My 2013 Goals and a 2012 Goal Recap

I've previously blogged draft versions of my goals for 2013 and in the end, I've decided to make no real changes to the list. To have them in a nice, consolidated place I'm going to list them out here along with links to the original blog posts which covered each individual goal and the details behind them.

Where I say "Short Stories" below, please read that to include all lengths of short fiction from flash fiction through novellas.

1. Submit 36 Short Stories for the First Time
2. Read 500 Short Stories
3. Submit Four New Novelettes and Novellas
4. Attend Four Conventions
5. Reformulate My Blog Strategy

The one thing you might notice is that the ordering is different. In this case, I have put them in rough "priority" order. By far the most important one of these to me is #1. I've had a fantastic year in terms of writing, submitting, and selling short fiction in 2012 and I'd like to keep up that momentum in 2013.

In the interest of completeness, I'm going to recap my 2012 goals as well.

1. Go through revisions on my NaNo project and get it out the door on submission. - Did not happen. I've got mixed feelings about whether I'll ever go back to "Adrift." I think there are some good core elements there and the one person who's read it felt that there was some potential. But I also realize it probably needs a complete redrafting which is a daunting prospect. Also, at the moment, working on a novel does not fit in with any of my 2013 goals, which seems to make it something which is unlikely to take up much of my time for the near future.
2. Write 250,000 words of fiction on new projects. - Did not happen. I stopped counting words earlier this year. I'd estimate I hit about 120,000 words which is a very solid number even if it is less than half of what I had been aiming for.
3. Write a first draft of a new novel during NaNoWriMo. - Did not happen.
4. Stick to my established blog schedule. - Done.
5. Keep my Seinfeld Chain going throughout the year. If I absolutely have to break it, start a new one ASAP. - Basically done. Things got a bit wonky in the last couple of weeks of the year, but I'm going to say I met the spirit of this one.
6. Attend one genre convention. - Done.

I think the big thing I notice here is that the vision I had of myself as a writer in late-2011 (having completed a draft of my first novel during NaNoWriMo and not having yet had success with short fiction sales) is very different then the vision I have of myself as a writer today. Since I got back into writing around the first of August in 2011 this doesn't seem particularly surprising to me. I'm having a good time writing and reading genre short fiction and I don't see any reason to change that for the immediate future. Granted, a year is a long time, and it's always possible I'll have another change in direction during 2013. But for the moment, the five goals listed near the top of this post are the markers I plan to steer toward in the upcoming year.