Wednesday, December 6, 2017

#IWSG 5 Year-End Questions for Writers

It's hard to believe this is the last IWSG post for the year. Today is the day when we share our insecurities, as well as encouragement with other writers. If you’d like to join us, click on the tab above and sign up. We post the first Wednesday of every month and encourage everyone to visit at least a dozen new blogs and leave a comment. Your words might be the encouragement someone needs.

Captain Alex will be ably assisted today on his rounds by 
 Julie Flanders, Shannon Lawrence, Fundy Blue, and Heather Gardner!

The optional question for December is - As you look back on 2017, with all its successes/failures, if you could backtrack, what would you do differently?


5 Year-End Questions for Writers

It's that time of year when many of us scribes are thinking about what's ahead for the New Year. If you're super organized, you would already have that in the bag, but some of us stragglers will still be working out what's critical and what's not for 2018.

Analyzing what has gone and what is to come is important for planning. It not only helps us to determine how much ground we've covered, but it's also helpful in trying to come up with a practical approach to what we want to achieve.  Here are some questions you may want to ask yourself as you plan for the coming year.

1.      What didn't you complete this year? Is there a chance you will finish before year end? If you don't, this task will likely be at the top of the following year's list.
2.      What things worked and didn't work for you this year? If you have one, did you get your newsletter out on time? How did you do on the social media platforms you frequent? Is it time to think about dropping any and focusing your efforts in one or two places?
3.      What do you hope to achieve in terms of writing and publishing? This is the fun part where you get to document in black and white what you will be writing and decide on deadlines.
4.      Is there any area or special skill set you're interested in that you could take the time to learn to enhance your personal development? This could be learning a new programme or researching a genre you may be interested in learning to write.
5.      In all of the figuring you do, don't forget your personal life. Do leave yourself some wiggle room to try some fun activity that's new to you or simply time to work on being a better you!

Have you decided on your writing and publication list for 2018? Do you know what shiny new thing you are going to attempt next year?

24 comments:

Pat Hatt said...

Personal life is a good one to focus on indeed. I have everything written for next year, so I'm good lol

Natalie Aguirre said...

Great questions to ask ourselves as we look forward. And yes, fun, relaxing time is important to fit in. This is especially true for writers who have other jobs as well as writing their stories.

Joylene Nowell Butler said...

I'm coming back and answering these questions. I think that's a smart move. Thanks, Joy. Happy IWSG day.

Bish Denham said...

Great questions! I need to seriously contemplate and answer them.

Meka James said...

Great questions. These are all things I'll think about and try to answer in my wrap up the year post. I made goals for the first time this year, so going back to see what I hit and what I didn't will be interesting.

L. Diane Wolfe said...

Those are very helpful questions.

The Cynical Sailor said...

Great questions. I think I know the answers to all of them, but I probably should spend some more time reflecting on them and making sure I've got the right goals for this coming year. Cheers - Ellen

Christine Rains said...

Awesome questions. I tried a lot with marketing this year, and the lesson I learned I will put into practice next year: focus much more on writing!

Karen Baldwin said...

Ah...a shiny new thing? I gotta figure that one out. Merry Christmas and a joyous holiday season.

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Deadlines are what I need to work on.

Cherie Reich said...

Fantastic questions! I do know what I plan to work on next year, but we'll see how the year goes if they'll work out.

Sandra Cox said...

Great questions. My 2017 project is leaking into 2018.

Sandra Cox said...

Great questions, Lee.
My 2017 project is leaking into 2018.

Liza said...

Wow. What questions! Wish I were that organized!

Juneta key said...

I like to think about the ALL the things that DID WORK so I can feel good about my writing unless they will make it not work next year, and those need evaluation and analysis, so I can change them just like you said. Kicker is - I do just that - think about everything that did not work or worked out. It is a good thing to do but for me better the other way most of the time.

Great post with thoughtful questions. Let's get out the construction tools and build us a road.

Tyrean Martinson said...

Great questions! Now ... to answer them.

Diane Burton said...

Taking time for family and to enjoy ourselves is really important. I love playing with the grandchildren and holding the new ones. Nothing tops that. Using my time wisely comes in second. After that, everything should fall into place. Taking care of ourselves should be right up there, too. I hope you & your family enjoy the holidays.

Karen Baldwin said...

These questions are great to poke my procrastination. Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

J.L. Campbell said...

Pat, you do sound like you're good to go!

Natalie, yep, balance is a good thing.

Hey, Joylene, I've tackled them myself.

Hi, Bish, do yourself the favour when you have time.

Meka, congrats on that. Great way to know if you've hit those targets.

Thanks, Diane!

Ellen, I hope you get the time to think on these.

Christine, yes, without the material to market there isn't much point.

Em-Musing, enjoy your holiday season as well.

Alex, mine would be to stop coming up with such crazy ones.

Cherie, I hope you meet your targets.

Sandra, I hope I'm done before year end and hope you get yours done early in 2018.

Liza, start small and see what you achieve.

Junetta, whatever works for us, we shoud continue to do.

Tyrean, I hope you get around to it.

Here's hoping you enjoy the holidays too, Diane. Family is indeed precious.

Roland Clarke said...

Having looked back over 2017 - in my December IWSG post - those are five good questions and follow neatly from my reflections. I have finally got a sense of what 2018 writing goals are uppermost. Plus there will be room for personal things, like exploring the state where I now live, going fishing, where possible with my wife's family.

dolorah said...

All good questions to ask myself. I may open a word document and try to write out some answers. Particularly to #3.

Thanks Joy

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

I do have a new thing planned for next year and I'm working on making it shiny.

Dihiwi said...

I really like this group! Writing a post each month about writing reminds me to write at least once a month. Sad, I know. Not a very industrious goal. However, when life and its demands overtake my schedule, I do appreciate having one reminder to get back to business, even if it's just once a month. I'm sharing a short-term goal for December and I'd love any words of wisdom that you might have, to help me succeed. Merry Christmas and I hope the holidays are a time of refreshment and joy for you! http://www.dianeweidenbenner.com/iwsg-end-of-year-musings/

H.R. Bennett said...

Good questions that need chewing on before I answer them.