13 New Year's Resolutions I Hope I Don't Keep. Again.

I don't know if nonwriters are as prone to making NY resolutions as the rest of the world, but I'm seeing goal and resolutions lists popping up right and left on industry blogs and such these days. Maybe it's because we're writers and we like to write things down. Maybe it's because the writing-career part of our lives is relatively self-motivated and we hope a list will keep us motivated. Maybe it's because our turn to blog falls around the end or beginning of the year and we have to think of something to day.

Either way, here are 13 resolutions I hope I don't keep this year. Yet again. Feel free to add your own in the comments!

1) I will start 8x as many writing projects as I manage to finish.
2) I will establish at least 1 more social networking time sink in the name of promotion.
3) I will 'earn' 53 form rejection letters in the space of 5 months.
4) I will curse more in front of my children and in public.
5) I will forget to update my websites, blogs and other promotional efforts on at least a monthly basis 1/2 of the time.
6) ...Because I have nothing to add, which is really pitiful.
7) I will watch more movies and tv programs than I read books.
8) I will gain weight.
9) I will spend a great deal of my hours in yoga pants and grungy t-shirts, in need of a haircut and a bath.
10) I will neglect to start dinner in a timely fashion at least once a week, necessitating sudden take-out.
11) I will kill my laptop computer.
12) I will complain frequently about something or other and say it is to keep my vocabulary fresh.
13) I will buy the perfect books as gifts -- that were equally perfect for the same individuals last year!

Have a hopeful one --

Jody W.
www.jodywallace.com
www.meankitty.com

It's all about me this year

Happy New Year! Wow, 2009 already? I had just broken in 2008, it was all nice and comfortable, and now I have to start all over again.

I didn't make any resolutions this year. I usually make a list of things I'd like to do, but this year I just wasn't motivated. The lists for the last two years, pretty much I've made everything happen (except the exercise thing, and I can explain about that!), so I'm pretty happy.

Then a few days after New Year's, I was working on the WIP, and thinking about how far I've come since my first book. A LOOOOOOOONG way. And I decided that I DID need some resolutions in my life. 2009 is going to be all about ME.

1. I resolve to stop letting the internet suck up all my spare time. And by spare, I mean time I should be writing but instead decide to 'just check my email'. Part of sticking to this resolution is really looking at my 'internet committments' and seeing which I really need to keep, and which can GO GO GO. (not this lovely blog, certainly not! Never! I love you guys. You don't suck up my time AT ALL.)

2. Addendum to #1 is to refocus on my career. I'm not renewing one of my 'writing' memberships, because after thinking about it, I wasn't getting anything out of it. I paid a membership fee to pretty much be on an email loop and have my name on their site. It's done nothing for me, so when the membership comes up for renewal, out it goes. Ditto for other email loops that I belong to that I don't really participate in - clean out that emailbox!

3. Write more. I've been working on working, and finishing that second Bachelor's degree, and that has taken up so much of the time I used to use for writing. If I can shake the internet time suck ball-and-chain, I can find time. And I only have two more semesters left, so by the fall I'll be finished. I have two novels that are still sitting here, waiting to be fixed up and submitted. I submitted nothing last year. (on the other hand, I had two ebook releases, so I suppose it all balances out)

4. Addendum to #2: part of refocusing the career is to rejoin SCBWI. Their regional chapter meets at the other end of the state, but at least they send me a magazine once a quarter. I've got four novels now, I should have professional credentials again. AND I'm going to save up and GO to the 2009 spring conference in NYC. This year it's at the same hotel that we're staying in for my sister's wedding. I'm hoping it's there again next year, so I know where I'm going. I was always kind of afraid to go to NYC, especially since I won't drive in the city. But with a dry run this year, I'm sure it will be a piece of cake. I've discovered NJ Transit, and it is GOOD.

5. Work on a new book. The steampunk fairy tale, which started off as a MG but which is now a YA, needs to at least have some notes or an outline (not a real one, but a diagram) this year. The YA trilogy I've had in my head for three years now needs something too. And of course I need to work on the rest of the Library of Athena series. If I could take one of these new books and find an agent, that'd be great too.

