If you’re a writer, you probably made a few writing goals for 2016. You may have written them down and posted them in your writing space. Or maybe you saved them on your computer. Maybe, you’re relying on your memory to not fail you (which would not work for me)!
And now that we’re nearing the end of January, it might be time to revisit that list and see if you’re working toward those goals. Seems easy enough. You might still be off to a great start! You might not. But, there’s a reason. And now is the time to readjust, not six months from now.
In a local SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators) meeting last week, our facilitator led the group in creating attainable writing goals for the year. She had some excellent advice that will help any writer. But, there’s one piece of advice that I think can jumpstart your writing goals. Even if you’ve had success thus far, consider revising your goals with this question in mind:
Is your goal specific? She gave a helpful example: “Write more” is not specific. Setting an hourly goal for each week, or a daily or weekly word count is specific.
So, at the meeting, after initially penning some goals, we all revised them according to the facilitator’s questions. What were my goals for 2016? Here are my initial goals:
- Revise and edit my chapter book ms
- Find a critique group/partner
- Blog frequently and consistently
Here are my revised goals after asking myself if they were specific enough:
- Revise chapter book ms once by end of February (I’ll set my next goal for that specific ms at that time)
- Find a critique group/partner by end of March
- Post 1-2 blog posts per week (so it doesn’t interfere with other writing)
I have to admit I am much happier with my goals after revising them. So, take a few minutes to revisit your goals, looking at them with specificity in mind, and see if they need adjustment. Then, leave me a comment and let me know one of your writing goals for 2016!
Moriah Hamm 