Friday, December 27, 2013

Life Lessons—Where Does Your Writing Go From Here?

by Edie Melson

I can’t help it. The time between Christmas and New Years is—at least in my mind—no man’s land. It’s a time filled with clean up, hurry up and wait up. In many ways it’s the lull before the storm.

January is when I hit the ground running, determined to start things off right. One of the reasons I’m able to do that is because I do some re-evaluating during this week. I always ask myself one question. Where does your writing go from here?


The answer is tied to several things, the one word I choose to define my year (look for that post soon). My past successes this year, and where my passion is leading me.

Don’t get me wrong on the passion part. I can—and often do—write for money. But even that feeds my passion. It may support the conferences I want to attend, gives me the financial freedom to pursue my dream, and even helps build my platform as a writer.

Today I want to concentrate on how I go about finding the direction for my year.

Finish Well. Yes, I start with this. I begin by tying up the loose ends from the year. I make plans to fulfill commitments and get things cleared out so I can begin working toward this year’s goals.

Pinpoint my Passion. What ignites my writing fire? Is it novels, non-fiction, blogging, a combination? I prayerfully consider all my options and decide where I want to go in 2014.

Set Some Goals. I write down my goals and begin to look at the timeline to achieve them. Then I make some plans.

Keep an Open Mind. I want to keep moving forward, but I don’t want to develop tunnel vision. I will evaluate all the opportunities that arise, but only take the ones that make sense.

Choose Joy. I have the power to choose my attitude. Sometimes it’s a struggle, but I can choose joy over complaints.

Relish the Relationships. One thing I’ve learned is that relationships are the most important things in my life. I’ll be making those a priority, no matter what else I choose.

These are the things I do to start the year off right. What are some of the things you do? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Don’t forget to join the conversation!
Blessings,
Edie

Tweetables

6 steps to help determine the direction yourwriting takes in 2014 – via @EdieMelson (Click to Tweet)

1 comment:

  1. Setting goals is the biggest one. In 2014 I'd like to have 2 novels complete. Establish and stick with a writing routine. Focus on character development in my writing-craft continuing education. Blog regularly. And focus on about 5 blogs to follow and join in the conversation (including this one, of course). Oh, and stick with the exercise. It may not seem to have much to do with writing, but I've had such bad back pain that I stopped writing. The mind definitely functions better when you're healthy!

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