January 2024: Revision Reflections
Photo by BoliviaInteligente on Unsplash
I love a New Year. Because with the New Year comes my hope for a new beginning. It’s not as if the past year has been one filled with gloom and doom, but there is something about a new year that promises 365 days of something much better than whatever the last year held. It’s like a bright Monday morning when the week is just beginning, your energy level is high, and your long to-do list seems actually doable. Or the first day of school when you’re wearing shiny new shoes and you just know that your hard work will yield straight A’s on each and every report card.
For most of us, All Is Possible at the stroke of midnight at the start of a new year. Weight will be lost. Money will be saved. And finally, at long last, the novel you’ve been putting off for so long Will be written. For me, not a year begins without the hope that This Will Be the Year I will achieve ALL of my professional goals. I will write five award-winning books. I will meet all of my deadlines. I will find time between writing my award-winning books to Travel, Cook Amazing Meals for Friends and Family, Garden and Exercise Daily. Perhaps I will even write a Travel Cookbook Memoir (with recipes from my garden bounty)! I will keep a clean and organized desk to meet my deadlines and write my books. And when not writing, gardening, or cooking, I will read every single book on my TBR list. Not such a tall order for the start of a new year, right? Because it’s 2024 and Anything Is Possible!
And that is precisely where I get myself into trouble.
It could be the month of January that is partly to blame. Here on the east coast, gray skies, short days, and cold air in a very long, nearly holiday-free stretch make January the bleakest of months. Wedged between merry-making December and a romance-themed February, January seems downright depressing. If it weren’t for the New Year goal-setting (and, of course, the celebration of MLK Day), what else would January have to offer?
Yet the unrealistic goals I place on myself as a writer at the start of the new year have led me to my annual end-of-the-year doldrums. How is it that I missed so many deadlines? My ingenious book ideas sit in files waiting to be written. Unread stacks of books seem to only grow in piles around my home.
Generally speaking, resolutions are a fail.
They fail for the same reason that gym memberships dramatically increase in January and dramatically decrease by February. Routines, not resolutions, are what keeps you going long after willpower fades. It is the daily work of showing up that matters, sometimes more than the final results. If I know this, why then does my off-the-chart, unrealistic goal-making continue year after year?
Perhaps it is because this is what writers do. Dream up worlds. In this case, a purely fictional world where I am the protagonist acting out the part of the hyper-focused, flawless writer I myself have never met.
As any writer knows, the work of writing is never about one month on a calendar. It is about all twelve. It is about the act of sitting in your chair with your head in your hands, wondering when the words will come and thanking the universe when they do. And the next day doing it all over again with hopefully slightly better results.
Routines, not resolutions, are what keeps you going long after willpower fades.
Goals. Resolutions. Both are perfectly fine. But if you really want to stay committed to writing in 2024 and beyond, consider a few more practical offerings I have gathered from some writing folks through the years:
First, spend time thinking about what you want to write and WHY? Understanding your writing goals is crucial to how you approach everything from the time you devote to writing, to managing a career, to choosing the subjects on which you will focus.
Find community. No one keeps you more on track and motivated than a group of other writers to whom you are obligated to share pages and progress, engage with their writing and yours, and give and receive critical feedback. Both in-person and virtual writing groups are available at Jamie Attenberg’s #1000wordsofsummer, #nanowritmo, #12x12writingchallenge, along with other orgs for writers like SCBWI.
Develop a routine that works for you. An hour each evening, voice recordings during your morning walks, writing on your lunch breaks—whenever it is, set aside time on days you decide and be consistent by showing up for your writing.
Write for yourself. Not all writing is meant for publication. Some writing, like journaling, is more about tapping your creativity and/or understanding yourself. You get to decide who your audience is. Or, in the words of novelist Sam Lipsyte, “Don’t think about a career. Just think about the next sentence.”
Do find time for something other than writing. Like gardening, traveling, walking, dancing, cooking. Each experience enriches your writing journey.
Cheer yourself on when your goals are met, but especially when they aren’t. Writing can be a long, tedious journey, and you’ll need to learn to be your own best friend, cheerleader, and advocate.
Happy 2024! Here’s to a new year of simply beginning.
In community,
Lesa
