When you think that almost everyone you know can write, you would think that it would be easy to find someone who shares similar writing goals.  For me, this hasn’t been easy.  I have found people with whom I’ve had exchanges over the years, but either the person has loses interest, gets discouraged, or our evaluative skills differ too widely, and we naturally drift apart. 

So, after awhile I decided to go it alone.  Months and months passed without a  body of work.  There have been lots of notes and first tries.  And from my posts you can tell that after months of dabbling, the end product were a lot of isolated paragraphs on various sizes of paper. 

Yes, I know, I could be more disciplined. So in light of my shortcomings, I am remedying it by setting some personal goals. 

My first goal was to find another writer who wants to write a novel or has written a novel.  I want to meet with that person at least once a month.  Goal: to share information, to make editing suggestions and for me, most importantly, make me accountable to my time schedule.  I decided I would meet with only one writer.  Call me selfish, but I am tired of critiquing endless pages of dribble.  While I like poetry, I don’t feel qualified to comment on it much beyond the cursory connections of symbolism and great word choice.

My second goal is to write, and I emphasize WRITE, a reasonable time table.  I spend so much time catering to family goals in addition to a full time job that my writing goals never bubble to the top of the To-Do list.  This needs modification, if I’m ever going to get beyond the initial attempts.  (I plan to add my time table to my blog to add more incentive to reach these goals.)

My third goal is to write a couple fiction pages a day in addition to this blog.  However, much to my surprise, this blog consumes more time than I ever thought it would.  So some days, when I am engaged in my fiction, this blog will no doubt be affected somehow.  I will have to figure out how I am going to make this work.   

My fourth goal is not to whine and make excuses for not adhering to my schedule. 

Okay, there are probably a half a dozen more goals I would like to share, but I think if the list is too long, it will be overwhelming and I will have difficulty staying on track. 

Goal one is in the works.  Next Saturday I plan to meet a long time local journalist.  Nan has written a novel.  It is still a bit rough she informs me and has been lying in her desk drawer for months.  This union has possibilities.  I don’t know Nan very well.  I don’t know how interested she is in sustaining our relationship.  Unlike the other writing workshops I have been in, I want this one to work.  I want this one to yield results.  I want someone to hold me accountable when I start to make those excuses.

Tomorrow I plan to tackle my second goal, so watch for my page entitled: Cori’s Writing Time Table.  If you would like to share your time table, email me cori@corichu.com.

I have to admit that I’m a veteran when it comes to putting my family, my job, my responsibilities before writing.  I am the type of person who needs at least two hours to write.  I need to get my thoughts organized, remember who is doing what with whom and why in my stories.  As you can tell, I’m not the off-the-cuff writer.  I wish I was.  However, I have learned much from my detours. 

1.  Learn to say NO. When the kids call, the spouse or partner wants you to join them, when the telephone rings, you need to say NO.  It is especially hard when you have always been accessible.  It gets easier though.  You have to train your family that whatever hour or two per day or per week you claim to be writing time, you stick to it as best you can.  If you cave, so will your chances of ever getting some quiet time will fade.  Your family will still love you if you say go away.

2. Have a plan.  Plan your writing periods like you would a meeting or an appointment with the dentist.  If you have to cancel, reschedule immediately.  Waiting later and you will miss your writing session altogether.  Prioritize so that you don’t meander off course.  If you have never harnessed your energies with a game plan, once you have one, you will notice how much more efficient you have become.

3.  Simpleology.com.  Use the program to help you stay focused and on target if necessary. www.simpleology.com

4.  Find a mentor.  Actually I was looking for a person to keep me to my deadlines.  A mentor can give you feedback and can help you spin plotlines or just cheer you on.  I wouldn’t recommend a family member though.  It can be emotionally hard if you ask them to critique your work. 

5.  Find a writing group.  This could keep you inspired and motivated …or it can make you puke.  Yes, well run writing groups are great.  Poorly run ones are trying.  Remember busy people don’t have time to waste on chatting on topics other than writing.

6. Read authors in your genre.  Reading published novels can help your writing in so many ways. It can inspire, help bring out your creativity, teach you how to accomplish certain effects such as transitioning, pacing and diction, and can be relaxing.

7. Read writing related blogs and technique books.   I write this with some reservation.  Reading how to books can be addicting.  You might read and never actually do any writing.  Blogging and reading other writing related websites can  help you, but remember, it is a distraction too.  It isn’t actually working on your project directly.  So this suggestion requires you use some discernment and discipline.

