The beginning of the new year is always the time when I start assessing my writing goals for the year. It’s the perfect time to do it, since resolutions are on everyone’s brain and it’s hard to get away from it. :)
I’ve found that the more specific I can be with my goals, the better of a chance I have of meeting them.
I can deal with bite-sized goals. Or even finding out what it is that I want.
I’ve mentioned before that my writing never really took off until I figured out that I really wanted to share it. I wanted to be published—I wasn’t satisfied keeping my writing to myself anymore. But it took me a while to even figure out that was what I wanted to do.
I thought, since I’ve noticed a lot of new readers and new lurkers lately, that I’d do a mini-series on setting writing goals. I know a lot of my longtime blog friends’ goals—and I’ve read some of their books! But a lot of folks might be just trying to figure out what they’re wanting to do with their writing.
So if you haven’t focused yet on the early part of goal-setting with your writing, it’s worth asking, who am I writing for?
Are you writing for yourself? For a small number of people (family or friends?) For a specialized market? For genre readers? For a wider audience?
I think I’d take it a little farther, once I knew the answer to that question. If you’re writing only to please yourself (and I did that for a long time, myself, and found a lot of pleasure in it), then are you looking to improve your writing? In other words, how much time do you want to spend learning about writing (reading craft-related blogs, reading books on writing, and practicing writing)? Are you satisfied with where you are, or are you wanting to grow?
If you’re looking at writing for a small number of people (some memoirs, family histories, etc.), then I’d set a goal for finishing the project, for knowing when it’s finished (is an independent editor needed? How perfect does the copy need to be for these readers?), and for figuring out the format for the book and how I wanted to share it (self-publishing? Kindle through Smashwords? POD?)
If I was interested in writing for a larger number of people—that opens up a whole other set of goal-setting questions, so I’ll start on that tomorrow. :)
Have you thought about for whom you’re writing? Have you ever changed from writing for yourself to writing for others?
I write for my characters so I’m not really sure where that falls into the scheme of things. They become so vivid and lifelike to me that I feel like I have to share their stories because they can’t. Perhaps in a way that is writing for myself.
Elizabeth – That really is a crucial question! The answer to the question of who we’re writing for really does determine what we’re going to do with our writing. I think I began thinking about writing for others when I added fiction writing to my non-fiction writing.
I write for me, but also for others. I can do both.
Thanks for this post. I’m thinking on goals in general. Of course, the exercising and continuing the eating well. :) But also, I want to set goals for writing.
T
I started writing to see if I could do it (ran out of room for needlepoint). Only when I hooked up with a writing group who insisted I start submitting did I shift my focus. Until then, I figured if someone came to the door and asked if I had a manuscript, that would be fine.
Terry
Terry’s Place
Romance with a Twist–of Mystery
I started just writing for me, but it eventually shifted to wanting bigger things.
Sometimes have to write for me to understand what I want to write for others. Sort of a thought process.
I love writing for others.
I wrote only for myself until college, and then I got more serious about writing for an audience.
I’ve been thinking about writing goals for the new year. I love this time of year! Technically, you can start fresh any time of the year, but there’s something special about making goals in the real new year. :)
I’m just writing for myself and my own entertainment. Maybe I’ll stick to that, maybe not. Who knows >:)
Cold As Heaven
I used to write for myself. Now I want to share my work. My goal for 2011 is to finish all edits on three novels. If I only achieve one, so be it, I will not stress over my love of writing.
Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy New Year. Happy Scribbling in 2011. Thanks for your encouragement and support during 2010. ♥
Heather–Good point! Some of our characters get very pushy when they want to be written. :)
Alex–That’s how I started out, too. :)
Margot–You enjoy crime fiction so much, it was a natural fit for you!
Mary–Exactly…if you write what you enjoy reading, the process is so much easier.
Laura–That sounds a lot like me. :)
Teresa–I think it’s nice to do both. I sometimes write poetry, but it’s not good so it’s only for me. But I get a lot of enjoyment from it.
Cold As Heaven–You can just see where it takes you. :)
Terry–Sometimes a little deadline pressure or someone to be accountable to (writing crit groups), works really well. I’ve gone that route before, too.
Glynis–Flexibility is so important! The all or nothing approach doesn’t ever work…for me, anyway.
Thanks so much, Glynis! And the same to you. :)
I think these are great questions for early writers to ask themselves… and new years is good timing, because like you, they may start as one thing and be happy there for a while, but then change their goals as they gain confidence or find a story they think needs telling.
I’d wanted to be an author since I was thirteen, so when I started writing my first novel, it was with the goal of sharing it with others. However, I still bucked the angsty, salacious trends in YA and wrote what I would want to read.
I write more for myself than for anyone else, yet I’d be disappointed to be my only audience. So my expected readership is small but by no means confined to friends and family.
I just discovered your site today and am so glad I did…it helped me clarify my problem and move towards a solution. I wrote “Professionally” for 25 years, ie, it was my job and I wrote what I was told/needed to. It’s been a challenging transition to “retire” from my career and now have so much freedom in writing. It’s really been overwhelming at times, and I was unsure of my direction. Now that I’ve read your post, I’ve decided to continue with my blog which is part food memoir/part recipe guide, and to start writing a mystery just for fun, just to please myself! How joyful is that? What a great Christmas present to myself. I am so used to having writing be a “product” that it never occurred to me to do it for fun! By the way, I am from Memphis so I can’t wait to read your barbeque series. I think my parents must have put barbeque in my baby bottle, I am so addicted. I live in Nashville now and the barbeque her just can’t compare. And soon I will be moving to Chicago; who knows what kind of barbeque I will find there?
For a long time I was telling myself stories to pass the time, but I never wrote them down. I wasn’t under the pressure to verbalize everything, just movie-ish in my head and very incomplete plot-wise. But now, even though I still have my personal stories, they aren’t enough; I’ve got stories I want to share. Verbalizing the setting and exposition and creating complete storylines are my goals now.
Great advice.
Recommend a goal setting tool http://GoalsOnTrack.com