05 January 2011

You say goodbye, I say hello


On the left is my writing plan for 2010: marked up and finished for good, whether I accomplished all my goals or not. And on the right is my writing plan for 2011: started but mostly blank, waiting for the year to reveal itself as whatever it's going to be.

And that's how I did in 2010 from a purely numerical standpoint: wordcount per month. Obviously NaNoWriMo brought November to the top. I can see that I started the year writing one novel, and I finished it in March.  Then I had a lull during the early summer (I was editing) and began another novel in July that I finished in October. As for December... another lull.

This year? I have a few ideas and lines for my next project, and I have a lot of editing to do on the work I did last year. I have magazines I want to submit to and contests I want to enter. My oh my do I have books I want to read. And I sure as heck have a conference I want to attend (oh please oh please.)

As for this blog, I will continue to post about the writing life from my librarian perspective.  As ebooks become more prevalent and libraries fight for their lives, the world is changing so quickly it's a little bit amazing to me to go back even a year or two in my posts and read what concerned me then. Oh, how young and innocent I was, ha ha, ha ha. Anyway, as the man wrote: So it goes.

It's going to be a great year.
Posted by at 3:21 PM
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13 comments:

  1. This is the wonderful yearly plan I've been hanging to see. What are each of the columns?

    I'm in reflection mode and looking forward to making a list of all done last year and a brief sketch of what I want to do this year.

    I particularly like the fact its a sketch in motion, rather than a strictly planned out year. And also enamoured by the fact I can see one and I know there is another project on there that came from my creative craziness.

    You have inspired me... again!

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  2. Ah! I'd intended to mention the column headings. They're: Reading/Editing, Academics, Short fiction, Novels, and finally Queries. The last is an addition from last year, when I just scribbled the number of queries I'd submitted along the margins. Under "Academics" I also include "Networking," which is basically this blog, writing groups, and other interactive things I do that aren't quite writing, yet help my writing. No idea why they're in the same column but that happens to be what my brain does.

    I think having it a "sketch in motion" (well put!) is what helped me keep it and continue adding to it and reminding myself of what I'd hoped to do. Shit happens, after all. Any good plan has to allow for that.

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  3. That looks super organised. The graph of your output is a great way to quickly see where you worked. Might have to try a yearly plan. Currently I use on of the week to a page Moleskine diaries that has a note book page opposite. I put in goals for that week and use the note page to plan stories or chapters or whatever I am doing that week. I take it everywhere.

    Hope your 2011 is even better than you plan it to be. :)

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  4. Wow, you kicked serious butt in 2010. Three novel? I bow to you. :)

    Good luck with your goals in 2011 and I'd love to hear more about your take on e-books and the effect it has on libraries.

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  5. Dan, I'd love to use a Moleskine. They're gorgeous books and so traditionally a writer's friend. Alas I'm awful at getting back to a weekly diary and always abandon it in mid-January, so a scrappy piece of paper is all I can do. But I like the sound of your system. And thank you! I hope your 2011 is fantastic. :)

    Danielle, thank you too! And good luck to us both. As for my opinions on ebooks and libraries... try and stop me from sharing as time goes on.

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  6. That plan looks fantastic. I'm into graphs and all that.

    Look forward to your posts on eBooks

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  7. Dearest Cousin,

    I love seeing your writing data!!! :-) In particular, the bar graph. And I admire so much that that you are following your passion in life and are actually doing it! And keeping such accounts! Yes!

    I read many more of your blog posts than I comment on, but I just felt like sending you some love with words through cyberspace vibrations instead of love vibrations through the noosphere... xoxo

    Hope I get to visit you in London soon,
    Love Always,
    ~J

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  8. I'm not much into setting word count goals, but I always enjoy looking back at my word count progress. The yearly graph is a fun idea. I may start toting up my monthly word counts, so I can produce my own graph at the end of the year.

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  9. Benjamin and K.M., I really do recommend the yearly graph. It tells a lot about how the year went and lets me realistically look at next year (without getting discouraged, because look at the lovely bars!)

    Janine, it's so great to see you here (& in London! Sometime. :) ) Thanks for your support, & much love back at you.

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  10. It IS going to be a great year! And I second your Oh,please, please, please re: a certain conference.

    I've known you a long time now and didn't know you graphed your wordcounts. I love it. Getting this deeper glimpse into your process was very fun!

    Happy (prolific!) writing in 2011.

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  11. Thanks Ev!

    My wordcounts have been a work in progress (heh.) I started writing them down a few years ago, and adding up month-by-month, but this is the first time I've graphed them.

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  12. What a great method for planning your writing time, and documenting what you have accomplished - you have inspired me again!

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  13. Thanks gideon, I'm glad to hear it. :)

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