Nicole J Simms/ July 4, 2018/ Blog/ 0 comments

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June 2018 Writing Goals Review and July 2018 Writing Goals

Wow, June really flew by, and I can’t believe it’s July already. Now, while June didn’t go exactly to plan, I did do a lot better with my goals. I think having less to focus on does help. So, let’s see what I did in June.

  • Writing Goal 1: Novel 4th draft – edit 50,000 words
    Result: I didn’t edit 50,000 words, but I did manage to edit a chapter. You won’t believe how long I have been working on that chapter, so it was great to finally tick it off the list. I do, however, want to do more in July, though; otherwise, I will need 68 months to finish the fourth draft.
  • Writing Goal 2: Do outline for 2nd standalone novel
    Result: I’ve not finished the outline because I’m still working on the idea itself. However, I did make several pages of notes for the novel, which is more than I have done in the previous months. The story is starting to form, and I’m now getting a better idea of which direction I need to go in.
  • Writing Goal 3: OWG anthology – finalise 1 story/poem
    Result: I’ve nearly completed this goal. I need to do a final read through and check spelling and grammar before I mark the story as complete.
  • Writing Goal 4: Read The Unquiet House by Alison Littlewood
    Result: Yes, I finished reading this book, and I will share my thoughts on it in a later post.
  • Writing Goal 5: Read a short story – ‘Désirée’s Baby’ by Kate Chopin
    Result: Yes, I read this short story, and I loved the twist/surprise ending. It teaches people a good lesson. You see why you shouldn’t treat people who are different to you badly because it may turn out that you are not that different after all.

So now it’s July, which means it’s time for some new goals.

My July Writing Goals

  • Novel 4th draft – edit 10,000 words
  • Do outline task 1 for 2nd standalone novel
  • OWG anthology – finalise 2 story/poem
  • Read Sunglasses After Dark by Nancy Collins
  • Read a short story – ‘The Body Snatcher’ by Robert Louis Stevenson

I’ve decided to reduce the word count goal for my novel because editing 50,000 words is too much at the moment, so I’m hoping I can do better with a smaller word count. Also, I have changed the second standalone novel goal; I plan to complete task one instead of doing all of the planning. Task one involves noting down ideas, questions and thoughts which is done before any serious planning starts. Looking at what I have already, I do see myself completing task one this month as long as I can find time in the evening. For the OWG anthology, I plan to finalise two pieces instead of only one – I am, however, cheating here because I have nearly completed one piece already.

Writing goals aside, I did have some good news. My story ‘The Unexpected Trade’ was one of 148 stories published on the FlashFlood Journal website. Yes, I know I wasn’t meant to submit any short stories, but the story was already edited (I plan to include it in the Oldbury Writing Group anthology) and I desperately wanted to get another FlashFlood acceptance, so I couldn’t resist. It was also nice to finally get a story acceptance because 2017 was full of nothing but rejections. So, folks, you may have plans, but don’t be afraid to stray from them because something better can come along.

How did you do in June? Feel free to comment below. I’d love to hear how everyone else is doing.

Keep writing, folks!

Oh, and before I go, if you want email alerts of my latest posts, then please subscribe. And don’t forget you can follow me on Twitter, or like my Facebook page.

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