for a werewolf romance. We'll never know. I stopped at chapter three.
Fast forward to New Years 1996. I had just experienced a life changing moment over Christmas break. I couldn't wait to get it down on paper. I resolved to write a novel that led up to that exact, heart-breaking, bittersweet moment when the girl realizes that the guy who might just be the love of her life, feels the same way about her. Twelve years too late. I got 75 pages this time. Hardly a complete novel, but closer.
New Years 1997. Armed with 75 pages, I decided the story would work better as a movie script. I resolved to write the script and make the movie myself. It was all very ambitious. Voila! I finished a script. It was awful. Fortunately I was distracted enough by law school to NOT make a bad film with amateur actors.
New Years 2007. What can I say? Law school was very distracting. I resolved to finish the book I started in 1996. I sat down and started from scratch, writing here and there when I felt like it. I only got about 50 pages, but I was writing.
New Years 2008. I resolved to finish the book. I didn't do much until September 2008. That's when I realized that my book was a YA romance. Heck, that's when I realized what YA was. That's when I decided what my book needed was a few werewolves. And then I wrote. And wrote.
New Years 2009. I resolved to finish the book, but this time, I already had 100 pages. I started reading publishing blogs and learning about the industry. I resolved to get a professional opinion about my work. To go to a conference. In May 2009, I had more than half a book, and I entered contests to win critiques. I got a 50 page critique from a published author, and a 30 page critique from an agent. Both were encouraging. By November, I had a first draft of what would become BANDIA. In December I went to my first conference.
New Years 2010. I resolved to join a critique group. Query agents. I did them both. I rewrote the first book (goodbye werewolves). Then wrote a second book.
What changed? When did I change from someone who dreamed about writing to someone who did it? Why now? The truth is I don't know what finally clicked for me. But the impetus was always, always, a wish to get to a destination that wasn't reachable until I resolved to put one foot in front of the other and head down that path. And then resolved again to keep going.
As you make writing resolutions this year, recognize that you will succeed at some, and not at others. I'm here to tell you it's okay to fail. You've set yourself down the path. You'll learn from your false starts. The key is resolving to start again. And to keep at it until you accomplish your goal, whatever it is.
And I haven't forgotten the giveaway! Leave a comment before midnight January 8, 2011 for your chance to win an ARC of DARK GODDESS by Sarwat Chadda. This is a wonderful book that I'll be reviewing next week, a paranormal story filled with action, a touch of romance, and complex questions about what it means to be human.
Now go forth and accomplish!
6 comments
It's intriguing to see the progression of your resolutions. Thanks for sharing.
Great giveaway! Hope it's international :)
Rach
Great post. While I don't believe in resolutions (they're made to be broken), having writing goals is one of the smartest thing a writer can do. It's also a good idea to re-evaluated them several times during the year to make sure you're on track.
I LOVE this post. Having written since eighth grade and now being, er, 40-something, I'm so in touch with the timeline. My debut novel pubs in October, so I got there, though it took way more than 365 days. No regrets. Each year has been an amazing journey. Here's to 2011!
Thank you for this excellent reminder that it's okay to fail. Good in fact! By failing we learn and by learning we improve. I needed that shot of inspiration, thanks! What a great giveaway, this sounds like a good book!
Stasia, consider yourself lucky that I started the post with my attempts after college. My third grade puppet show was awesome though!
Seriously, I don't think you can get anywhere without some bumps along the way. It's the getting back up that matters!
Your resolutions are so ambitious! I wish I could take a step in your direction and being accomplishing all the tasks I've been meaning to do for ages! I like your message of being able to succeed in some resolutions and not the others.
The book sounds great and I'd love to win it, so thanks for the opportunity!
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