Nine Goals for 2019

Last week we looked at how I did on my 2018 goals. This week I'm sharing the goals I want to accomplish in this new year. And I'm probably going to need your help staying accountable! (Plus, there's a giveaway stuffed in here.)

Read the Bible differently

Is that vague enough for you? I'm bad about reading bits of the Bible and only out of my favorite NKJV copy I got when I was five. This year I want to shake it up. So I'm using a Bible Gateway plan on my phone to read through the ESV Bible chronologically in a year. It's been a while since I read through the Bible in a year, and I'm hoping that by approaching it differently, I'll have new takeaways.

Develop a morning routine

Starting with my Bible reading will be part of my morning routine. But I'm also hoping to get into the habit of reading a little of my current non-fiction read, making a to-do list for the day ... things like that. We'll see what works! (I already know that journaling doesn't work.) But it's been a while since I've had a true morning regimen that helped me get ready for my day. I work enough that this should get me out of bed earlier out of necessity.

Prioritize my editing

I've talked about this before. This year I want my editing business to be more than just a side job. (Let's face it--it will still be a side job.) But I want to prioritize it more instead of always fitting it in after 8 pm. I already have 16 manuscripts booked for the year and I tweaked my pricing some, so I think it will be inevitable that I prioritize this more. I've also joined Reveries Co. which you can find out more about at the end of this post. Maybe by next year I can phase out babysitting and go full time?? :D

Develop a street team

Work has already begun on this front! I'm calling the members of my street team Resonators, thanks to . I've already got a Facebook group going (where the real fun happens) and a Resonators-only newsletter underway that will be going out monthly. Be sure to sign up if you're interested!! It'll mostly be fangirling and you learning about what I'm doing first. In return, you get to be my go-to peeps for release hype.

Find an agent

Obviously, this one is a little optimistic since Behind the Act still needs a little editing before I query it more. BUT. I do intend to query it this year. And pitch it at the OCW conference in August. So wish me luck with all of that! Getting an agent (or better yet a contract!) is up there on my dream list! I'm really at peace whatever happens, though, because I really do think I'll get there eventually.

Publish Martin Crossroads

I will cry if this doesn't happen this year. This will happen! Probably not until fall. But I just finished the first draft on New Year's Eve, so I'm feeling much more optimistic about the progress ... even though it still needs a lot of rewrites. ;) It will be so nice to have this over with.

Get published elsewhere

Other than self-publication, I'd love to get published in a magazine or something ... Havok is somewhere I'll continue to submit to. (I got my first rejection--yay!) It'd just be nice to gather a few more accolades like this, especially as I try to get an agent. :)

Read 24 books for me

I have so many editing projects on the horizon, it's hard to even think about reading books besides those. But I'm determined to! While I'd ultimately like to read 30 books just for myself ... I think I'd better go for 24. Two a month should be doable and keep me reading. I've got a TBR a mile long this year so I honestly have no idea what I'll even end up getting to!

Pinpoint my health

One of the initiatives I've finally taken this year is to figure out what works for me, not just in my writing and morning routine, but also in my health. My wrist has bothered me for a while, but it's getting better thanks to supplements. So I've actually started a second Instagram account to chronicle my trying to figure out what can better help me overall as I try to pursue my writing and editing more this year!

More on that next week. ;)

Remember how I said I'd give you more Reveries Co info? Kellyn is hosting the blog tour right now on her blog. And we’re giving away 30+ books—a combination of ebooks and paperbacks, genres and subgenres—to one lucky winner! You can enter HERE.

What are some of your goals for 2019? Maybe we can help each other keep up. ;) Which one of my goals excites you the most??

Read of the Year

Last year I did a book of the year post and wanted to keep up the tradition this year! Let me tell ya, it's not easy to pick my favorite read of the entire year. And I'm pretty sure it'd be impossible without Goodreads.

This year I read 41 books, and I rated 22 of those 5 stars (?!). Of those 22, 4 books pretty readily stood out as my favorite reads of the year:

• Fawkes by Nadine Brandes
• The Ringmaster's Wife by Kristy Cambron
• Christy by Catherine Marshall
• The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Annie Barrows and Mary Anne Shaffer

After much consideration ... I think the list above is the order in which I would rank them. 

My read of the year is Fawkes by Nadine Brandes. Unlike last year, that makes my favorite read of the year a book published in 2018!

To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure how anyone could read Fawkes and NOT make it their favorite read of the year. 

The Ringmaster's Wife was beautiful, romantic, and exhilarating. Christy was heartwarming/breaking, raw, and thought-provoking. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society was historical, mysterious, and clever. They're going to remain some of my favorites.

But Fawkes was all of those things and more. Its magic system was awesome and yet simple to understand, the story was complex and breathtaking, and the spiritual themes among the colorful characters completely blew me away ... in usual Nadine fashion. Every single element was masterful, and I'm still recommending this book right and left.

If you're interested, you can read my 5-star review here.

What amazing books did you read this year? Have you read any of these beauties?

