Nicole J Simms/ April 10, 2017/ Blog/ 0 comments

Share Button
March 2017 Writing Goals Review and April 2017 Writing Goals

It’s April! Can you believe it? I don’t know what happened to March. It feels like 2017 is zooming by, and I’m a snail trying to keep up. So, yeah, I’m not doing so well with my 2017 writing goals. Now I may not be moving at the right pace, but I am moving forward, which is still an achievement. And 2017 isn’t over yet, so who knows, I might surprise everyone and transform into a cheetah – one can wish.

So, with another new month, it’s time to review my March goals and to make some goals for April. March started slowly, but after writing my ‘10 Ways to Be a More Productive Writer’ blog post, I started to pick up the pace. However, at the end of March, I had to put my writing on hold for a while. But I’m back to it now, and hopefully, I can get back on track.

So, what were my March writing goals? Well, my March writing goals were:

Writing Goal 1: Finish the third draft of my novel

Result:I had changed this goal to finish half my novel by the end of March. I was on track with this; however, with having to put my writing on hold, I wasn’t able to achieve this goal. On a positive note, I have managed to complete nearly thirty percent of the third draft of my novel, so that’s something to celebrate.

Writing Goal 2: Finish planning my psychological horror novella

Result: I’m currently reading Dracula by Bram Stoker, and this novel has given me an idea for my novella. Dracula is written in a diary format, and I felt this allowed me to get even closer to the characters. So I’ve decided to write my novella the same way. However, this means I have to rethink my novella, which has set me back, but I feel this way will be a better way. Fingers crossed it works.

Writing Goal 3: Continue to work on story ideas for my flash fiction collection

Result: I’ve achieved this goal. However, it has become harder to find interesting ideas. Every Sunday, I watch Tales from the Darkside, which helps to open my mind to new ideas.

Writing Goal 4: Write the first drafts of 15 flash fictions for my flash fiction collection

Result: If I didn’t have to put my writing on hold, I would have completed this goal. However, I did manage to write the first drafts for eight flash fictions. So far I have 26,866 words towards my 30,000-word flash fiction collection, so I’ve nearly finished.

Writing Goal 5: Work on ideas for next novel

Result: I did manage to make some notes on my next novel, but it wasn’t much. I’m hoping once I have the novella planned, I will then have more time to work on my next novel.

Writing Goal 6: Submit three short stories to three submission calls

Result: I completed three short stories and submitted them to three submission calls. However, one of the submission calls was different to the original plan. When it comes to submitting my short stories, I seem to be doing a lot better than my other goals.

Writing Goal 7: Write story for submission call

Result: I decided not to write the story for the submission call I planned to enter because I didn’t have the time to write and edit the story correctly.

As you can see, I’ve not done too well with my March goals, but as I said previously, I’m still moving forward, even if it’s slower than I would like.

So now it’s April I have a list of new goals that I hope to achieve.

My April Writing Goals

  • Finish novel 3rd draft
  • Finish planning my psychological horror novella
  • Write the first drafts of 7 flash fictions for my flash fiction collection
  • Work on ideas for next novel

For April, I have decided not to work on any short story submission calls and focus on my novels, novella, and flash fiction collection. I think the main reason I haven’t done so well with my goals is that I’m trying to do too much. So this month I plan to do less in the hopes I can do more.
I hope everyone is doing well with their writing. And remember, something is better than nothing.

Keep writing, folks!

My latest, The Horror Tree, posts can be found at the links below.

http://horrortree.com/setting-self-doubt-on-fire-the-setting-self-doubt-on-fire-challenge/

http://horrortree.com/setting-self-doubt-on-fire-how-to-prepare-for-a-book-reading-event/

http://horrortree.com/setting-self-doubt-on-fire-its-nanowrimo-and-nanoedmo-time/

http://horrortree.com/setting-self-doubt-on-fire-help-i-didnt-reach-my-nano-goal/

http://horrortree.com/setting-self-doubt-on-fire-lets-beat-self-doubt-in-2017/

http://horrortree.com/wihm-setting-self-doubt-on-fire-female-horror-writer-and-proud/

http://horrortree.com/setting-self-doubt-on-fire-dont-let-self-doubt-make-you-miss-deadlines/

Share Button
Share this Post

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*
*


This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.