With the unethical and rampant appearance of AI writing and the continued decline of reading as a pastime, the art of writing can feel rather depressing. It is unlikelier now more than ever before that I will make a living off my writing or that my books will even be published. But it brings me joy to create a story that goes the way I want and is one of my favorite hobbies.

So I have continued to develop writing goals for the year.

1. Rewrite a novel by the end of the 1st Quarter, prioritizing “Blood Braided by Moonlight.”
2. Draft a new novel or novella by the end of November with the goal of 50,000 new words.
3. Publish a new short story series on my blog.
4. Update my blog and social media once a week, with a goal of completing at least 40 blog posts for the year.

“Blood Braided by Moonlight” is the favorite of the books I have ever written, of which I have completed a first draft of at least a dozen. This supernatural romance is now on its fifth major rewrite, and I plan to query it again this summer.

I have so many ideas for new novels all the time, but most never get off the ground. My Peter Pan retelling got 50,000 words in, so I may add another 50,000 to that this year, or I may start a completely new project. I usually save the novel writing until the summer or end of November as part of NaNoWriMo, so I have lots of time to consider and change my mind.

The last few years, I have published a series of 10 short stories on my blog. I will continue that habit by writing another dozen stories before the end of summer and publishing the best ones. I am already 2 stories in, and it is shaping up to be a third entry in “When Hope Burned White.”

With the ever evolving life of a parent, it can be a challenge to find time to write, but it somehow continues to happen.

What goals are you surprised happen for you?