Goal Setting for Writers by Julie Jarnagin

Terri here. I'm pleased to welcome my friend and USA Today Best Selling Author Julie Jarnagin to Seriously Write. Julie is a talented and goal driven author. I always find her advice helpful and I'm sure you will as well.

Anyone who knows me knows that I love all things goal setting and productivity. The research and science behind making new habits and reaching new goals is fascinating to me, especially as a writer…because writing is hard! Don’t you agree?

 

For me this writing journey takes willpower, concentration, and energy that some days I’m lacking. But when I look at my goals, I remember why it’s so important to make writing a priority in my life.

Here are 10 tips for setting and reaching your goals:

1. Make sure you have the right goal - Is it measurable? Is it realistic? Is it in your control? The last one is important. If your goal is to get a contract from your dream publisher by the end of the year, that’s something you can’t control. It’s an awesome dream, but not as useful as a goal. Instead, set a goal like – Have my manuscript complete and ready to pitch to the publisher at the conference or send out 15 query letters. These are measurable and in your control.

2. Look for the “why” behind your goal and visualize success – Why is this goal important to you? What makes the time and sacrifice worth it? How will you feel when you accomplish the goal? What would that look like? Knowing the why will help you know if you’re doing things for the right reasons and help get you through the tough times.

3. Limit the number of goals you’re focusing on at once – This is one reason so many people struggle with New Year’s Resolutions. They want to eat healthy, start a new exercise routine, find a new career, and get out of debt. We can’t do it all at once! This year, I broke my New Year’s resolutions down by month. Each month I focus on a different area. This means I can use all my willpower in one area – not ten.

4. Write down your goals and track your progress - Putting things on paper is powerful. Post your goal somewhere you can see it or share it with a trusted person in your life.

5. Do something concrete to help you achieve success - If your goal is to write more, schedule the date, time, and word count in your calendar. If your goal is to improve your writing craft, sign up for an online workshop or purchase the books you plan to read to make this happen.

6. Recognize that if you’re adding something to your life, you’re also going to have to give something up – Want to do more marketing? Where is the time going to come from? Are you going to give up one of your nightly television shows, wake up earlier, or spend less time on Pinterest. If you’re not careful, the time will be stolen from something you didn’t intend, like working on your manuscript or getting to bed at a decent hour.

7. Review your goals – Have a process for reviewing your goals regularly—whether that’s putting it in your calendar or putting a slip of paper with your goals in your wallet that you pull out every now and then. Revisit them to make sure you’re still on track.

8. Reward yourself - If your resolution is to work on your novel every day, reward yourself with a new book or a coffee from Starbucks each month that you write 20 or more days.

9. Don’t be afraid to fail – Nobody is perfect. If you get off track, get up and try again.

10. Give God room to work – Sometimes we think our list of goals is the best and only way to achieve success. Goals are good and useful, but only if we seek God when we’re setting them and seek God throughout the process. Goals are meant to keep us on track, but don’t be so set on your own road that you don’t notice if God is paving a new one for you.

Do you set specific writing goals? What are they? Do you write them down? How do you plan to stick to them?

Paige Morgan’s career is in shambles. What kind of wedding planner gets left at the altar? So when a job planning parties on a ranch in rural Texas comes her way, she jumps at it. So what if the cowboy who runs the place isn’t happy she’s there?

Rancher Nick Reid risked his heart once… and lost. Who needs love? He’s got a great life on the family ranch—so long as Paige Morgan and her city ideas don’t ruin it all. If only his family didn’t need her help to save their livelihood. And if only he wasn’t so darned drawn to the woman. But no sooner does Nick start to believe in love again, than a socialite shows up looking for Paige. Asking her to plan an elaborate wedding. Back in the city.

Both Paige and Nick need a second chance at love. But what will it cost them to take it?

Amazon: http://amzn.to/1QLy50m
Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/1odDd4g
iBooks: http://apple.co/1T3IEPZ

USA Today Best Selling author Julie Jarnagin writes sweet and inspirational romance. She grew up in a small Oklahoma town where her family farmed and ranched. These days she lives in a not-so-big city with her amazing husband and two young sons who tolerate all her nerdy quirks. Julie earned a B.A. in Journalism / Professional Writing from the University of Oklahoma and is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers. www.JulieJarnagin.com. Sign up for her newsletter to be the first to learn about new releases and free books: http://eepurl.com/5y5k

 

 

 

Tips to Keep Distractions from Veering You Off Course

Me - Dora Hiers

This spring, hubby and I purchased a new car. Before that, I drove a Ford Explorer, which I loved, but now that it's mostly me and the dog tooling around, it seemed pointless to drive such a big car. And gas? Nothing like watching $70 drain out of a tank, right?

So when the Explorer got to be of age, I set out to find a car with better gas mileage, but it had to be sporty and roomy enough to accommodate our full-figured Golden Retriever.

We decided on a Hyundai Santa Fe. I could ramble all day about the features. Heated seats, shiftronic capability (the ability to switch between automatic and stick~don't get me going on that!), great gas mileage, and ...

<--- check this out!

An electronic digital display estimates my average miles per gallon. What?? Do you know that you can boost your gas mileage by taking your foot off the accelerator for a few seconds? Well, I am all over that! That's why I got the car, right?

So, instead of focusing on the road, sometimes I would find myself honing in on that blue line, getting giddy as it edged closer to 50 mpg. I mean, really. How cool is that?

But then a honk would get my attention. Or moseying off the side of the road...

