Yep, I'm putting it right there in the title, though I censored it in case you are disturbed by such profanity (if so, brace yourself!) 2015 was the Year I Say No, and I did a very good job of that, to be sure. I plain ol' said NO or FUCK THIS to many things this past year. But sometimes NO just wasn't enough, and near the end of the year, I started to say FUCK THIS more instead. I threw up my hands and chose not to give a fuck.
There was this time this past year when everything came to a head for me. I was giving out good advice, someone got all up in my face about it, and I said FUCK THIS, deleted all my advice, put it in a bag, and took it home. NO ADVICE FOR YOU! I'm tired of the ungrateful behavior of so many people, so I closed up shop and moved on. You know what? That felt great. I don't need to sit around and give fucks when people or the world don't want them. I'll save my fucks for the stuff that really matters: myself, my writing, my family, my friends.
Because there are only so many things I can control, and all the things I can't control only deserve so much of my energy. I am learning what is deserving of energy and what is not, and I will make some mistakes this coming year, but overall, I'm going to come to terms with plenty of parts of my life, professional and personal. I turn 40 this year (FORTY, FOR-TY) and I am over a lot of stupid stuff. OVER IT. Wow, that's freeing! I keep saying over and over in my brain, “I don't give a fuck.” Yep. That feels pretty good.
Head Down, Keep Writing! Give no fucks about all the stuff I can't control. Continue to say NO to the stuff that sucks away my positive energy. Yep, this is 2016 in a nutshell.
Now, here are my goals for the year…
Books And Writing
I have a very busy year planned out and I hope to meet all of these goals:
I plan to PUBLISH two cozy mysteries and WRITE a third.
I plan to WRITE and PUBLISH two more Kami No Sekai short stories and bundle them all.
I plan to WRITE and PUBLISH the first of a new scifi series.
I plan to WRITE and PUBLISH a scifi shared-world novella.
I plan to WRITE and PUBLISH one non-fiction book.
I plan to update the covers for FACE TIME and the whole Nogiku Series.
I plan to bundle the Nogiku Series.
I plan to give away books to my newsletter subscribers.
So far I've committed to the shared-world novella and the cozy mysteries. The other short stories and the new possible scifi series are optional but I'm feeling hopeful about them! I have half the non-fiction book already written!
I'm taking a very laid-back view of my writing this year. No stressing over deadlines, no fussing over tiny editing details, no fucks given if there are some typos (every book has them, and even if I hire five proofreaders, they'll never all be caught), no stressing over book covers or layout. As I have learned, everything can be changed or updated later. No big deal.
I plan to be Amazon exclusive for 2016 unless something drastic changes. Something always does, so we'll see!
Most of all, I plan to be flexible in the face of the ever-changing market. I will bend when the wind blows, cross the river when the water is low, and travel when the weather is good. I will hunker down and watch for signs of peace when a war is being waged around me. I will fight the good fight on the things that matter. I will surrender when there are no other options.
Marketing, Promotions, Advertising, and Social Media
I'm going to join Author Marketing Club and I'd really like to take Mark Dawson's class this year too.
I plan to learn more about Scrivener with my online class and learn more about Excel as well.
I will pay for promotions when I have sales.
I have dropped Twitter participation. I don't really like it there anymore.
Pinterest will continue to be mainly personal and inspirational for my books.
My Tumblr is alive and kicking.
I will post to Instagram every day like I did in 2015 and 2014.
Facebook is where I will concentrate all of my efforts outside of my mailing list.
I hope to grow my mailing list by 50% this year.
Personal Goals
I would like to continue my workouts and use my treadmill more. I've been doing a good job of this so let's continue!
I will continue to be okay with my body and love it for what it is. This is important! It was good for my self-esteem this year to accept my shape and live with it. I need to push that even harder next year!
I'm going back to a goal from two years ago and concentrate on learning more Japanese. I found a website called Verbling which I hope to join and take lessons with an instructor via their version of Skype.
I'd like to knit more and read more. Listen to more audiobooks and try to enjoy some downtime.
Journal every day. I've never done this, but I have a journal now and I'd like to just write a few thoughts about the day, every day. Let's see if I can keep it up.
I'd really like to cook more diverse things, try new recipes, and TRY to love cooking. Ugh. I hate it now. I need to change that!
And That's It!
Let's go in and kick 2016's butt!
Happy new year! I like your idea of giving no fuck, worrying about things you can’t control only saps your energy. I can’t wait to read the books you’re going to publish this year. I am especially excited about the cozy mystery ones!
Oh and a non-fiction book? I wonder what it’s about. Good luck with all your goals and I hope 2016 will be a great year for you!
Happy New Year! You have a ton of things planned, that’s very exciting. I wish you the best of luck with your goals :)
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