I hope you have a blessed Christmas with your family!

Goodbye August

Well that month passed much faster than it needed to! Welcome to September :)

Life

The Olympics. *happy sigh* You may have seen a lot of things on Twitter about them and I have no regrets. I can't even tell you how much I love Olympics. And I think I've decided that I like summer better than winter. You just can't beat swimming, gymnastics, and volleyball. Which is good, because that's basically all that was aired this year xD Figure skating is the only thing that comes close :) And our women's gymnastics and beach volleyball teams are some of my favorites. So I thoroughly enjoyed that lovely excuse for procrastination ;)

Well, it was August. That word invokes sweltering heat with absolutely no moisture. Not so!!! This year we only broke 100° for about a week and then . . . right before my birthday: RAIN!!! It has rained off and on for the last two weeks of August, significantly lowering the temperatures. I was so excited!! I don't think you understand how much it means to have my favorite sort of weather on my birthday :D

Obviously, my birthday happened, too! I turned 18, which meant that after a full day of gift shopping (I got new makeup, typewriterly stamps, awesome clothes, a great movie, a laptop bag, an orchid, and money) I was faced with registering to vote and renewing my permit.

After I renewed my permit, Mom made me order at Starbucks. In the drive-thru! I don't think you understand how much drive-thrus scare me. It had no turns, which is the only reason I agreed to do it. But talking to people through a speaker is almost as bad as talking to people on the phone AKA an irrational fear of mine!! But I had a frappuccino at the end of it all, so it was okay :)

Then my big piece of news: I hired an editor!! I decided to go ahead and check into October dates since September is devoted to my betas and I found one lovely, Christian editor with extremely reasonable pricing and flexibility. I am so thrilled to have that squared away satisfactorily. And since she's not available until late October, that gives me plenty of time to square away this lovely editing thing. :)

Words

~Vocabulary~

lam ~ verb: hit someone hard; attack

marquee ~ noun: American: a rooflike projection over the entrance to a theater, hotel, or other building. British: a large tent used for social or commercial functions.

cathartic ~ adjective: providing psychological relief through the open expression of strong emotions; causing catharsis; chiefly (of a drug) purgative.

~Quotes~

"Soldiers are humans in a pressure cooker."

"I take pleasure in pointing out the bright sides to Molly, because when I do, I remind myself they exist."

"'It's just . . . if I can't be a hero in my own life, maybe I can be one in someone else's.'"

~ Terri Blackstock, If I Run

"Some things you cannot wish away or think away. They become part of you when you remember them." ~ Alice Hoffman, Incantation

"One of the greatest things in human life is the ability to make plans. Even if they never come true-the joy of anticipating is irrevocably yours. That way one can live many more than just one life." ~ Maria Augusta von Trapp, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers

Books

~Cover to Cover: 2~

If I Run by Terri Blackstock
Incantation by Alice Hoffman

~Middle to End: 2~

The Story of the Trapp Family Singers by Maria Augusta von Trapp

An Old-Fashioned Girl by Lousia May Alcott

~Front to Middle: 2~

Lady in Waiting by Jackie Kendall and Debbi Jones
Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman
(had to return this one to my library before I finished :( )

Writings

~Words: -----~

Words? What are words? I began a short story and that's around 1,500 words. And I edited 16 chapters of my story. So I don't really have a number for you because  that's how lazy I am xD

~Chapters: 16~ 

Again, I edited 16 chapters of my novels because IT'S GOING TO BETAS!

~Progress Update: 50%~ 

The other half that I'm supposed to be editing? It's going, too, I just . . . yeah. Betas may not get the second half until the second half of September. Hehe. Sorry guys.

~Biggest Problem: Olympics~

In other words, distractions xD I am in a major reading/writing/editing slump and I'm going to have to heave myself out of it. Having my betas zipping through my book should be motivation, right? ;)

Blogs

~Followers: 59~

That's +6 again without any effort on my part. Thank you guys!

~Views: 14,493 ~

I think I'm the first one to care about this sort of thing, but I love this stat! :)

Goals

My August goals were:

1~ Completely edit my novel
Weeeeeell, the Olympics got in the way of this. Major time. I totally did not figure them in.
2~ Complete Jesseca's "A Question of Honor"
I forgot this was one of my goals, and I'm only about halfway through :( But I'm loving it and told her I would finish in two weeks :)
3~ Read 3 books (cover to cover)
I did a Twitter Readathon and pledged two books while it ran this weekend. Those were the only two I managed cover to cover, but I got to a lot else! Hehe . . .
4~ Share a bad review
So it wasn't tooooo bad, but it was a low amount of mushrooms :) You can read it here.
5~ Do a Camp NaNo post
Check! This one was super fun. You can read it here.

