Goals are not Resolutions

 When I first started writing, I was completely clueless. The last time I got anywhere near a proper English class was high school way back in the 1970s and I had no experience of any kind with creative writing classes. As I neared my seventh decade and got a hankering for doing something more than writing the odd poem, I enrolled in a creative writing workshop back in 2018. I also devoured all the amazing information that is available these days—from books to blog posts and magazines to social media. I learned about heroes and cats and all kinds of dos and don’ts. 

That was almost six years ago. In 2024, I FINALLY completed my first and long-languishing novel, YOUR PAL AL. It is currently with beta readers and an editor. I plan to query in a few months. I also completed a much shorter MG horror that is also with a beta reader/editor. Once I edit and revise the words, I plan extensive illustration work. Fingers-crossed, that, too, will be ready to query in 2025, but that one will take a back seat to the illustration work ahead of me for a number of projects—primarily, my wife’s children’s book. First in the queue are the cover illustration/design for a friend’s novel and a couple of Drabble Zines. Those need to be finished before June as I hope to unveil them for DCAZ this year. 

I launched the Drabble Zine project last year with writing and illustration from a couple of flash writing projects I had previously published. One is a zombie tale, Enda Things. It appeared on the site, Free Flash Fiction, in 2023. The other is called Gryll the Invincible. That one was published in the anthology, Wyrms II in 2024 and is available on Amazon. It is an episode between a grizzled knight and a wise old dragon. If you are interested, you can get your own at my Etsy shop. A drabble, if you aren’t familiar with the term, is a piece of flash fiction that tell a complete story in exactly 100 words. 

For 2025, I planned to continue what I started in 2024, and finish things. Last year, I focused on the two aforementioned writing projects—Your Pal Al and Grave New World. This year, I am moving more toward wrapping up a couple of illustration projects. I do plan to write, but mostly short stories and poetry.

And this brings me back full circle. While I pay much less attention to writing advice from others, I do still read some articles and follow the writing community on the socials. I hope I can rid myself of Xitter, once and for all, this year. I think I have settled on Bluesky for writing and Instagram for my art. Facebook, I generally keep for family and friends, but I mix the others in as well, but a bit more judiciously. To kick off 2025, Writer’s Digest is doing a ten day Get Started Right Writing Challenge. Day one, yesterday, was listing my writing goals. However, mine aren’t isolated to writing.

Here’s my list of CREATIVE goals for 2025:

1. Finish layout, artwork, and design for Mrs. Shiny
2. Finish layout, artwork, and design for secret cyberpunk novel
3. Finish layout, artwork, and design for two Drabble Zines
4. Finish revisions and edits for Your Pal Al and query.
5. Finish revisions and edits for Grave New World.
6. Write more poetry.
7. Write at least 4 short stories.
8. Finish a first draft of the novella.
9. Start work on a collection of poems.
10. Attend at least four in-person literary events during the year.

This is probably far too ambitious BUT I WILL complete the first 5. The rest are aspirational. 

What are your goals?