Hey, what’s up, word slingers?
How you been? For me, it’s been … interesting. May we live in interesting times always sounded like a threat and now the whole world knows it to be true.
Covid. Covid-19. Coronavirus. Well, you sure as hell made an entrance, didn’t ya?
But I don’t want to focus too much on that. What I do want to focus on, is … well, focus.
Writing focus.
I’ve spent a good coupla years not having one. Well, I say that. I mean, I’ve still been fulfilling my obligation with the contracted romances, but in regards to the other writing? That part of my focus has been … wobbly, at best. And not a good wobbly, like your favourite strawberry jelly, but full on, pissed out of my head, shouldn’t have had that last drink, wobbly. (I don’t drink, though, so maybe that’s not hugely accurate?)
I didn’t have a goal. I didn’t have aims. I didn’t have a focus.
I knew I wanted to write science fiction. I dreamed that I’d be a science fiction writer, but that was as far as it went. I occasionally scribbled something, but never finished it and then in July of 2020 my Dad died from metastatic bowel cancer and my need to look towards the dark and twisty, took a nosedive. I didn’t need any more harrowing stuff, thank you very much. I’d been through enough over the last few months watching another deadly disease ravage my Dad from the strong, vibrant, solid man I knew into this thin, skeletal weak husk. Watching death creep forward and grasp ahold of him and squeeze that man tight until he had nothing left, did not leave me wanting more scary stuff.
So I looked toward the light. I focused on my contracted romance book of the time. Somehow, I wrote it and completed two sets of revisions on it and now I never want to read it again, because it reminds me of a time in my life I don’t want to remember.
But now?
2021 has graced our doors, our calendars, our diaries and I’ve decided that my word for the year is FOCUS. Everything I do will have a focus. An end-game. An end goal and so I’ve set myself some writing targets for the year, based on the writing I WANT to be doing full time.
- Sell 5 short stories by Dec 31st, 2021.
- Complete a novel/novella.
- Receive a commission for a tie-in work (either gaming, film or TV).
- Read 52 books (because reading is just as important as writing and hey, it’s research).
- Enter and WIN a writing competition.
You see? Goals. I now have a focus of what I want to achieve. No more aimless drifting for me. I’m 48 and time is a ticking and there’s nothing stopping me. I’ve told all my family members and precious friends that they’re not to die this year, as I’ve got stuff to do and they’ve promised me that they won’t ever die, so as not to screw up any of my deadlines.
So, I’d love to hear if you’ve got any goals for this year. Or maybe what your word of the year is? And if you don’t have a word for the year, because you think that shit is stupid new-agey crap, then that’s fine, too.
Nic Dracas 