Writing Game Plan 2018

I’ve been trying to find inspiration for a New Year’s resolution writing post. There’s plenty of blog posts and numerous articles about the New Year being a fresh start, a blank page, and time for renewal. While these are all good things, nothing I’ve read has felt right for the inspiration I need to tackle this upcoming year.

I’ve been working on my Mudlavia novel for a little over two years now. It’s been a long haul of writing, researching, doing interviews, and editing, editing, and editing. If this project were a 3200 meter run, I’m on the final lap. I’ve just finished the seventh, and the race official is holding out one finger and mouthing, “One more lap.”

One more lap… that’s it. The hours and hours of editing are drawing to an end. I’m double checking some of my research and adding the final touches to make the story sparkle. It’s almost time to think about agents, my query letter, and synopsis.

So while all the inspiration I’ve been trying to find for 2018 has been about new beginnings and fresh starts, what I really need right now is the strength to hang in there, to finish strong, to take it all the way to the end.

When I stopped reading all the different New Year’s tips and articles, and went to the plain old dictionary, I found what I was looking for. Resolution means to have firm resolve, in other words, to be steadfast, to have determination, tenacity, and perseverance.  This meaning of resolution has grit to it. And I don’t know about you, but I need some grit in my life to finish strong. Whether it’s with my writing, gardening, cleaning the house, or being a good wife and mother, I need tenacity to give my very best, to not give up when the going gets rough, and finish with everything I’ve got.

I hope if you need a fresh start this year, you’ve found it, but I also hope that you have the grit to keep on going and finish it out well!