Looking Ahead: Hello, 2019!

Yesterday we all said goodbye to 2018. I did so here on the blog, too.

Which means today, we look forward to the year ahead.

I love a new year. I spend time starting a new bullet journal. I make lists. I reflect on the year that's past and look ahead to the coming months. I hang up new calendars with fondness and anticipation.

And, while I don't adhere to New Year's Resolutions per say, I do make new goals for every new year. They are guidelines, not resolutions, and they help organize my time and energy and focus as best as possible.

These goals are malleable as the year and myself and life happens.

But today I thought I'd share my current goals for 2019.

Personal Goals:

I really want to work on body positivity. My body can do awesome things, and I'm not always very kind to it. And that affects my mind and spirit and everything I do. This is something I'm going to try to work on this year.

I also want to work on living in the moment. Planning, but not looking forward to the next thing, or the next, so much that time just slips by without notice.

Reading Goals:

Looking at the year ahead, I have a book launch planned and some travel and a whole lot of other things. I fell abysmally behind my goal of 50 in 2018, so with my increased teaching load and everything else that happens in life, I've decided to make my goal this year 40 books. I'd love to surpass that, but I think it is a reachable challenge.

I also want to read 12 new classics this year. I always try to read 12 classics a year, but usually I count rereads. Not this year, though. This year, 12 new classics.

My last goal is an effort to read more variety. Specifically, I want to read 6 books that are either sci-fi or dystopian.

Writing Goals:

My big one this year is that I'm going to launch To Air the Laundry. That means feedback from beta readers and my editor, plus final edits, and all formatting inside and out. Then actually launching the book and everything that goes into that event, both online and in real life.

I also intend to at least plan my next book. I have two books plotted right now, and I kind of have an idea of which I want to do next and how I want to approach it. I'd like to plot that one out a bit more, and maybe even tentatively start that.

I want to continue my involvement with writing contests. This past year I entered four, though my goal was 2 - 3. I think 3 is a good goal for this year; with the launch, that is very busy. Specifically, I love the NYC Midnight writing contests, and will be taking part in the first round of the first one in January. (It actually starts on my birthday! Happy birthday to me!). These contests make me a stronger writer.

Finally, I want to do a better job of staying caught up with both this blog - my reviews and regular posts - and my local writing critique group. I fell behind more than once this past year, and while I don't expect perfection, I'd like to improve.

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Do you make resolutions or goals? How do you start the new year? I'd love to read some of the things you are looking forward to in 2019! Comment below, and don't forget to subscribe to my monthly blog.