6. Not writing related, but I want to find a job. The son will be in school full time in September, I'll be finished that second degree - there's just no reason NOT to work full time. I would love a teaching job, which was the whole reason I went to the trouble of taking the tests last year. I know it's a big order to fill in these times, but I'm going to give it a shot.

There it is, my list of self-centered, all about me, resolutions for 2009. They may not all happen, but most of them are within reach. I hope you reach all your goals this year!

By the way, Shannon over at Confuzzled Books is giving away a signed copy of The Crown of Zeus. All you have to do to enter is comment on the entry. It's open until Feb. 2. Shannon is one of my biggest fans, and I was so happy to see her at the book's launch. So cruise on over there and say hi!

2009 Goals

It's that time of the year. Again.

Goals.

Resolutions.

Call it what you like, its the month we all look forward and say to ourselves, "What am I going to do this year? What can I change to make myself/my life better?"

I stopped resolving a few years ago. What did it matter? I never met my resolutions. But this year I resolved to resolve and sat down and wrote out some things I would like to accomplish.

I read this great blog post by JA Konrath on resolutions. Basically he said you can't make goals that are out of your hands. For instance, I can't say I want to sign a multi-million dollar deal with Penguin by December 31, 2009. That's unrealistic and something totally out of my hands. I can, however, tell myself that I will submit to Penguin by December 31, 2009 (not that I'm really going to submit to Penguin, but that multi-million dollar deal does sound nice, doesn't it?).

I've also discovered that if I make my goals public, then there's more pressure on me to meet them. So here they are, for everyone to see. And I beg you, hold me accountable. Throw tomatoes at me if I don't at least give the appearance of working toward them.

1. To finish/polish my RS and my paranormal and submit them to my editor NO LATER than March 1st.

2. I would like to sell to Silhouette Romantic Suspense so my goal this year is to finish revising an older RS I wrote a while ago and submit it to Silhouette Romantic Suspense (sometime between March and June 1)

3. Write Shane's story and submit to editor (after June 1)

4. LOSE WEIGHT! I know this is a cliche for this time of year, but I really, really need to lose some weight. I'm keeping my goal small - 10 pounds. Just enough so my clothes fit better and I feel better about myself. If I achieve that, maybe I'll set another, smaller goal. I won't set a time limit on this one.

5. Earn enough in royalties in 2009 to buy an elliptical machine. I'm hoping by June. And just as an added incentive I have this picture posted on my iGoogle page so I see it every time I log in.


So. What are your goals for 2009?

You Say You Want a Resolution..

I hope Paul, John, Ringo and George forgive me for paraphrasing their song for my title, but I was desperate. The New Year is here and everyone is throwing the R word around. I'm talking about New Year Resolutions, of course. Millions of people make them on the 1st, break them by the end of the month, or in some cases, by the 3rd or 4th of January. Why? Because they set their expectations too high.
*****
Resolution 1: I'm quitting a bad habit! (eg. smoking, drinking etc)

While this is a wonderful thing to attempt and I wish everyone luck in trying it, doing it when you're about to receive all those Christmas credit card bills is not a good idea. Here are some overheard convos, "Yes, Capital Con, can you please tell me why I could either buy a mid-sized Caribbean Island or send you my minimal monthly payment? Oh yeah? Well, what's in your wallet? What do you mean you only use cash? I can see why!" ...or... "No wonder your mother loves you best, you bought her a hot tub!" ...or my personal favorite made popular by my husband.... "Gurgle, gurgle thud!" Those alone will make you want to crawl into the nearest bottle, pack of ciggies, bag of chips or hey, just jump into a combo of the three and have a oinkfest to end all oinkfests.

Which brings me to...

Resolution 2: I'm going on a diet!

Come on people, how can you expect to keep this one with all those left over Christmas goodies in the house? Better to say; I'll go on a diet in the late Spring. This way all the Valentine and Easter candy will be gone too. This is what I call the Have Your Candy and Eat It Too plan.

Resolution 3: I'm going start working out every single day!

