New Year’s is more a time of reflection than resolution for me. It is about considering how I spent my time this year and where I want to focus my energy for the future.

I always pick 10 things with varying degrees of required energy. Some of the goals are easier because they are already a regular habit. Others I know are going to take more dedicated time to complete.

Reflecting on 2024 Goals:

1. Rewrite a novel by the end of the 1st Quarter: prioritizing “Blood Braided by Moonlight.” SUCCESS. Actually I redrafted the entire novel twice this year. Now just short of 100k words, it is finally in a stage that I feel excited to share, though no agent has responded positevly yet.
2. Complete the first draft of a new book. SUCCESS. I completed my NaNoWriMo goal and completed the first draft of Of Teeth and Dreams.
3. Write 1 short story per month (or 12 total). Partial Success. I wrote 4 short stories this year, which is only a third of my goal, but it is still something.
4. Update my blog and social media with new posts once a week. SUCCESS. This a success even though I missed a few weeks while moving and elsewhere. Including this one, I posted 40 blog updates and a lot more than that on social media.
5. Get an agent for publishing a book. Partial Success. I did follow through and put out 30 queries for my novel, though that is apparently on the lower side of querying. It felt like a lot at the time since each one is like a job application, but I did not get an agent.
6. Participate in a roleplaying game every month. SUCCESS. With my two roleplaying groups still alternating weeks, even with cancelations, we played at least one game every month. These were truly some of the highlights of the year.
7. Work out at least once a week. Partial Success. I did not reach my final goal, and I did not work out regularly for most of the year. But I did get a physical therapist to help me work through some of my back pain, and I did coach 7th grade girls Volleyball this fall, which was a regular workout in of itself.
8. Complete relationship workbook, “Securely Attached” by Eli Harwood. At 150 pages. SUCCESS. My wife and I have been fairly consistent in reading about 6 pages every other weekend and discussing the contents together.
9. Complete 1 tarot reading per month. Unsuccessful. Every month I put these off, and therefore did one or two for the festivals, and none the rest of the year.
10. Get a 3rd tattoo. Unsuccessful. Partially because of moving and partially because I changed my mind about what I want, this did not happen.

I completed 50% of my goals completely and another 30% partially. I like numbers, so for me this means I completed roughly 65% of my goals for 2024. I want to do better, so I will adjust some of the goals for next year. For some I will alter their focus to what is more important to me, and for others I will simply make them more reasonable since I am having a baby.

2025 Goals:

1. Rewrite a novel by the end of 1st Quarter, prioritizing “Of Teeth and Dreams.” I am currently excited about this newer story and want to share it with a few alpha readers after the next draft. Being a slightly shorter story than last year’s, this should be doable.
2. Complete the draft of a new novel or novella by the end of November. I will have a baby by November so I am not convinced that I will be able to complete 50k words in a month, but I would like to finish a new book that is at least 30k by the end of the year.
3. Publish a new short story series. The past 2 years I have published a series of short stories on my blog. This has included both new and old stories. I would like to complete another series this year as well.
4. Update my blog and social media once a week. I want to find a replacement for “X” since the platform appeals to me less and less, and continue to post regular blog updates.
5. Participate in roleplaying games every month. Thankfully both of my RPG groups are still intact, and I am still excited to keep playing.
6. Join a Parenting or Dad Group. Since everyone says having a child is a miraculous though initially overwhelming event, I imagine having a support group will help. My wife and I will be attending some birth and parenting classes, and I hope to join a more formal group by the end of the year.
7. Complete relationship workbook “Raising Securely Attached Kids”. It is the sequel to the book we worked through this year, and it will be the first book that I plan to read on parenting.
8. Complete 1 tarot reading per month. I have set reminders for every 1st Saturday of the month and will do better this year.
9. Get a 3rd tattoo. I had an elaborate tattoo that I have been planning and changing for the past 2 years. Instead I am going to get a simple tattoo to celebrate the date of my baby’s birth by the end of summer.
10. Write, Code, or Weave for 15 minutes per day, at least 5 times a week. I have several different hobbies that I enjoy spending time on, and they take differing amounts of creative energy. Writing usually takes the most, so it will likely only get done on nonwork days. Computer game coding takes attention to detail, but slightly less creative energy since I am still learning and using a lot of tutorials. Weaving chainmail takes even less creative energy and is one of my few hobbies that does not include a screen. I plan to focus on doing one of these every day even after I have a baby.

I will be printing my goals and hanging the list near my bed or desk to remind me regularly of the things I am working towards. I am extremely excited to be a dad and imagine the process will make many of these goals more difficult to complete than I even imagine.

However, I think it of vital importance to continue working on myself and enjoying life regardless of whatever else is going on. And the things on this list do exactly that. Thanks for joining me on this journey.