Stick With Plan A. Writing Goals For 2013.

Happy New Year!

I love this time of year.

The energy of new beginnings and people getting ready to start again, to re-commit to their goals. I use this time to assess where I went off track last year and to get back to basics. I revisit my life goals and how this year will get me closer to them.

Yes, I am a goal-setting (and achieving) junkie!

You'll definitely achieve things in 2013 if you don't set any goals, but it might not be what you actually wanted to achieve. By writing your goals down, you're also more likely to achieve them. I try to keep it real on this site, to share the journey honestly and authentically, so here are my goals for 2013. I hope you will consider sharing some of yours in the comments.

(1) Plan A: Focus on writing fiction, non-fiction and creating art

I now have 3 novels behind me and I am deep into number four. I am getting to know the process now and I feel a lot more confident that fiction is my future.

I also want to write more non-fiction as I want to help change people's lives, plus I need the backup material for speaking! So 2013 will be all about writing books and streamlining my processes so I can write faster, as well as maintaining the quality of research and editing that I put in. I want to be proud of the art I create (read The Icarus Deception by Seth Godin) and that is what remains for the long term.

I'm committing to:

• New crime thriller – book #1 – currently at 38,000 words. I won't be self-publishing this immediately. It will be going to Rachel, my NY literary agent and we'll see if I can get a book deal for that new series. I still intend to be a hybrid author.
• ARKANE Novella set in Hungary
• ARKANE #4 – themed around Kabbalah and Spain
• Non-fiction – Book marketing (it's about time I turned all this into a book format!)
• Non-fiction – Creative Business/ Solopreneur
• New crime thriller – book #2 (might be stretching it …)

I also want to get the first 3 ARKANE books into print and at least Pentecost into audiobook format. Yes, I decided against print a while back but I get asked for print copies every week, so I need to listen to the fans! I love to podcast so I want to read my own audiobook. I'll be looking at options for that since Audible ACX is only open to US citizens right now (any tips in the comments please!)

(2) The Creative Penn Blog, Podcast, Videos and Online Courses

I love blogging and the community we have here, I love your comments. I love my podcast, I love talking to new people and making videos. All of that is about connection and we all need that as writers. I need that. I would go nuts alone in my head all the time.

So the blog, podcast, YouTube channel and Twitter & Facebook continue as core activities, even though I want to focus on writing as my first priority. I know this site can be overwhelming so I have made a new Welcome video that gives you an overview of everything that is available. Check it out here, or watch below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nxQ8ELs_Rk

In 2012, I produced 5 new multimedia courses, including the extensive ProWriter series with NY Times bestselling author CJ Lyons and Turn Your Ideas Into Cash, for entrepreneurs wanting to create courses like I do. I won't be creating any new courses in 2013, only continuing to sell the existing ones. If you need more help with writing, publishing and book marketing, you can check them all out here.

(3) Professional Speaking

I love working alone on the creative stuff, but I also love speaking and sharing knowledge with others. I am a content speaker and I particularly enjoy full-day and multi-day events where I get to share everything.

I love the look in people's eyes when they realize their dream is actually possible, and then together we can make it happen. I also get paid pretty well for speaking these days so it is a core part of my business, and I will be focusing on doing more in 2013.

I'm already booked for Zurich in January (Ebook publishing), the London Book Fair in April (Advanced marketing for authors) and in Feb/March I am doing some full day workshops on how to become a solopreneur.

However, as an introvert, I do find my energy needs managing so one of my big goals this year is to make sure I don't crash and get sick after speaking events. So I am scheduling quiet days before and after speaking, so I can replenish the energy stores. (For more on introversion, read Susan Cain's Quiet – fantastic book, really helped me understand myself more!).

If you'd like to know more about booking me for an event, you can read more here, or click here for testimonials.

I do have other goals around my health and my lifestyle, but those are in my personal diary! I'll stick with the writing, publishing and marketing goals here.

Over to you! Please share your goals in the comments below.

Images: Bigstockphoto.com set and reach goal concept, Bigstockphoto.com coffee with laptop