We can’t believe 2016 is in full swing, but it’s here. We’re feeling really good about 2016 and have lots planned. Stay tuned. Our New Year’s resolutions are a combination of tasks we’re committing to this year and resolutions we know will take your writing endeavors to the next level in 2016. No matter where you are in the process, make a point to refocus your energy throughout the year and settle on goals that are authentic to your vision and reachable.
To Get Your Book Written
- Set an intention for this year. What do you want to accomplish?
- Create a routine and follow it
- Write 30 minutes every day
- Keep a running list of ideas
- Join a writing group
- Recruit an accountability partner
- Set mini goals and celebrate as you reach them
- Go on a writing retreat
- Sign up for a writing class
- Create a music playlist that inspires creativity
- Reread your favorite books on writing
- Read excerpts of your manuscript in public
- Attend a writing conference
- Create a space at home that inspires and fuels your writing
- Save your work to Google Drive so you can write from any computer and your smartphone
- Take breaks
- Hire an editor in advance
- Don’t ask anyone’s permission—get it done
- Find a writing mentor
To Promote a Book(s) Already Published
- Gift a book to your local library
- Request reviews from friends and family members
- Plan your book-selling events for the year
- Post a Periscope video a week related to your book
- Join a networking group
- Guest blog once a month
- Create a workshop or seminar
- Post at least one update to social media per day
- Send a monthly email to your ambassadors with updates & achievements
- Grow your email list through your website and at events you attend
- Volunteer at a conference geared to your book’s audience
- Promote your favorite authors
- Update your website with reviews, event dates, and photos
- Run a promotion that coincides with an event or milestone
- Write articles that can be submitted to websites, blogs, and publications
- Pitch a story to your local news outlets
- Apply for book awards
- Become a speaker
- Add a call-to-action to your website, blog, or Facebook fan page
- Create a Facebook group for your fans
- Join the Goodreads author program
- Create an Amazon Author Central account
To Push Yourself
- Do NANOWRIMO in November
- Write a piece unlike anything you’ve ever written
- Read books by authors you’ve never read before
- Take a week off from your regular schedule to focus on writing
- Tell at lease one stranger a day about your works in progress
- Finish an incomplete/retired manuscript
- Send your first draft to beta readers and ask for feedback
- Ask for what you need (i.e. support, reviews, social media shares)
- Revise your manuscript based on edits and suggestions you’ve received
- Critique someone else’s manuscript
- Apply for a writing grant
- Recruit a team to help you
- Plan out the next couple books you’d like to write
- Purchase a copy of the Chicago Manual of Style
- Revamp your LinkedIn profile to reflect your published books
- Say yes to something that terrifies you
To Keep You Sane
- Go on a road trip
- Splurge on something that’ll keep you inspired throughout the year (i.e. a new desk)
- Purchase a planner to keep yourself organized
- Take baths (don’t forget mood-boosting essential oils: lavender, mint, chamomile)
- Go hiking
- Meditate in the morning before you start the day
- People watch at a place you’ve never been
- Take yourself on a date—don’t think about work, writing, or your to-do list
- Try yoga or breath work when you’re stressed
- Get a massage
- Celebrate your milestones
- Write yourself a letter of encouragement and read it on days you feel fatigued or frustrated
- Read something funny, lighthearted, or inspirational
- Help someone in need
- Take a vacation
- Clean out your email inbox, delete unwanted files, and tidy up your computer desktop
- Drink wine
- Create a writing vision board
What did we miss? What are your writing resolutions for 2016?
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Ruthlessly analyze and assess my work: is it worthy of being published or is it merely regurgitating stale ideas flooding last year’s marketplace?
How can I get BETTER as a writer? Less concern about “monetizing” my work and more about improving and developing as a literary artist.
Throw away all writing manuals and self-help guides. 2500 years ago Plato insisted “We learn by doing”–never were truer words spoken.
LOVE all of these, especially the Plato quote. Asking how you can be a better writer is always a useful ponderance. Good luck Cliff! And thank you for sharing!