Writerly Wednesday; Goal Setting

New comment system? Breathtaking new header banner? Someone is tarting up their blog!  Could something be afoot? Could there be exciting news on Monday?  Tune in then to find out :)

Do you like my teacups?  I was messing about with google drawings last night when I should've been writing the last thousand of my four thousand words of yesterday.  Have plans for an upgraded version involving the ironing board cover (yes, I agree, am even more riveting than usual this morning.)

So, for this Writerly Wednesday (formerly Writing Tuesday), I wanted to blog about goal setting.  As I said I'm pushing for 4,000 words a day at the moment.  It is a lot and it is exhausting.  I'm also blogging, twittering, commenting, gossiping, cooking, cleaning, washing, dressing, trying to make Miss 5 sit still long enough to learn to read AND making sure I drag Miss 6 out of a book at least once a day to eat.  Oh and I have a husband, dog, cat and chickens who occasionally want attention. Not to mention the garden.

I could write something about how I have balance in my life, but it would be a load of crap.  What I do have is a lot of lists so that I remember everything I want/need/should do and/or ignore.  I love a good list.

This is what my writing list looks like at the moment...

1. Running With The Hunted 
1. Finished end of May (50,000 words to go), 
2. Ready for agent by end July
2. First draft short romance
1. 50,000 words
2. Write as part of 50ks in 30 days (which is something Romance Australia run)
3. Finished end June, 
4. Ready to pitch by August at RWA conference / or send to agent
3. Submission for Samhain Olympics anthology story 
1. 25 - 30,000 words 
2. Finish end July
3. Due 1st September
4. Fat Chance
1. 100,000 words
2. Plot & research by September
3. First draft done end December
5. Short story for writing competition, or messing about on Smashwords
1. 15 - 20,000 words
2. Not taking this too seriously

Lots to do, but just looking at this list makes me feel excited and motivated.  I know where I'm going, I know what I want to achieve.  I know that its up to me to get there.

I cannot stress enough the importance of setting goals when you are writing.  Otherwise you may end up losing momentum or wondering where you are going with it all.

You want to finish a manuscript?

• Set a date, an achievable date and work towards it. When you fill your daily word count reward yourself, boast on twitter, let me know, tell your mother (but be warned she may be somewhat underwhelmed!).
• Have a plan about what you want to do with that manuscript when you are finished, be it, find an agent, submit it to Mills&Boon, self publish it.  Cyber stalk the agents you have in mind, the publisher or other self-publishers - its a great way to start getting your name out there.
• And, always, always, have Plan B, Plan C and Plan D up your sleeve, and put a bit of effort into them as well.  Publishing is a rough businesses and it helps to know where you are going if Plan A does not come off as planned (and that is something I have experienced over and over).

I have a lot of other lists.  A marketing list, a cleaning list, a to do list, a menu/shopping list...  I don't get to what is on any of these lists in one day, and I don't expect to, but I know where I am, what has been done, what must be done and what hasn't been done for weeks.

Oh and speaking of what hasn't been done for weeks... Diminishing Lucy has a comp over on her blog to giveaway a years supply of shower cleaning wipes.  Apparently they are brilliant and given the state of our shower I'm going to get me some and give them a go.