ROW80 & 2012 Goals

I’m a big fan of NaNoWriMo, if nothing else, because it helps keep me on a schedule of writing. That’s why I’m going to try something called A Round of Words in 80 Days, or ROW80. It’s like NaNo, but you set your own goals. You can find more info here. Round 1 runs from January 2, till March 22. So if you wanted, you can sign-up here and join in. All the general information is there.

So, while I was making some goals for ROW80, I figured I’d post some of my general 2012 goals as well.

ROW80

Yes, I want to become a published writer. No, I don’t do enough work. That’s the problem, and that’s why I’m tossing in my keyboard for ROW80. I need some tangible goals for myself. So, here we go:

  • My Vote Your Own Adventure (VYOA) is in the works, and I have the first draft of the first section done. My goal for Round 1 – 2012 is to get this thing going. I want to have a new part to the story every week. At this time I’m not sure which day I will post stories, but I’m leaning towards posting on Monday and letting voting go through Fri, leaving me Sat and Sun to get the next one written. I’ll try that for a bit and see how it goes. Potentially, that could be around 10 weeks of story.
  • I also want to work on the serial story that I have. I am hoping that the next draft will be the last and then I can begin posting them. By the end of this round of ROW80, I want to have 5 chapters done, and the first one posted.
  • As far as blogging goes, I have a review in the pipeline, and some thoughts on technology. I also have one that talks about Hero’s Tale as a whole, and what it is. I want to have that post up before the VYOA goes up to help explain what is going on. I also want to get those other two out in February and March. I have another idea about what writers can learn from a game I’m playing, but I don’t want to say more about that yet.
  • I don’t do much on Twitter, Facebook and blogging in general. Mainly because I don’t have tons of time to do so. I understand that, as a writer, I need to interact with my audience and peers. So, I plan on being more active. Although, I expect this one will be hard to succeed at.

Personal

Onto some other goals for 2012 that aren’t ROW80 related:

  • Have more consistent quiet times. I feel that I am a bit of an oxymoron of a Christian in not taking time to spend time with God. How can I be a Christian and follow God if I am not spending time with him? It’d be like me calling myself a husband or father and never spending time with my wife or kids.
  • Look into a domain name that is separate from my Hero’s Tale project for me as a writer.
  • Get a new picture up for Facebook, Twitter and my blog. The one there is a few years old, and after I shaved my goatee off and while I was still wearing contacts. I’ve got a beard now, and I’m wearing glasses. My picture should show a me now, not a few years ago.
  • Go running more often, because I like running and I miss that feeling.

I know I forgot things that I thought of, but I can add them later. Now, I only hope I’m not trying to do too much!

Edit

I’m adding a link to the start of the ROW80 blogs. Go check them out!

11 thoughts on “ROW80 & 2012 Goals

  1. I, too, am really looking forward to ROW 80. I’ve never done it before, but since I love NaNo and the swells of writing energy, I imagine Row 80 will be perfect for me.

    You have a ton of goals here–great ones. Lots of irons in the fire. You are inspiring me to think bigger with my goals. I have a few projects that I am working on, and there are several for which I am avoiding making goals. I have to ask myself, what am I afraid of? Why am I not moving forward with those projects?

    Good luck as you start ROW 80! I’ll be cheering you on!

    • Fear. I had that thought earlier in the day, and want to do a post on it. Fear of failure? Fear of success? Both? I don’t know myself yet.

      Good luck to you as well. I believe it will be a fun 80 days.

  2. Great goals.

    Have you identified what will get ‘less’ so these things can have ‘more’? That’s a big part of the challenge for me. Life is already pretty full.

    • I know I have some time that isn’t being used very well right now, so putting some of that to use. Also, probably playing less games for a while. Granted, I don’t play a lot right now anyway, but every little bit helps.

  3. good goals!! We might be coming your way later this month… I can help you out with that new headshot if you want?
    I just started reading Bird By Bird a book on writing and life… it was one of a few mentioned a Relevant in our writing sessions… I’m hoping this year my writing gets better… I tend to post photos or nothing instead of trying to get the words out that are swirling around my head

    • That would be great! Hopefully one of us remembers.

      That book sounds neat. If you bring it when you guys visit, I’d be interested in looking at it.

      Writing isn’t always easy for me, either. I’ve had my laptop open all day, and wrote 10 words, I think. I know what I want to write, but I can’t make my fingers type them.

  4. Pingback: 2012 – Personal Perspective | Brian T. Ronk

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