Resolutions and Dreams 2016 #BP

This is part of the #BP Beautiful People monthly meme, hosted by Paper Fury and Further Up & Further In, where we writers answer a series of questions. This month’s theme is about our goals and plans for this new year. I’ll discuss last year’s writing achievements, my hopes and writerly goals for 2016! 🙂

1. What were your writing achievements last year?

♦ As those of you who have been following me on the journey know, finishing draft #2 of my current WIP, V.Chronicles was a huge achievement for me. It was a daunting task, but watching the story improve and progress the more I revised kept me motivated to continue, as I described in my latest Behind The Scenes post.

♦ Beginning a new series I hadn’t intended on: Madnes Solver. That was a surprise, and one that caught me off guard! I was already so busy with V.Chronicles that the last thing I needed was another WIP to write, lol. 😉 But the #BlogBattle writing challenge word “madness” one week inspired the idea, and the story grew from there. Soon the tale will reach novel-length!

2. Tell us about your top priority writing project for this year?

V.Chronicles will be the top priority, for sure! Secondly, I’d like to finish Madnes Solver. And thirdly, begin drafting an epilogue novella for V.Chronicles (some of you might recognize its former title “Clover” 🙂 ).

3. List 5 areas you’d like to work the hardest to improve this year.

♦ For me, the biggest one, writing-wise, would probably be “time.” I’d like to improve how many pages I write in a day, and how many I can revise/edit on WIP drafts in a day. I’m too slow, right now. But hopefully with practice I’ll be able to speed up my process.

♦ Juggling blogging and social media time. Right now, it feels overwhelming, since I’m still revising my WIP and would like to spend all my time doing that. However, life as an author means I will always be writing and/or revising something, so I really can’t let this be an excuse not to keep up with the blog, twitter, and other media. It’s a struggle to juggle, but I’m determined to figure it out.

♦ Communication skills. As an author, if I want to do book signings in the future, and attract more readers, then I need to master those communication skills like a pro. 😀

♦ Be active. Whether it’s a physical class or following along with youtube videos, I need to do something more than ride my indoor bike! I’m considering Tai chi or some form of dance.

♦ Better food habits. I’m limited with food as wheat and dairy bother me, but much of the other options are either not very tasty or not very healthy. Brown rice flour is in so much of the gluten-free products out there, which I don’t like consuming long-term considering arsenic levels, so I’d like to find more options. 🙂

4. Are you participating in any writing challenges?

The #BlogBattle by Rachael Ritchey, and Ronovan’s haikus! Both are weekly, and you can find links to them here on blog posts!

5. What’s your critique partner/beta reader situation like and do you have plans to expand this year?

Several people have offered to be beta readers for me, and I’m so very thankful for each and every one of them! I’m hoping my WIP will be ready sometime this yearrr, but we’ll see. 🙂

6. Do you have plans to read any writer-related books this year? Or are there specific books you want to read for research?

I’ve been so focused on fiction books, that I forgot to plan for writer-related books, haha. I guess it depends on how this year goes. I do have a goodreads tbr list of some great writer-related books I’d like to get to! Other than that, I’m reading YA, Fantasy, Steampunk, and mild Horror—trying to read a variety of genres this year.

7. Pick one character you want to get to know better, and how are you going to achieve this?

Uh…just ONE? Really? Can’t I pick all of them? As well as I know each of my characters, there’s still so much more I could learn. Character profiles are my go-to tool for doing this. Answering a series of detailed questions helps me get inside a character’s mind and learn things I might not have otherwise.

One example of that would be the #BP Friendship post that helped me really flesh out more of Madnes’ and Oz’s characters, as well as their former friendship in the WIP Madnes Solver.

8. Do you plan to edit or query, and what’s your plan of attack?

Edit, revise, edit, revise…yes, that about sums up my WIP work, right now. 🙂 I’m on draft #3 currently, and I know a draft #4 is needed. The more I go over it, the easier it has been to catch those dust bunny rascals and loopholes, and tie together previously loose threads. As Kronk said: “Oh yeah, it’s all coming together.”

9. Toni Morrison once said, “If there’s a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.”  What are the books that you want to see more of, and what “holes” do you think need filling in the literary world?

Hmm, I’d like to see epic tales like Lord of the Rings, but with a new flare, and PG-13 friendly. I’d also like to see more faery stories. Can’t get enough of them, lately. 🙂

10. What do you hope to have achieved by the end of 2016?

♦ V.Chronicles finished and ready to be published!—or at least close to that. We’ll see how the year unfolds!

♦ Having the rough draft of Madnes Solver finished would also be fantastic.

There you have it! My writerly and lifely goals for 2016. 🙂 I look forward to spending this new year with you all, dear readers and friends! Don’t forget to click the “Follow” button to be notified of new posts, and if you’re looking for things not on the blog, follow my monthly mailing list. 🙂

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~Welcome to 2016!~

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