For me, as I’m sure for all of you, this past year has challenged me in ways I never expected. Since I work from home and live in the middle of nowhere, my life seemed to go on much the same as always. And yet as I look back I can see how the events of this year have accelerated my own growth in many ways while creating stresses and tensions I wasn’t expecting in other areas.
For one thing, I didn’t get much fiction writing done. (Nope, no “plague plays” for me.) Although there were other factors to this, which I’ve discussed elsewhere and am still trying to figure out, a comment from one of you on the blog a few weeks back made me realize that, Yes, of course, 2020 has played a role in this.
And so I approach the end of this year with gratitude for what I was able to accomplish and for the fact that in no way was 2020 a wasted year. It was a year of weeding and planting. And while the seeds are still in the ground, I absolutely believe they will bear good fruit.
So the shorthand is that most of what I feel I’ve accomplished this year is internal and ephemeral. But I’m also happy that this year allowed for the following:
- Publication of my tenth writing-craft book Writing Your Story’s Theme.
Writing Your Story’s Theme (Amazon affiliate link)
- 7th mention of Helping Writers Become Authors in Writer’s Digest’s 101 Best Websites for Writers.
- Semi-finalist nod to my gaslamp fantasy novel Wayfarer in SPFBO 2020.
Wayfarer (Amazon affiliate link)
My plans for next year are nebulous when it comes to my fiction, vacillating between the super-scary thought of taking a conscious break to experimenting with pantsing a story to trying my hand at poetry or memoir.
In January, I plan to start my long-anticipated (by me anyway) blog series about archetypal character arcs. And I’m super excited to get to share with you a full-cast audio production of my gaslamp fantasy Wayfarer.
Thank you for walking and writing beside me in this historic year!
And now, just in case you missed them or want to review, here are my top 10 writing posts from 2020, according to your page views.
My Top 10 Posts of 2020
1. 2 Different Types of the Lie Your Character Believes
2. 7 Possible Hooks for Your Opening Chapter
3. The Crucial Link Between Your Story’s Inciting Event and Climactic Moment
4. 15 Steps to Self-Publish Your Book
5. 6 Tips for Introducing Characters
6. 7 Considerations for Your Antagonist’s Motivations (Which Will Save You SOOO Much Trouble)
7. 6 Steps to Create Realistic (and Powerful) Scene Dilemmas
8. 4 Questions to Prevent Plot Holes
9. 7 Steps to Stop Overthinking Your Writing
10. 15 Productive Tasks You Can Still Do Even When You Don’t Feel Like Writing
Wordplayers, tell me your opinions! What was the most memorable writing event in your 2020? Tell me in the comments!
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