Like so many others at this time of year, I find myself musing on the past and dreaming of the future. I thought I’d share a few reflections of 2013, and what I’d like to see myself accomplishing this coming year.
Highlights of 2013:
-I got to see one of my favorite singers, Eivør, live in concert. Definitely a dream come true – especially since the concert was not only here in the US (unusual for her touring schedule), but a mere two hours from my house.
-I made my first official submission and got my first official rejection. I submitted a short story to a fantasy anthology, and it was rejected. I was very excited about this, because even if I decide to self-publish my novels rather than trying for agents or publishers, I wanted to get some submission experience under my belt.
-I took a trip to Iceland. It was my first trip to that country, and also my first solo traveling experience. I loved the city, the country, and the culture, and I know that I grew a lot from the experience of being all alone in a foreign country.
-I wrote several guest posts for other blogs. It’s exciting to see my writing featured on other websites besides my own blog, and hopefully I’ve added value to the readers of those blogs.
Goals for 2014:
-I want to go back to Iceland – specifically for the Iceland Writers Retreat. Networking with other writers in the land of the Nordic Sagas would be more than awesome.
-I want to finish the first book of my fantasy trilogy. My original goal was to have the second round of rewrites and edits done by the end of 2013. That did not happen. So 2014 will be the year to finish the edits, get it off to my beta readers, and at least begin the publication process.
-I want to get something published. Whether it’s the fantasy novel, a short story, or even getting paid to write a blog post, I want to have a published piece of work to my name before the end of this year.
-I want to read more. Writers need to be readers; and while I of course love reading, I didn’t do much of it this past year. I had a rather short to-read list for 2013, and I didn’t get through very many of them. You can track my reading habits on Goodreads, if you like – and I want to post more books on my profile this year than last.
Now I’d love to hear your thoughts! Did you have any goals accomplished or dreams realized in 2013? What do you have planned for 2014?
StorytellerGirl 
Great accomplishments, great goals. 🙂 Count me as one of your beta readers for your fantasy book! I’ve really enjoyed being critique partners.
My goals is to finish the first drafts of my YA dystopian and YA contemporary, finish edits for my YA medieval fantasy (will probably need your help with this one, if you don’t mind), stop biting my nails (harder than it sounds), stop procrastinating (also harder than it sounds), and get an agent (ha! I like to dream big.).
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Stop procrastinating – I should have added that to my list of goals. 😛 And that ties in with the beta reader/critique partner thing…I haven’t sent you the next part of my book yet. I will do that soon. Very soon! No more procrastinating!
I enjoyed reading your accomplishments and goals post, too. 🙂 There’s nothing wrong with dreaming big!
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