My September goals are:

1~ Have fun with beta readers
I am so excited about this!!! I have 16, I think? We'll see what happens :D
2~ Complete Jesseca's "A Question of Honor"
Again :)
3~ Figure out Martin Hospitality's cover design
This is the one thing I don't have ironed out yet.
4~ Do a vlog
*screams* I love these, but videos scare me so much. Ivy Rose has tagged me for a link-up now, so it's gonna happen. I'm accepting questions! (I'll emphasize this in a later post).
5~ Figure out how to install a "Tweet this" link
Putting this on my to-do list means it will get done, right?

~~~~~

Did your August FLY?! Did you watch the Olympics? Did it rain for you? What are you looking forward to this fall?

Ultimate Camp NaNoWriMo

Ultimate Camp NaNoWriMo kinda sounds like it should be a sport, no? Similiar to ultimate frisbee? Anyway. I'm finally getting around to giving you all an elaborate break down of my first Camp NaNo experience. Coincidentally, this also happens to be my 50th post and the last one I shall bring you all as a 17-year-old. You asked for it!

I apologize in advance for what is about to be the longest list of excuses ever.

Day 1 ~ 2,000 // 2,000

Started it off strong and fainted at my cabin mates' awesomeness. Also:

Day 2 ~ 1,113 // 3,113

Still had the initial rush of adrenaline and was trying to pack simultaneously

Day 3 ~ 0 // 3,113

Here, we celebrated Independence Day with family in Fort Worth. Yeah, no words.

Day 4 ~ 0 // 3,113

I had my laptop with me, but decided writing in a 15-passenger van full of siblings isn't worth it

Day 5 ~ 2,905 // 6,018

Back home and back on track

Day 6 ~ 0 // 6,018

So why write when you'll remain afloat without a single word?

Day 7 ~ 1,198 // 7,216

Another trip upcoming, so had to write a little bit

Day 8 ~ 0 // 7,216

Went out of town and had a terrible headache the whole way, so no writing

Day 9 ~ 0 // 7,216

Had my writing conference and hung out with my pen pal friend all day. Staying up late talking to her beat Camp

Day 10 ~ 0 // 7,216

Went to church with my pen pal, went out to lunch, and then headed back home with Mom

Day 11 ~ 2,189 // 9,405

Trying to catch up a little and had a freaking ton of Camp notifications (you know who you are)

Day 12 ~ 0 // 9,405

Stalled out, I guess? I don't really know what happened here :P

Day 13 ~ 622 // 10,027

Had work all afternoon, but managed to write a smidge due to a couple word wars. Do not underestimate their power!

Day 14 ~ 0 // 10,027

Family came into town here, so I did the human conversation thing instead

Day 15 ~ 0 // 10,027

And family left on this day and my motivation left with them

Day 16 ~ 0 // 10,027

I don't know what happened here, since it was the weekend

Day 17 ~ 0 // 10,027

But I guess it happened again here, hehe

Day 18 ~ 2,077 // 12,104

Monday motivation and still 6K behind *hits panic button*

Day 19 ~ 5,115 // 17,219

I highly doubt I could ever write much more than this in a day if my life depended on it.

Day 20 ~ 1,052 // 18,271

Three days in a row! And I even had work again. 

Day 21 ~ 2,072 // 20,343

Boom, four days! Aaaalmost back on track.

Day 22 ~ 0 // 20,343

We played at a friend's house and I had zero energy when we got home

Day 23 ~ 1,197 // 21,540

Weekend, yes, but I felt bad and it was my brother's birthday. So what else would I do but write?

Day 24 ~ 0 // 21,540

I burn out easy, okay? But going to the theatre for Tarzan was the best decision I have ever made.

Day 25 ~ 2,862 // 24,402

Once again, sooooo close

Day 26 ~ 0 // 24,402

But then I skip another day and fall behind just a smidge more

Day 27 ~ 1,924 // 26,326

This was a Saturday that I actually wrote. Can you believe it?

Day 28 ~ 0 // 26,326

But I can never write on Sundays no matter how much I try :(

Day 29 ~ 0 // 26,326

I guess I'll blame this on it being a Monday?

Day 30 ~ 2,708 // 29,034

I didn't want to write but then I finished my story and that posed a problem for the last 1K

Day 31 ~ 976 // 30,010

Boom! I had to get really creative for these words. I made a Note from the Author, title page, and a couple random scenes to hit my word goal. I went to bed happy. ^.^

And my overall stats picture because I know you couldn't live without it :)

All in all this was a fantastic experience, made only more awesome by my 10 cabin mates. I have seriously never laughed so hard or had so much support while writing. My favorite conversation was the one about the Trout brothers beings aliens (specifically rainbow fish from Fiji who tan). The conversation on our hugging rules and how we will handle fame were also pretty darn epic. But that's what happens when 10 members of writer royalty join you for 31+ days of insanity.

The word wars, sharing of ideas, reading of blog posts and chapters pre-publication, rants and rambles,prayer requests, and goofiness were all unforgettable. I made new internet friends, showed off my insane side, and still had friends at the end of it.

To learn more about the short story I worked on at Camp, visit My Writings and look for Andora's Folly.

~~~~~

What did you do for the month of July? Have you done a Camp NaNo post? Also, notice my first homemade header since post #1 I had to do something special for post #50 :)