June Status Report: 2012 Goals

June turned out to be a month of realizations and adjustments. As a result, some of my goals have to change in order to compensate for what I’ve learned.  I don’t see this as a setback, but rather a reassessment of where I stand and where I need to go next.

While some projects have changed drastically, others continue to tick along at a rapid pace.  A month without a day job does wonders for the muse!

1) Submit five pieces of writing to contests, journals, literary magazines, or the newspaper.

I made some headway on this goal by submitting The Expanding Pear to the Your Story #42 competition in Writer’s Digest.  I didn’t make the final cut, but I’m still proud of the piece and myself for finally gathering the courage to submit something this year.

In addition, I entered Your Story #43.  The competition only calls for a single sentence of 25 or fewer words, but sometimes that’s more difficult than a short story.  So, I’ve decided it counts as my second submission this year.

In the coming month, I’ve got my eye on three more opportunities for submission:

Sixteenth Annual Zoetrope: All Story Short Fiction Contest (Opens July 1st)

Write It Your Way (Writer’s Digest – Summer Stories) (Deadline July 15). I’ve got a story started and I think I can finish it in time!

Wordrunner eChapbooks (July 1 – August 26). Starting next week, I’ll be setting up a few polls where my wonderful readers will have a hand in helping me decide which three poems will be submitted.

2) Finish minor changes in my first novel.

After receiving an amazing and constructive critique of my first chapter, I embarked on a little experiment.  In the critique I was asked if I’d ever considered switching the point of view from third person to first person.  I was so happy to see that question as its something I’ve kicked around in my head for a while now.

Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve been re-writing my first novel in first person to get a sense of whether its the right to do for the character and the story.  The first chapter is fully converted and I’m halfway through the second.  Should this work out, this means my goal of finishing minor changes goes right out the window and I’ll be taking on the workload of converting the entire manuscript.

3) Work on my second novel.

My second novel dominates most of my days.  If I’m not typing out a scene, I’m outlining, brainstorming, or listening to characters speak in my head.  Last week I punched out a huge turning point scene and I’m in the process of planning the climax.  I love this story!!

Starting word count: 53,695
End word count: 59,596
Total word count:  5,901

That 60,000 word count goal I set for the year is so close I can taste it!

4) Send out five query letters and be ready with a synopsis.

With Goal #2 in the midst of a possibly drastic change, I am putting this goal on hold.

5) Keep up with my blog.

June has the distinction of being the first month where I’ve posted every single day!  That being said, I’ve made the decision that I have to cut back if my workload increases for Novel #1.

Thank you so much to everyone who continues to stop by.  Your support is so inspiring as are your comments!  I will still be posting several days a week, so be sure to stay tuned!

6) Network more with other writers.

This month, I was better at networking with other writers in person rather than online.  This is a strange departure for me as I’ve never been known as a social butterfly.  I’ve really enjoyed the inspiration that comes from hanging out with other writers and enjoying a cup of coffee.

However, I managed to gain some increases in the online world as well.

My Facebook Page has grown from 140 to 165 Likes.

On Twitter, my followers have grown from 237 to 265.

Thank you so much to everyone who has clicked those “Like” and “Follow” buttons!  I appreciate all of you so much!

To follow me on either network, please visit my sidebar.

7) Inspire other writers to keep writing.

As always, I hope I am a positive presence!

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c.b.w. 2012