JULY IS YOUR NEW JANUARY! Recommitting To Your Writing Goals

January 1, 2015. New Year’s Day. Twelve sparkling months stretching before you, filled with writing goals you dream of accomplishing in the next 365 days.

Was that bright and beautiful kickoff truly almost six months ago?

Poised on the brink of the year’s halfway mark, how are you feeling about the goals you set when the New Year dawned? Jazzed? Bummed? So-so? Have you made solid progress toward finishing that book or novella? Have you entered a contest you told yourself you’d enter—or sent a proposal to your dream editor or agent?

No?

Maybe you’ve heard of what award-winning author Cheryl St. John calls “the muddled middle.” That’s where your story charges confidently out of the starting gate then, midway into the book, things suddenly get, well, “muddled.” Your story loses steam and wanders aimlessly.

Muddled middles happen in real life too. Middle-of-the-year blues aren’t uncommon. Best intentions fall short. Progress isn’t as speedy as hoped. The goal gets blurry. Lethargy zaps.

You’ve heard the saying, “tomorrow is the first day of the rest of your life,” haven’t you? It can be. July 1 is your NEW January 1 -- if you choose to let it be.
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Pull out your writing goals list. What? You didn’t write them down? Research proves written goals reviewed frequently have an astonishing rate of achievement versus those vaguely swimming around in your head. If you didn’t write them down earlier, now’s the time to do that!

A helpful tool for setting and evaluating goals is the classic S.M.A.R.T. objectives.

- SPECIFIC: You can’t hit a target if you don’t know what it is. Name it--and make sure it meets the following criteria.

- MEASURABLE: What indicators tell you you’re on target or getting off track? “Write every day” is vague—but “write 500 words a day except on Sundays” can be tracked against your goal of writing a 75,000 word manuscript in the next 365 days.

I actually document daily on an Excel spreadsheet the number of words I write. Watching the totals add up is highly motivating and I know exactly where I am in relation to my targeted word count.

- ATTAINABLE: Is your goal “doable” by common sense standards? While “become a New York Times bestselling author” is a fine dream, that ultimate destination needs to be broken down into bite-size, step-by-step goals in order to reach it.

- REALISTIC: Given the reality of your life’s circumstances, time limitations and skills/abilities, is the goal logically reasonable—or totally impractical? Push yourself to the next level, but don’t set yourself up for failure before you even begin. Does your goal stretch and energize you—or discourage you?

- TIME-BOUND: A commitment to a deadline anchors a “sense of urgency” in your brain. Even if you’re not yet published, set a realistic deadline and meet it. You’ll get a sense of accomplishment AND it will be good practice for when you sign on the dotted contract line!
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How did the goals you dreamed of on January 1 stack up to S.M.A.R.T.? Are you on target? Or are adjustments needed? Did you set too many goals and need to weed out a few? Did you fail to establish a concrete plan—or made one but didn’t stick with it?

NOW is the time to prayerfully and honestly reevaluate and recommit to your goals. Yes, six months have passed since the New Year dawned—but a FRESH half-dozen months stretch before you. July 1 can be your brand new January 1--if you want it to be. Your choice.

Remember, “write a book” or “get published” is a vague wish—not a strategy for accomplishing that dream. But a statement like this one holds power: “I will draft a 60,000 word book in four months by writing 500 words during the 60 minutes set aside for writing each day.” Better yet, give that 60K in four months a specific deadline...“by November 1.”

Post the goal and review it every day. (If you have Microsoft Office, use the “sticky note” feature that allows you to “post” a note on your desktop so that when you log on it’s there front and center.)
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Let’s chat today about 2015 goals--met and unmet. How’d you do January 1 through June? Do you need to brainstorm strategies to get back on track? Seeker Villagers are always here to help! You CAN get back in the saddle. We have confidence in you.

And by the way—if you choose to start the New Year on July 1st, it’s okay to toot a horn and throw a little confetti!

“Rekindling the Widower’s Heart”-- the first book in my new Love Inspired “Hearts of Hunter Ridge” series -- debuts October 2015 (August for those of you who are Love Inspired subscribers, and it’s available for pre-order if you aren’t!). If you’d like to be entered in a drawing for a hot-off-the-presses copy, mention it in the comments section, then check the Weekend Edition to see if you’re one of three chosen winners!

Glynna

Glynna Kaye’s 2014 Love Inspired books--Pine Country Cowboy and High Country Holiday--are finalists in the 2015 RWA Faith, Hope & Love Inspirational Reader’s Choice Awards.
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A Future to  Build On.  All widower Luke Hunter wants is to raise his three kids--and be left alone.  When Delaney Marks arrives in town to oversee the youth group's house renovation project, Luke decides he must come out of hiding. He's worried she's too young to get the job done. He'll have to keep a close watch on her--and on his heart.  Because being with the vibrant girl makes it easy to forget their age difference and to start hoping for a future he doesn't deserve.  As tension rise over project pressures, Delaney tries to make Luke see that some things are just out of his control--and that he is worthy of happiness...with her.