On the first day of a bright and shiny new year, spread out before us full of possibilities, it’s all too easy to feel a sense of determination. (“I’m DOING it this year! I’m going to write a book/lose weight/take more time for myself…etc etc.)

But when the first month of the new year gives way to the second, what happens? The old comfortable routines are still there. The problems of the previous year have not magically disappeared.

• There is still not enough time to write.
• There are still family responsibilities to attend to, and
• publishers still send rejection letters.

Then what do you do?

You relax into it. A New Year’s resolution is, after all, just another name for a goal. Goals become difficult to achieve when you set your sights too high. (Am I saying “Don’t aim high”? Not at all. Read on.)

Here’s a step-by-step method for setting goals (or, if you like, making New Year’s resolutions) that work.

1. Make a resolution that is impossible to break.

This one has to be ridiculously easy. Like “Write a polished first chapter for the last day of December.” That gives you 365 days to plan, write, and polish just that first chapter.

Gold: “Join an online critique group.”

Or: “Find 5 websites for writers and print out some great advice from those sites.”

Your resolution may be completely different. Whatever it is, make it so simple you’d have to be comatose not to pull it off.

2. Make a resolution that involves your family/friends.

In order to write effectively, most of us need the cooperation of people who are important to us. Think about what you need.

• Do you need more time for yourself, without interruptions? (Start by negotiating small amounts of time with your family. You can increase this later.)
• Do you need encouragement, not humiliation? (Talk to those who are negative about your career. Tell them you really need their support if you’re going to make it.)
• Do you need to cut down on outdoor activities? (Be assertive. If committee work is wearing you out, let someone else take over the role. Arrange for other parents to take turns driving kids to sports or dance class.)
• Need to take action against time bandits? (Friends who talk for an hour on the phone; neighbors who come for coffee 3-4 times a week; relatives who always ask you to do things for them). Take a stand. Tell them that you will do everything you can for your writing career this year. Use the answering machine; make appointments for coffee.

3. Make a resolution to keep you healthy.

Writers spend a lot of time sitting down and looking at a computer. They get cramps when they bend over a desk to edit drafts. To squeeze as much writing time as possible around other commitments, good health goes out the window.

Taking care of your health is essential if you want a lasting career as a writer.

Here are some simple and easy-to-stick resolutions to stay healthy. Well, at least a little healthier!

• Keep a glass of water on your desk at all times. Drink constantly and keep refilling it while you work. Do not underestimate the importance of a regular intake of water.
• Choose a form of exercise that you can live with at least one day a week. If you hate running, don’t. If you hate the gym, don’t go. Everyone can find ONE thing that involves physical activity for a 20 minute stretch. Go bowling, swim, line dance. Commit to just one day a week. If you choose well, you will enjoy it so much that you will want to increase your time.
• If your weight is an issue, commit to eating healthy one day a week. Even one day is better than none! Choose simple foods that are easy to prepare. If you can do it, opt for a day of healthy eating every other day. (Another way of looking at this: Decide to change your eating habits for the better, but allow yourself a “junk food day” once a week or once a month.)
• Check your desk and chair. If one or both of you are uncomfortable, decide to buy something better before the end of the year, the sooner the better!

4. Make step resolutions about your writing.

We’ve already talked about the really easy resolution: the one you’d have to be in a coma to fail! That may be the bottom step of an imaginary ladder.

Let’s say you have ten steps. The lowest step is your “easy” goal. Now you have to decide on the next nine. Let’s do the tenth and highest step first. (This is where you have to aim high!)

Goal number 10 should not be something out of reach. It should be something that you feel you can achieve with a little hard work (and maybe a little luck). A goal where you stretch a bit.

• It could be “have a finished and polished novel ready to ship.”
• It could be “have my own literary agent.”
• It could be “start selling my own ebook from my own website”.

Once you have your very easy goal and your goal to stretch, it’s time to complete the eight intermediate steps. These should be relatively easy – just ask yourself how you can steadily move from Goal 1 to Goal 10.

Here’s an example:

Step 1: Find 5 internet sites for writers and print useful articles.

Step 2: Decide the project you most want to work on. outline it.

Step 3: Look for other writers to support you. (An online critique group, a local group that meets at each other’s homes, a writing partner in the same town.)

Stage 4: Continue working on the project decided in Step 2.

Step 5. Find a writer’s workshop, seminar, or festival. Commit to go.

Step 6. Keep working on the main project. (If it doesn’t work, fix the problems or start over. Don’t give up.)

Step 7. Decide what you need to learn. (To develop characters? Write dialogue? Improve grammar? Write a proposal? Create a website? Create an eBook?) Take action to develop your skills. Sign up for a short course, download information from the Internet, work with a friend to overcome problems).

Step 8. Keep working on the main project. Review your ten-step “New Year’s Resolution” program. What is working? What doesn’t work? What do you need to change? Be adaptable. No one knows what life is going to bring them. You could have a dream year, or it could all fall apart. The important thing is to be flexible, ask friends and family for support, and set new goals if necessary. Just don’t give up.

Step 9. The end is in sight. Keep working on your main project or projects. Are you close to your ‘stretch’ goal? If so, that’s great, you’ve had a good year. If not, analyze what went wrong. Instead of getting angry or frustrated, go into damage control. There is a solution for everything. Learn from obstacles; see if you can turn obstacles into opportunities.

Step 10. Get your hands on a complete and polished manuscript/get an agent. If everything went according to plan, you are either one of the lucky ones (life didn’t intervene!) or you are very well organized. If you didn’t get what you expected, go back to your ten steps and see what he did.

Many writers, frustrated by their apparent lack of success, overlook how much they have actually accomplished. Surely you have advanced in your skills, your achievements and your career in general.

Just keep moving forward. After all, resolutions are not meant to be broken or rigidly followed. They are made to guide you. Use them to shed light on the path, and especially keep looking up at that bright, glowing light in Step #10!

(c) Copyright Marg McAlister