I have three thank-yous to pass out for the restart of my writing life. The first and biggest goes to my husband for his major support in so many forms. The second goes to many writer moms whose stories made me believe that I could do it, too. The third  goes to my 2017 New Year’s resolutions.

Goal setting was never really my thing growing up. I haaaaated it when my parents sat us down and said, “Let’s write some goals!” I never accomplished them, and I felt so tied down knowing I should be working on them, but didn’t really want to. Goals felt like a list of things I should do, or my parents wanted me to do, but not things that brought true fulfillment.

I’ve come a long way since then, and have seen the joy that comes from accomplishing something you set your heart on. At the beginning of last year, I decided 2017 was the year I was going to write a novel again. With the support of my husband, the inspiration of other authors, and my new Scrivener software, I did it! I wrote that novel, and I got 50,000 words into another. After so many years of minimal creative writing, I finally got back to doing what I loved.

This year, I hope to accomplish more. I’ve made a few goals that I hope will improve my writing and set me on the path toward publication.

Arlem’s 2018 Writing Goals

• Attend the Storymakers Conference in May
• Finish the first draft of my Regency before the conference
• Finish edits of my fantasy (before the conference?)
• Start querying
• Outline and start the next story (MG Southwestern, unexpected empress, Jacob and Leah/changeling… Yikes. There are too many to choose from.)
• Blog….a lot more

I won’t bore you with the details of how I’ll accomplish each of these. Haha. I’m feeling excited and optimistic about my goals this year. I love the beginning of the year, even if it does mean the Christmas season is over. I’m always so filled with hope at the thought of a wonderful year ahead.

What about you? Do you have some awesome goals (writing or otherwise) for this year?