During the course of figuring some things out lately, I came across an idea. It was supreme in it's simplicity, enough so, I'm rather ashamed I didn't think of it years ago.
I've been thinking of writing more as a career and less as a hobby lately, publication status notwithstanding. I can't keep waiting to sign with an agent or land that all important first novel sale to consider writing as my career of choice if I ever want to have a writing career. It's not just going to materialize from my wishes and dreams.
Can I predict if or when I'll land those contracts? No, but I can plan what projects I will work on when. Even if I never manage to sell the results of my labor, it will keep me sharp, stave off cabin fever, and provide entertainment for my family at least.
So, the other day I took a notebook and sat down to write out my writing plan for the next three years. Ambitious I know, but I know how my mind works. If I'm going to push for something, I need to see exactly how much I can accomplish. The possibilities didn't really sink in until I got to the goals for the later months of 2011.
Keeping myself to a schedule of writing and editing a combined total of about 30,000 words a month, I could do incredible things in the next few years. If I keep to the goals as they are laid out, I will have Right of Succession ready to submit by January along with having completed the blog to book project I'm undertaking for a friend. By the end of 2010, Of Secrets and Stones should be a growing blog novel and The Icarus Project should be about ready to submit. Midnight Rising, the second novel in the planned Yekara Series, will be roughed and heading into revisions by mid 2011. Work on the third novel, Storms of Hatred, will begin early in 2012 with revisions wrapping up toward the end of the year.
Like I've said, there's no telling if any of these novels or television series in the case of Icarus will come to fruition, but having the goals set, seeing what word counts I'll need to hit to make it happen, is wonderful motivation. A thousand words a day is doable. Before cutting, I've had several posts which could have hit that word count easily, and now, with my workspace making it possible for me to write even if the girls are up, I've no more excuses.
I've been thinking of writing more as a career and less as a hobby lately, publication status notwithstanding. I can't keep waiting to sign with an agent or land that all important first novel sale to consider writing as my career of choice if I ever want to have a writing career. It's not just going to materialize from my wishes and dreams.
Can I predict if or when I'll land those contracts? No, but I can plan what projects I will work on when. Even if I never manage to sell the results of my labor, it will keep me sharp, stave off cabin fever, and provide entertainment for my family at least.
So, the other day I took a notebook and sat down to write out my writing plan for the next three years. Ambitious I know, but I know how my mind works. If I'm going to push for something, I need to see exactly how much I can accomplish. The possibilities didn't really sink in until I got to the goals for the later months of 2011.
Keeping myself to a schedule of writing and editing a combined total of about 30,000 words a month, I could do incredible things in the next few years. If I keep to the goals as they are laid out, I will have Right of Succession ready to submit by January along with having completed the blog to book project I'm undertaking for a friend. By the end of 2010, Of Secrets and Stones should be a growing blog novel and The Icarus Project should be about ready to submit. Midnight Rising, the second novel in the planned Yekara Series, will be roughed and heading into revisions by mid 2011. Work on the third novel, Storms of Hatred, will begin early in 2012 with revisions wrapping up toward the end of the year.
Like I've said, there's no telling if any of these novels or television series in the case of Icarus will come to fruition, but having the goals set, seeing what word counts I'll need to hit to make it happen, is wonderful motivation. A thousand words a day is doable. Before cutting, I've had several posts which could have hit that word count easily, and now, with my workspace making it possible for me to write even if the girls are up, I've no more excuses.
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