New Year's Resolutions
I kind of hate making these sorts of things, because my experience is that when you make a New Year's resolution it comes with the automatic expectation that you will fail. So for awhile now, I've been trying to make some low-pressure goal statements instead, but they amount to the same thing, so I'm just going to stop trying to give them some kind of alternate label.
My resolutions this year fall into two basic categories, writing and life. Here they are:
Writing Resolutions
1. I will write something every day.
I acchieved that today with the help of the Write or Die web app which is a marvelous little tool that I think I'll be using on a fairly regular basis. It was roughly 5000 words of complete and total crap. An original character, 1st person rambling character piece for Supernatural that will never ever see the light of day, but at least helped me get a handle on what I really think of Sam, both in terms of his actual motivations and in terms of how the people they come into contact with see him.
2. I will finish at least one WIP every month.
This is a big deal for me. I have somewhere in the vicinity of 80 stories in 20+ fandoms and a handful of original worlds that are probably 75-80% done. If you add in the ones that are below the 75% mark then there are more like 200. I need to start finishing things.
3. I will submit at least one thing for publication.
So, it probably won't be either of the complete novels that I have sitting on my hard drive. They need a lot of polish work before they are anywhere near ready to send off to a publisher. I probably couldn't afford to print them at this point anyway, they're both in excess of 400 pages. I do, however have about fifteen short stories, most of which could be fixed up without a huge amount of time being spent on them and at least twelve of which I feel are probably publishable. Or hey, could be something entirely new.
Life Resolutions
1. I will eat healthier.
I kind of got a head start on this one at the end of 2008. I've used my parents and the way they eat as an excuse for a long time for not doing better myself. Here's the deal. I have minimal control over what they eat (even though I do the cooking), but just because I fix something for them doesn't mean I have to eat it. I can't handle our grease-laden, protein-heavy, vegetable-light diet anymore. I'm just fixing for myself or modifying what they're getting to make it more palatable to me. I'm not concerned about weight. I've always found that rather pointless, and recent papers that I've read make it seem that is probably the case. I'm never going to be skinny, and I don't really care, but I used to feel good. I used to be healthy. I just want to get that back.
2. I will exercise.
When I lived on my own, and even when the family lived in Salina, I walked a lot. I have not spent any significant amount of time with a car, and prior to moving to Topeka in 2003, I had probably spent a good 8-10 years walking an average of 10-15 miles a week. On top of that, from the fall of '98 to the spring of '01, I was doing yoga 5 days a week. I hadn't realized how out of shape I've gotten until fairly recently. It's not practical to walk to do things in Topeka like it was in both Emporia and Salina, and I don't seem to be able to make the space for yoga, but we are a block away from a park with a halfway decent walking trail. For the same reasons as above, I've got to start doing that again.
3. I will get a real job.
I've got my fingers crossed that this is going to happen very soon. I may be getting a job with a local tax prep service if all goes well. It will probably only run through April, but at least it will be something to put on my resume, and the pay will start me on the long path towards paying off my student loans and getting back in school.
My resolutions this year fall into two basic categories, writing and life. Here they are:
Writing Resolutions
1. I will write something every day.
I acchieved that today with the help of the Write or Die web app which is a marvelous little tool that I think I'll be using on a fairly regular basis. It was roughly 5000 words of complete and total crap. An original character, 1st person rambling character piece for Supernatural that will never ever see the light of day, but at least helped me get a handle on what I really think of Sam, both in terms of his actual motivations and in terms of how the people they come into contact with see him.
2. I will finish at least one WIP every month.
This is a big deal for me. I have somewhere in the vicinity of 80 stories in 20+ fandoms and a handful of original worlds that are probably 75-80% done. If you add in the ones that are below the 75% mark then there are more like 200. I need to start finishing things.
3. I will submit at least one thing for publication.
So, it probably won't be either of the complete novels that I have sitting on my hard drive. They need a lot of polish work before they are anywhere near ready to send off to a publisher. I probably couldn't afford to print them at this point anyway, they're both in excess of 400 pages. I do, however have about fifteen short stories, most of which could be fixed up without a huge amount of time being spent on them and at least twelve of which I feel are probably publishable. Or hey, could be something entirely new.
Life Resolutions
1. I will eat healthier.
I kind of got a head start on this one at the end of 2008. I've used my parents and the way they eat as an excuse for a long time for not doing better myself. Here's the deal. I have minimal control over what they eat (even though I do the cooking), but just because I fix something for them doesn't mean I have to eat it. I can't handle our grease-laden, protein-heavy, vegetable-light diet anymore. I'm just fixing for myself or modifying what they're getting to make it more palatable to me. I'm not concerned about weight. I've always found that rather pointless, and recent papers that I've read make it seem that is probably the case. I'm never going to be skinny, and I don't really care, but I used to feel good. I used to be healthy. I just want to get that back.
2. I will exercise.
When I lived on my own, and even when the family lived in Salina, I walked a lot. I have not spent any significant amount of time with a car, and prior to moving to Topeka in 2003, I had probably spent a good 8-10 years walking an average of 10-15 miles a week. On top of that, from the fall of '98 to the spring of '01, I was doing yoga 5 days a week. I hadn't realized how out of shape I've gotten until fairly recently. It's not practical to walk to do things in Topeka like it was in both Emporia and Salina, and I don't seem to be able to make the space for yoga, but we are a block away from a park with a halfway decent walking trail. For the same reasons as above, I've got to start doing that again.
3. I will get a real job.
I've got my fingers crossed that this is going to happen very soon. I may be getting a job with a local tax prep service if all goes well. It will probably only run through April, but at least it will be something to put on my resume, and the pay will start me on the long path towards paying off my student loans and getting back in school.