Looking Back & Forward To The New Year

It’s often said that looking back offers only a rosy-eyed view, but I think this Yuletide between-time also offers the clearest. Ostensibly we’ve had a week off from our normal hamster-wheel activities – time for a laugh, general bonhomie, relaxation, and a needed deep breath. Assessing where we are comes easier.

Over the past few years problems with my health grew to impinge on normal life and, for my writer side, disrupted my concentration. 2016 was one of physical rehabilitation which has gone well; my concentration is still under review.

I’ve not done too badly. This blog has resumed its weekly posts, I’ve opened a YouTube channel for my video booktrailers, and added substantially to my work-in-progress, Pilgrims of the Pool, the last in the Torc of Moonlight trilogy. But I also discovered a hole in it – that concentration element – which should have been waving warning flags, or was waving warning flags that I failed to see. As a result one of its three storylines needs to be ripped out, re-planned and re-written, and the other storylines dovetailed into it. Such happens, but it needn’t have.

So, high on my Resolutions for this coming year is re-cultivating my concentration, and that means going back to basics and re-learning good habits. I’m a list person, always have been as my memory has never been my outstanding asset. Have list + kitchen timer = better habits. At least that’s the plan.

What’s your plan? And your best habit?

In the meantime I have news! As part of bolstering my public presence – another of my New Year’s Resolutions – I am interviewed on AL Butcher’s Fantasy site Library of Erana talking about my novels, research, writing techniques in general, and the importance of editing. Join me across there, or back here next Saturday. Or if you’d prefer, add your email to the box in the column to have my posts delivered quietly to your Inbox. As I’ve found with the blogs I follow, it makes life so much easier.

See you next week. And may you enjoy a Happy & Successful New Year.

Those Resolutions - Update

Mid-month is about the time all those New Year's Resolutions start to wobble. Have mine?

Surprisingly enough, no. I say this because I am truly surprised they are working as well as they are. The key has been to turn my work-day life around, so I shall be sticking with the change: mornings are exercise, housework, decluttering (believe me, it's needed), and social media; afternoons are dedicated to writing; evenings to reading & relaxation with a quick drop in to social media.

The concerted exercise is definitely having an effect on my endurance. As to the writing, after delivering a short-short for an anthology, and putting to bed a longer short story, I am back on with the work-in-progress Pilgrims of the Pool. And about time, too.

Those Resolutions

Yes, it's the New Year and, although we really don’t believe we’ll keep any resolutions we make, we feel that we should at least show willing.

Followers of these posts know that I started what amounts to my New Year’s resolutions way back in early December, under the thought umbrella of there has to be a better way than this... The marketing & promotion side of that will continue.

I also have the regaining of my health to consider, in fact prioritise, because without health none of us can work to our potential, and sitting at a keyboard for hours on end is not exactly conducive. So this festive season has been a time to take stock.

I’ve always thought of myself as a morning person – not a 5am morning person; that’s the middle of the night – but a morning was when I used to be at my freshest. Now it’s when I’m my creakiest, when I’m most interrupted, and distracted. So I’m turning my working day around, and I’ll try it for a month to see how it goes.

And that’s my advice. If it hasn’t worked well in the previous year why continue down the same path in the coming year? To turn our lives around we often have to... turn our lives around.

Best of luck with keeping your own resolutions. And a Happy New Year!

 

How about you? Has a New Year’s Resolution blossomed into a life-changing event?