2022: Year End Review
Setting goals is one of the things I enjoy and find extremely helpful. It allows me to manage numerous responsibilities and schedules all at once. It also provides a sense of accomplishment every time I knock something off the list, no matter how big or small a task it is! And though I’m setting goals for myself all the time, I’m still amazed how many specific things I’ve accomplished this year.
2022 has been extremely productive, to say the least. Here are some of my stats, at the end of the year:
Read 15 books/10 short stories (my Goodreads page)
Wrote 39 blog posts
Wrote 121,956 words (Approximately, as it’s hard to keep track of everything!)
Created this website, defined my brand, designed the Lamh Book’s logo
Applied to 5 writing contests, won Honorable Mention in one of them
Outlined “The Waking”
Attended a fantasy writer’s webinar put on by ProWritingAid
Attended 18 out of 22 meetings at my local writer’s critiquing group (SCWA)
Outlined “A Voracious Grief” at least 3 times
Hired 2 artists for different content creation, as well as an editorial service for my novel
Designed the cover for “A Voracious Grief” (stay tuned!)
Drew 5 maps and created several artwork pieces related to my stories (Want to see? sign up here)
Published 4 newsletters (between my Portfolio and a social club I started this summer)
Purchased a license from Harvard University Press to include Dickenson poetry in my novel
Listened to hours upon hours of podcasts on writing, marketing, book launches, publishing, etc
Took a personal writing retreat
Finished drafting “A Voracious Greif”
My biggest goal this year was finish my novel, which I did! Then my secondary focus has been building up my website and establishing an author brand. Blogging throughout the year, with a short respite in April, provided ample opportunities to explore topics I hope to engage in my fiction. The weekly practice of drafting a post, refining, and distributing it allowed me to hone my writing skills and learn from my mistakes (which happened a bit more frequently than I liked! But that is how we learn best, isn’t it?).
However, the weekly pace of posting was often challenging for me, in the midst of an already-full family schedule. So this year, as homeschooling continues to grow more complex and demanding of my time and resources, I’ll be pulling back on my writing workload. Blog posts will go out less frequently. I’m going to shoot for every other week, but may do fewer in busier seasons.
Newsletters full of publishing details, artwork and extra content will continue to roll out once a quarter. If you’re not signed up for that, find it on my Portfolio page.
Now, how about you? Do you look back on 2022 and find yourself surprised by some of your accomplishments? I’d love to hear about them! My email inbox is always open, or you can comment below. I’m thankful for the fruitfulness of this past year, and I’m thankful for all of the support and engagement I’ve received from readers and subscribers on this site. Thank you so much! May your New Year be blessed.