It's the same with our writing, isn't it? We allow distractions to take our attention away from getting words on the page. Those interruptions and diversions will drain our writing time and cause us to veer off the road, er...not accomplish anything that day.

Here are some suggestions that help me stay on track:

Determine your most productive time and stick to it. Early on, I recognized my most productive time of the day was in the morning, so that’s when I write. After breakfast and quiet time, I respond to emails and check social media briefly, and then immediately start writing. Every thirty minutes I get up and stretch, occasionally hit the restroom or refresh my drink. I don’t answer the phone unless it’s my husband, and I schedule all appointments for afternoons. Figure out your most productive time and do your best to work with it within the confines of your schedule. 

If you work a full time job, but your fingers fly across the keyboard in the mornings, can you get up a few minutes early to write? If your mind comes alive late at night, carve out some time after the kids go to bed to write. If your day consists of taxiing your kids around from football to gymnastics, you may have to adjust to lugging a laptop or tablet and squeezing word counts in fifteen minute increments. As much as possible, whenever you write, guard that time.

Set a goal. Set a realistic word count goal for the day, and then map it out for the entire year. Sounds like a lot of work, but it’s actually a great tool to help you see what you can accomplish if you cut out the distractions. Ask your spouse or a friend to keep you accountable by asking how many words you wrote that day.

Recognize your priorities. My recent college grad lived at home for a short time while he searched for a job. When he sauntered in my office, no matter the time, I was all ears because I recognized time with him was short, so talking with him was a priority. Occasionally, I found it necessary to adjust my word count while he was living with us, which I did, willingly.

Eliminate unnecessary distractions. Do whatever it takes to eliminate distractions. The biggest distraction for me is the Internet. There are apps available to disconnect from the Internet for extended periods of time, or you can just set a timer to alert you when your break is over.

What about you? How do you minimize your distractions?

Care to share the tips that work for you?

Journey's End
Purchase Link

Devastated after the brutal murder of her husband, Chelsea Hammond vows never to love another lawman. Intent on rebuilding her shattered life, she turns her focus to helping troubled teens. But when an angry father bent on retaliation, threatens her, Chelsea must turn to the one man she never thought to trust: Deputy U.S. Marshal Trey Colten. 

Trey wants only to protect Chelsea, but she blames him for her husband’s death. Trey can relate. He blames himself, also. As danger lurks, Trey begs Chelsea to heed his warnings. He let down one Hammond. He won’t let down another—especially one who now holds his heart.

When Chelsea is snatched from her home, can she put aside her fear, and trust Trey with her life? Can she forgive him for destroying her past and let him help to rebuild her future?

Tools for Writing: Scenes & Sequels

Did you know that if you do an Internet search of “scene and sequel,” you’d find 51,800,000 results? (No, I’m not exaggerating.) It's one of those catch phrases that you hear floating around writers' conferences along with "motivation-reaction unit" and "point of view." But, it is an important tool for your writer's toolbox because it keeps your novel moving forward. 

What is "Scene and Sequel?"

A scene gives the point of view character a goal, presents some type of conflict and ends with a disaster that moves the action forward into either another scene or a different type of scene called a sequel. A sequel is just a reaction scene that shows the point of view character’s emotion, presents them with another quandary that demands a decision and leads into more action.

The Warrior, the Wise Woman and the Fool

To explain this concept a little, let’s look at the biblical account of David, Abigail and Nabal. (I'm speaking on this Bible story tonight to my women's group at church so prayers would be greatly appreciated.) In 1 Samuel 25, David has just spared Saul’s life and is enjoying an uneasy ceasefire in the wilderness where he and his men are protecting area shepherds.

Scene: Goal, Conflict, and Disaster

David sends ten men to town with the goal of asking the owner of the largest flock, Nabal, for food. But here’s the conflict. Nabal is known for being ill-mannered and boorish. In fact, his name means, “fool.” In his answer, he compares David to a runaway slave and sends the messengers back empty-handed. Disaster strikes. David, in his anger, orders his men to suit up and prepare for battle, intending to kill every man in Nabal’s camp.

Sequel: Emotion, Quandary, Decision, and Action

In the sequel to this scene, a young servant runs to Nabal’s beautiful and wise wife, Abigail, with an emotional account of what has happened. She has a quandary: what can she do to stop the slaughter that her churlish husband has put into motion? She decides to order her servants to take the requested provisions to David’s army. Then she goes into action herself. She meets David on his way to her home and falls at his feet, apologizing for her husband’s words and pronouncing a blessing on him and his men. David graciously accepts her apology and spares her family.

How Many Scenes? How many Sequels?

Scenes and sequels can follow one another or you can have a series of scenes followed by a sequel or even series of sequels. 

In 1 Samuel 25:36, a scene follows. Abigail is relieved and returns home to tell her husband what she's done. But when she arrives, she finds Nabal drunk after a huge feast. She wisely decides to wait until he sobers up to tell him that she took food to David. The next morning, she breaks the news and Nabal's "heart dies within him." Disaster strikes when he dies a week later and Abigail is left a widow. 

But the story doesn't end there -- a sequel is next. David hears of Nabal's death and asks Abigail to marry him. The new widow considers his request and accepts, eventually becoming a queen.

Scenes, Sequels and Genre

Jack M. Bickham, in his book Writing Novels That Sell, says genre may determine the structure of a novel. Plot driven, fast-paced thrillers or action adventure may skip sequels. Character-driven contemporary or women’s fiction works may skip scenes. Either way, notice that both scenes and sequel end with disaster or action, driving your story on to its climax and conclusion. 

What about you? Have you used scenes and sequels in your writing?

~ Angie