Ack! Okay, it's healthy, at least, it seems to be, but, I'm a little suspicious of the terminology involved. The word aerobic sounds like a strange disease passed through the air. Think about it, when those(strangely happy) people get hot their sweat turns to steam and pervades the air, soaking into your skin and going into your lungs. Nasty! Before you know it, you too are bouncing around in brightly colored, unflattering, tight fitting clothing that you wouldn't otherwise be caught dead in and your face is stuck in that freaky rictus smile too! It's the 80's revisited. Believe me, once was plenty.

And then, there's the word exercise which sounds and looks a lot like the word exorcise. Since that last word pertains to demons, (my own skewed) logic dictates that both do.

My theory is supported by the fact that both cause:

1. Unnatural contortions of the body and face
2. Pain filled grunts, screams, groans emanating from the victims
3. Crying and/or begging for mercy from said victim's deity of choice.

I could go on but I think I've proved my point and my psychosis with this one ;)

Resolution 4: I'm getting a new and better job!

Trying to do this right after the Christmas buying binge is over isn't going to be easy. But, doing so right at the beginning of the year will make next year's tax forms neat and tidy. Ooops, did I say the T-word too early? I'm sorry! That's another blog, which involves procrastination, number crunching and the perils of lying to the scariest governmental organization in the universe(and beyond). Death and taxes are both inevitable. Wait a mo! On second thought, you could get a job at one of those tax places that pop up overnight. Go You!

Resolution 5: I'm going to find the perfect girlfriend/boyfriend!

There's no such thing as perfect, which would be why I write and why I read romance novels. Those alpha dudes have perfect aim.. when putting their socks in the hamper. *grins* Of course, the best and easiest resolution anyone could make would be to read more books. Whether it be romances or any kind. Books can make all your resolutions much more attainable too. And no, I'm not talking about those self help ones, not that there's anything wrong with them.

You don't believe me do you? I'll illustrate how reading can help with each of the resolutions above.

Res 1. Get caught up in a great book and you'll forget to smoke or drink or talk too much. That helps kick that bad habit right there.

Res 2. Reading makes you thinner. Sure it can, if you spend your lunch money on books...again *coughs*

Res 3. Getting lost in a good story can make even me, a total exercise-phobe forget that I'm on the terrible treadmill, evil eliptical machine or satanic stationary bike for half hour segments at a time.

Res 4. Getting caught reading at work can cause you to get fired, thereby making it so that you have to find a new job to support your book addiction.

Res 5. Reading can help you at least look smart. But there's the very real fact that it does enrich your vocabulary not to mention help you learn new skills. What genre you choose will of course determine the type of skills you acquire. *wiggles brows* But remember, knowledge is power and power is sexy. Meowrr!


Happy New Year and Happy Reading!
Jenna Leigh

New Year's Eve, Eve

All is still quiet on the western, eastern, northen and southern front while the last of the holidays moves along and we prepare to greet a new year. Those who make resolutions are scrambling to put everything in order and get ready to spend the next six weeks--I mean the next year--doing better and being better than they were the year before. Good luck with all your endeavors, but I have a suggestion for this time around.

Rather than resolutions, make decisions and follow them up with concrete plans. Don't outline what you hope to do but what you're going to do and how you're going to do it. And in the midst of all that determinaton and accomplishment remember to mix the magical and the mundane and go for broke!

Learn a new language. Then take the experience and build a new world, even if noone ever reads the result but you.
Take up a musical instrument. Then compose a song of a lost civilization.
Look into a craft. Then create an artifact from an alien world.

While you're caught up in what you feed your belly, make sure to feed your spirit and your imagination.
Resolve to play more and laugh more and do something that makes you afraid.
Get out and walk more, it's a great thing, but remember to look for Faerie Folk while you're out there, because they'll be looking for you.
When you finally get yourself organized, make sure you leave space for things with no purpose aside from looking pretty and smelling nice and inspiring you to places you can't get to any other way.

Do all the things that we all do at the beginning of a new year, and then do all the things we should do.

Happy New Year

Happy New You

And Happiness...Just for the sake of Happiness.

New Year's Ramble Done

~X