Writing Goals for 2022

My writing goals for 2022 look a lot like they did last year… but that may be because 2021 was a year lived virtually.

2021 Goal Review

• Publish Oil and Dust COMPLETED
• Query my Middle-Grade novel (OOPS)
• Write a blog post each week COMPLETED
• Attend a writing conference COMPLETED (virtual)
• Attend a writing retreat COMPLETED (virtual)
• Finish drafting Graphite and Turbulence COMPLETED
• Compete in NaNoWriMo 2021 COMPLETED
• Beta or Critique read four books (1 per quarter) COMPLETED (kind of)
• Write 4 short stories (1 per quarter) COMPLETED
• Read 24 books (2 per month) COMPLETED

I did not query my middle grade novel (at all), so I’m moving that onto the 2022 goal list. Also, I beta/critique read the work my Jamigos (author Jami Sheets and author Jamie Sogn) produced, but I didn’t reach out to others in the writing community. This year, I’d like to do a little more. But, other than querying, I accomplished everything I set out to do. Not only did I achieve what I’d set out to do, I accomplished more than I’d planned to do.

Amazing!

On the plus side, I’ve more than quadrupled the visitors to this side and subscribers, but on the negative side, I did almost nothing else. Part of that was the ongoing pandemic, and the learning curve for independent publishing is pretty high.

2022 Writing Goals

I still want to get a lot done in 2022, but I’d also like to plan time for the non-writing activities I enjoy. And, this year, I’m planning on attending events in person, which will push me out of my cozy writing nest.

• Independently publish Graphite and Turbulence.
• Query my Middle-Grade novel
• Write a weekly blog post
• Attend a writing conference. I’m going to the 20Books Vegas conference in November.
• Attend a writing retreat. I’m registered for Session II of the Rainforest writing retreat.
• Take two craft-related courses
• Draft Book 3 in the Elemental Artist series
• Draft Book 4 in the Elemental Artist series
• Beta read or critique read for four authors
• Write four short stories (1 per quarter)
• Read and review 12 indie books besides the 24 books (trad or indie)
• Start a super-secret project with the Jamigos.

Ready, Set, Goals!

Since I’m not a naturally organized Type A person, I wasn’t sure how well goal-setting would work, but I’m beyond tickled with the results.

There are four components I believe helped me to be successful. First, announcing my goals made me accountable and honed my focus.

Second, sitting down each Friday to write a blog post was a lot of work, but also kept me grounded and moving toward my goals.

Third, I used my paper planner. I used it to keep track of events, tasks, deadlines, and topics I wanted to explore. The planner worked so well that I ordered the same one for 2022, the day it became available.

Fourth, I kept my goals reasonable and attainable. Because I also have a full-time job, setting aside time to focus on writing-related activities is already aspirational. Maybe in the future, I’ll lift my sights higher, but for now, I’m happy to grow, learn, and write.

Have you set your goals for the year? Jump on the accountability wagon and share them in the comments!

Header Photo by Debby Hudson on Unsplash