2021 Non-resolution Resolutions

Long time readers will know that I don’t like RESOLUTIONS. There’s too much focus on one day in the year, and there’s too much looking back on a previous year with regret, with a false determination to DO BETTER next year.
And it’s all too easy for the resolutions to fall flat.
Like: “This year, I’m going to lose x weight”. It’s a focussed target, which might appear to be good, but it’s a digital target. You will either succeed, or you will do the ‘F’ word – FAIL. And failure is a destructive state of mind.
We don’t like destructive things – we only like constructive things. So my resolutions are NOT resolutions – they’re aims, or goals. If I don’t reach those goals, I’m not going to beat myself up about it, because as you will have seen if you’ve read my ‘looking back‘ post, there’s still a lot to celebrate.
So let’s get started.

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2020 ROUNDUP

Yes, I know this year has been … different. That ancient philosopher who said “may you live in interesting times” needs to just shut up now. The ‘featured image’ sums up what a lot of people think about the year just gone.

But that doesn’t stop me from doing my annual roundup – a look back to last New Year at what I said I was going to try and do during 2020, and what I actually have done.

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November Hiatus

I’m afraid the blog is on a bit of a hiatus at the moment.

Every year, during November, I participate in [ NaNoWriMo ], a world-wide writing challenge to complete 50,000 words of first draft writing during November. This will be my 17th year of participation, trying for my 16th year (12th year in a row) of successfully concluding it.

Alas, despite being a full-time author, coach, mentor, and publisher, my November 2020 schedule is incredibly busy, and so the blog has had to take a back seat for the moment. I have several blog posts ‘roughed out’, but as we all know, 80% of the work takes 20% of the time, and I can’t afford to put other things to one side to keep the blog up to date.

With my partner [ Anita Belli ] we’re pretty much keeping the [ Afternoon Tea from Bookends vodcast ] up and going, so there’s that.

Normal service will resume when November rolls over into December.

Thank you for your understanding.

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19 days in – how are those targets?

I suppose one of my ‘start of year’ targets (see https://gerald-hornsby.com/blog/2015/12/31/welcome-2016/) should have been to make myself more accountable. Well, here goes. How am I doing?

✔︎ 1. to write one short story a week for the whole year (a.k.a. the Bradbury Challenge)
Yes! I’ve written 4 shorts in my linked series, and 7 (yes, seven!) pieces of flash fiction, one of which will be uploaded one day soon.

✔︎ 2. to write 100,000 words @ 1,000 words a day (a.k.a. #100kwords100days
Yes! I’m doing well, and certainly up to date, and in fact, slightly ahead. I also doing a 365k challenge for the whole year. Mad, I know.

⎋ 3. to do first edits on two previously-completed novels
Nothing more on this one yet.

⎋ 4. to self-publish two collections of short fiction for halloween and Christmas 
Nothing yet.

✘ 5. to write a blog post once per week (minimum)
Oops.

⎋ 6. to write book and short story reviews on the blog
Soon. Honest.

✔︎ 7. to be more active on Goodreads, posting reviews etc.
If you count logging in, updating my friends list and checking off my latest book, then yes, I’ve been more active.

So, all-in-all, not too bad. Some things are to be done later in the year, which is understandable, but apart from activity here, I’m doing well!

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