I say realistic because I am starting to know my habits and personality very well these days and what is achievable or not for me. I know I have commitments and responsibilities that come before writing, but I also know that I can be a real procrastinator at times. I believe that setting up unrealistic goals for myself is just setting me up for failure and can be extremely demotivating.
So taking into account my full-time job and other factors into account, this is the goal I have set myself.
My goal for 2017 is to write, edit and publish my first debut novel. And I want to have it all done by September 2017.
There I've said it. And not only that but I wrote it on this blog so it will be on the internet forever, haunting me if I don't achieve it.
I'm a big dreamer and always have been. It was my dream to come live in Japan and I made it happen. It's been two years now and time to move on to my next big dream, becoming a writer. Writing my first novel is the first big step and should take up all my focus and energy until it's realised.
Only then will I allow myself to dream bigger.
With the September 2017 deadline in mind, I have broken up the remaining months into several steps:
1) Write the first draft
I am aiming to write roughly around 100,000 words. In order to do this, I will be starting December 1st and aim to finish by February 28th. That's 3 months of writing while working a full-time job with a 2-weeks holiday back home in Paris where hopefully I will have more writing time on my hands.
Yesterday I bought myself a small agenda for the sole purpose of writing down my daily word count in it every day. Look out for more details about step 1 in my next post.
2) Research and self-editing
I have already done a fair bit of research and prep for my novel but I am sure while writing the first draft there will be plenty of moments when I won't know exactly how to describe an item or place or even what to call a new character. Rather than stop the writing process and spend hours skimming websites and books looking for specific information, I will merely write a note in Scrivener and come back to it later.
This will also be the time to look at my first draft again with a critical eye and see what works and what doesn't, which plot points need to be hinted at earlier and which loose ends need to be tied up. I'm sure there will be lots of cutting and re-writing, which is why I will be giving myself a good two months for this process.
I aim to finish both research and editing by April 30th.
3) Editing
By this point, I hope I will have a list of beta-readers I can trust to give me constructive criticism and proofread my novel. I also hope I will be able to find a good professional editor who will be able to help me transform my novel into something publishable!
Right now I am still unsure whether to aim for traditional publishing or self-publishing but I am currently veering towards self-pub and in that case, I will need a pro. I'm not sure how long this step can take. I haven't researched much about this yet but from what I understand indie authors need not only creative editing but also copy-editing and even proofreading? It sounds expensive to me and so this is where the timeline becomes fuzzy.
As I'm not clear on everything yet it's hard to figure out a timeline so I'm giving myself the summer until July 31st.
4) Publishing
From July 2017 everything will hopefully be a lot clearer for me and I will know exactly what to do with my novel in terms of publishing. If I go the traditional way and look for an agent then I guess writing query letters is in order and if it's self-publishing then I'll need to format my novel to become an ebook and set up accounts on various selling platforms.
It all sounds very vague and distant future as of now but that's all right. I am already researching the next steps and will define this step more clearly one the first draft is completed. In any case, the goal is that my book will be the best that it can be by September 2017 whether I send it off to agents or decide to self-publish it.
So let's start with step 1: writing the first draft. This will be the most daunting and yet exciting part. After so many months coming up with storylines, characters and settings inside my head, researching and outlining, I finally get to sit down and write. This will also be the most stressful and anxious time for me. Staring at the blank screen page in front of me every day can cause my confidence to seriously waver and make me suddenly question everything I'm doing.
That's why I believe I am in need of 3 things before I start sitting down to write.
1) a motivational poster
2) a daily word count
3) a support buddy (or support buddies)
The motivational poster came to me when I read Joanna Penn's article about creating a daily writing habit. She wrote her own little poster that constantly reminded her to write because it would bring her closer to the goals she had set for herself as a writer. So I found some craft paper and coloured pens and wrote my own little sign to hang up above my desk.
I'm hoping it will be a constant kick in my arse and reminder to write no matter what is going on in my life at that moment or how I feel. It will also act as a reminder to my boyfriend too, but more about that below.
Second is a daily word count. For now my daily word count is starting out low, only 500 words a day. I believe I need to build a daily writing habit slowly at first until I get used to it and can increase the word count. Of course, 500 words is a minimum and I plan to write more on my days off and my least busy days during the week. Right now I have both a small agenda and wall calendar where I have jotted down 500 every day and plan to give myself a great big tick every time I achieve it... and maybe some chocolate as well from time to time... or a glass of red wine ^_^
Finally, I think having a support buddy (or two, or three) is also essential during the months I spend writing the first draft. No matter how many posters I make or calendars I mark, none of those material things are going to encourage me as I go along nor will they hold me accountable when I don't reach my word count. I believe getting moral support from others is a great way to stay focused and motivated as usually when we know someone is expecting us to do something, we put more effort and energy into the task.
It's definitely the case for me and so I decided to call upon a friend to help me through my writing days and be there to check in on me every day. My friend is a fellow writer and has finished writing his own debut novel so he will definitely understand what I'm going through. Another person who will help me along is my boyfriend. Not only has he decided to support me through the difficult months ahead but he will also see the motivational poster above my desk every day and remember to ask me about my word count!
So that's the plan so far step by step. Of course, I'm sure at some point life will get in the way or I will have a slump or writer's block, but I think I have given myself plenty of time until September 2017. Things will change along the way as I gather more information about editing and publishing, but all scheduling changes will be mentioned on the blog.
As for the writing schedule, it starts this Thursday on December 1st.
500 words every day until February 28th.
So any NaNoWriMos out there who will continue writing their novel beyond November 30th and want to be fellow writing buddies, be sure to come say hello on my twitter or comment below.
Until next time, keep writing everyone!
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