8.   Try to keep your writing area relatively uncluttered.  Messy people say that when their space is disorganized, or in controlled chaos, it shows that they are creating.  This is a myth.  You work better when only the project before you is on your desk or table.  Clutter is distracting.  I think it mirrors how you approach life.  If your space is cluttered, so is your efficiency.  You are so scattered that you probably have trouble finishing any one task.

9.  Don’t always attack the small tasks and save the larger tasks for later.  I’ve noticed that when you always delay working on the larger tasks, they somehow get moved onto the next day’s agenda, and then the next. And well, sometimes they never get done.  Also, use time lines for your goals.  It helps organize when you are going to do what.  It will also help you prioritize.

10.  And if you aren’t doing well with your goals, remember to keep the goals realistic.  Instead of punishing yourself for not making your deadlines, institute a reward system for yourself.  For example, if I finish the rough draft of chapter one, then I will go to the movies.  I’d say buy yourself something, but heaven knows that some of us have more than enough stuff in our homes. 

I’m struggling with meeting my goals.  So, if you have a goal, send it to me.  Make yourself accountable.  According to Julia Cameron, a tv writer and author of the books The Artist’s Way and Vein of Gold, if you write it down…you are commiting to yourself and to the Universe that this is what you want to happen.  I think she said that if you write a list of things you want to accomplish and attach it to a timeline, you can look back and see that you accomplished most of the items on the list.  The trick is that you cannot stay on idle.  You need to put your skills into gear.  

We all have goals whether we a conscious of them or not.  Every time you write a list of things you have to do, you are goal setting.  When you verbally share your dreams or plans with someone, you are establishing goals. 

However, setting goals for a larger project takes more forethought.  I have no idea who came up with this material, because I learned it many years ago in school. 

Good goals are structured. They are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely.   We set goals for ourselves all the time and never breakdown the mechanics to see if that goal is going to be successful.  Okay, say you are out of milk.  Your goal is to pick up milk some time during the day.  

Specific:  Pick up what?  Milk.
Measurable:  How much?  Whatever suits your needs.  Say one gallon.
Attainable:  Yes, as long as you can remember to do it.
Realistic:  Yeah, you do it several times a month.
Timely: Okay, you need to do it today if you want to make a cake for junior’s birthday.

The goal is simple, so therefore, you don’t have to break it down like this.  However, on bigger goals, breaking down and analyzing the goal identifies what has to be done by when. You then become more focused on achieving the goal.

Let’s review what each of these components are:

Specific:  You have a greater chance in accomplishing your goal if you can identify the goal using the six W questions journalist use in the top couple paragraphs of their stories.  Who are we talking about?  What is it that you hope to accomplish?  Where is it going to take place?  When exactly will it take place or when will the goal be completed?  You might need to establish a time line.  Which identifies restraints or requirements needed to execute the actions toward completing the goal.  Why motivates you to take action.  Here you give reasons and benefits of your goal.

Measurable:  You need to establish concrete criteria for measuring your progress and the steps toward completing the goal.  Tracking target dates is a good example.  It can keep you moving forward and motivated.

Attainable:  When you identify goals, you start putting together an action plan.  You begin to understand the resources necessary to achieve goals and either learn new skill sets, if necessary, or find others to help you.  Is this goal attainable?  Can you achieve this goal by yourself or will you need to solicit help from others?

Realistic:  Is your goal realistic?  If you have never published, is it realistic that you will land a writing assignment from Cosmopolitan or Smithsonian magazines?  Highly unlikely, but not impossible.  This example is more realistic for someone who has published in similar publications or has relevant knowledge and writing experience on a particular subject.  If you had a goal to write for major magazines, you would have to do some ground work first.  You might analyze back issues to see what kinds of articles are published.  Who are the target audiences?  What is the magazine’s tone?  What would they be looking for?  Then, you would have to try to get published in more local, lesser known publications to beef up that credential that you should be writing for so and so magazine.

Timely:  Goals should have a time frame.  This is important because without deadlines, goals, especially larger ones, can get derailed.  Time frames force your brain to focus on the tasks at hand.  The pressure to achieve within a set duration keeps the project moving forward. 

My short term goal is to write a short story within the next 30 days.  My long term goal is to begin my novel.  My plan is to complete the first draft of my novel by this time next year.

What are your writing goals for 2008?   They say that writing your goals down is one step closer in accomplishing them.  So, if you feel like sharing, leave a comment.