I'm curious where everyone is with their writing goals, particularly older members. What is it you've been working toward (getting published for a lot of us) and how far along are you?
My goal was to finish my second draft by the end of the year. Considering its December 2, and I'm only at chapter 8, I have a feeling I'm not gunna make that goal.. But that's okay.
After self-publishing my first book around nine months ago, I've been working on the (many) weaknesses in my writing the book exposed. "Fixing" my writing has proven to be one hell of a rabbit hole, I might have gone crazy for a bit back there, not entirely sure... But the good news is, I'm back on track and about half way done with my current WIP.
I really got derailed this year due to personal issues. I want to publish Falling Child Star traditionally- not post it for self publishing but I'm no where near done my first draft. I also want to keep posting things for self publishing. Just yesterday I had to find a new template, I can't find the one I used to self publish the one for Worms of Wicher-Woo, so I can post Not Pink & a Christmas story - Santa Claus and the Snowmen of Doom.
Doing not too bad if I say so myself. Started over three times (hear that folks?) but I am finally on the right track. Going at a snail's pace: one step forward and two sideways when I stumble over yet another research rabbit-hole (or when it gets pointed out to me), which happens seemingly every other week Fixed my writing to readable, and even learned how to set commas properly (Thank you my lovely Alphas! You know who you are!) I look forward to 2017 and the way my story shapes up. edit: Just saw you asked for goals for 2017: I want first draft done by the end of next year!
I've been doing pretty poorly at working on Lifted Spirits - I've been putting a lot of my free time into looking for another job as mine is going to hell in a handbasket. However, the news that one of my friends just got a 5 book deal from her publisher has certainly lit a fire under my ass. I would like to have Lifted Spirits completed and ready for submission by the end of Summer 2017.
It's taken taken me ten years to get where I am today, which is precisely nowhere. Given that I'll never see sixty again, I'd say I'm doing a pretty good job of launching myself into obscurity.
I'm 80k words into my first novel (technically its my second , but the first crashed and burned at about 25k and never got moving again) The target i set myself when i started was shitty first draft by xmas 2016 and i think i'm still on target to acheive that - I'd then look to have it primary editted, beta read and secondary editted by midsummer 2017 and bbe looking at publishers/agents by xmas 2017
My current plan is to finish the rough draft of my current novel by the end of this month (Six chapters to go!) and then work on re-writing it and proofing it, so that it's ready to go by June 22nd for the Jackson Hole Writers Conference. It will be my first conference.
