As an epic fantasy writer, I suppose it is only fitting for me to make epic writing goals. Normally, I don’t, but 2019 will be different. I’ve been feeling it in my bones since September that this year was going to be my year.

For the past five or six years, I’ve been all over the place with my writing and editing. I’ve not made a lot of headway with my books; it’s disappointing. I’ve done a lot of work with little to show for it. Last summer, I realised why.

I spent autumn figuring out the best course of action and putting a few things in place. Now that the prep work is complete, it’s time to launch the new goals, ones that will get me closer to what I desire.

Changes

Obviously, there will be changes. To make time in my life to meet my 2019 challenges, I had to reduce time spent on other projects and other types of work. This means, once I finish the two editing/formatting projects scheduled for 2019, I won’t accept others.

If 2019 is going to be mine, it must contain only my writing, my stories. I need to focus on my writing career and not be distracted by stories written by others. This means I have to budget better, but I have other ways to make money that won’t interfere with the artistic side of my brain and disrupt my fantasy flow.

Breaking the Sound Barrier

When I was challenged at the beginning of NaNoWriMo 2018 to write more than 102,000 words in 30 days, part of me believed I couldn’t do it. Why? I’d never done it before, other writers don’t say they do it, and I was told I couldn’t do it. I was also told the words I’d write would be a mess. It’d be a draft, but one that would need heavy revisions and editing.

Those people who said that don’t know how I write. I not only met that 102,000-word challenge, I left it in my dust as I sped past.

My 143,770 words written in November are no less worthy than what I normally write. The only difference is, I have to add a few names of people and places that were left as NAME because I didn’t want to take the time to find something interesting, something that fit well.

Breaking that 100,000-word limit a month is like breaking the sound barrier; when you do it once, you want to do it again. December, I challenged myself to see if I could do it one more time. And I did. I wrote 123,749 words.

Proving I could do this helped finalize my writing goals for 2019.

My Book Writing Goals for 2019

These are epic goals that will challenge me, but I don’t believe they are unrealistic. Easy goals don’t motivate me as much as tipping near the impossible do. We’ll see how accurate I am in 12 months.

Writing

The books I plan to write include:

1. Healing Stones
2. Gathered Stones
3. Book 2 in the Mystical Series
4. Origin of the Stones

Books 1, 2 and 4 will contain about 130,000 words. Book 3 will contain 100,000 words. I was supposed to start Healing Stones on January 1st and write the entire book by January 31st, but I finished Beyond the Myst in mid-December, and I couldn’t wait. As of midnight last night, I have 78,392 words written. That means I’m more than half way there.

Publishing

The books I plan to publish in 2019 include (all are in the Castle Keepers series except where noted).

• January: 2nd Edition of Shadows in the Stone: Book 1
• February: Republish Scattered Stones: Book 2
• April: Beyond the Myst: Mystical Series: Book 1
• May: Revelation Stones: Book 3
• September: Healing Stones: Book 4
• December: Unknown Title: Mystical Series: Book 2

Blog Writing Goals 2019

I’m an off-again on-again blog writer. I hope I plan to write one post a week on this blog. It should appear each Monday. As usual, topics will include my writing experience, things I’ve heard in the publishing industry, my writing progress and tips on how to become a better writer because I’m always learning how to improve my craft.

My McGyver blog (for my pen name Diane Lynn McGyver), which all my fantasy books are published under, will also be updated once a week with a post. Last fall, I wrote a series of articles to introduce my characters, one at a time. I may continue this, but what I really want to do is take a topic, such as how to light a fire 300 years ago, and discuss the details of it.

This is part of the research I do for my fantasy series. It will inform readers on the topic and provide me with story inspiration. I’ll also add deleted scenes, specific details about the world I’m building (such as the seasons) and similar material.

I make no commitment for my other blogs. They’ll receive posts on a whim.

Businesses Goals for 2019

• Attend six markets to sell books
• Increase book sales monthly
• Put my books into 3 local book stores

Personal Goals for 2019

• 

  Return to Pre-pregnancy Weight: That means losing 68 pounds. As of this posting, I’ve already lost 8, so that leaves me with 60.

• Go to 3 places I’ve never been before
• Attend 3 concerts (first one: January 23rd, Bryan Adams)
• Host 6 Sunday family dinners
• Buy a boat
• Go fishing more often with my kids
• Go camping more often
• Attend HalCon as a character
• Declutter the House
• Start building my camp

My Mottos for 2019

I have two.

1. When I’m thinking of how I am or if someone asks me, my response will be, “I’m alive and well.”
2. Take care of small problems before they become big problems.

My Year

In 2019, I’m going to be more me than I’ve been for the past 21 years. Mothers sometimes set aside their true selves as they take on the role of caregiver to their children. I’ve done that, and now with my youngest 16 years old, I’m more than ready to step back into my old boots and be just me.

Here’s to 2019, may it bring you and me the best we can be.

Cheers.