Writing Exercise #21: Winning in 2017

Shannon Dittemore is the author of the Angel Eyes novels. She has an overactive imagination and a passion for truth. Her lifelong journey to combine the two is responsible for a stint at Portland Bible College, performances with local theater companies, and an affinity for mentoring teen writers. Since 2013, Shannon has taught mentoring tracks at a local school where she provides junior high and high school students with an introduction to writing and the publishing industry. For more about Shan, check out her website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest. 

Next month, many of us will set goals for 2018. We'll use fancy words like 'resolution' to show our friends and family just how serious we are about losing five pounds or finishing a book or taking down the Christmas lights.

In truth, I'm not overly big on resolutions. I set goals, but I'm kind to myself and I let things slide if life happens and things of higher priority need to be addressed. But something I try to do every December is remember.

When the end of the year rolls around, I like to look back and take stock of where I've been and what I've done. The moments that surprised me. The days that went just as they should have. The weeks that, well, didn't. And though I like to think back on every area of my life--I've found these December reminiscing sessions can be particularly helpful where my writing career is concerned.

It's far too easy to reach the end of the year and despair of all you didn't get done. To wish you'd made it farther down the road. To mourn a rejection or a failed project. The negative feelings about all the things that didn't happen this year can overwhelm the truth of what you DID accomplish. And despair is no way to close one season and open another.

So today, for your final writing exercise of 2017, I want you to make a list. Only this one won't be for Santa. It will be for you. To remind you that you did stuff that mattered this year. You grew yourself and your writing. You filled your head with stories that will forever change your voice. You embarked on adventures and are all the wiser for it. You closeted yourself away when necessary, to think, to be, to write.

Whatever it is you've done that has furthered your writing career/hobby/experiment--add it to the list. Every positive moment. Every win. Jot it down. Use the comments section here, okay? So we can all celebrate with you. And then come back throughout the weekend to cheer on your friends. 2017 was a difficult year for many of us. We need one another. Never forget how important your encouragement is to other writers.

Why don't I start? I'll leave my list here for you all. Perhaps it will remind you of some accomplishment you've forgotten.

Finished and edited and polished a manuscript.
Wrote nearly 50 blog posts.
Taught a ten-week mentoring class for jr high and high school students.
Taught my first teen track at a writing conference.
Took my first solo road trip in over a decade.
Met with my agent in person.
Attended five book signings.
Deepened relationships with my local writer friends.
Explored the Lost Coast.
Got better at writing outside my own office.
Grew my Instagram following.
Recorded my first video blogs for Go Teen Writers.
Go Teen Writers was listed as one of the 101 Best Websites for Writers by Writers Digest.
Expanded my podcast listening repertoire.
Coordinated a couple Go Teen Writers Instagram challenges.
Had new headshots taken.
Built a new author website.
Learned that the rights to my second book, Broken Wings, sold in Poland.
Upped my book purchasing game--one way I support authors and the industry.
AND, I read more books this year than I did last year--which is saying something because the first quarter of 2017 was murder on my reading life.

 Now, it's your turn! Make a list and check it twice. It'd be a bummer to leave off a win.

REMEMBER! When you participate in our writing exercises you can enter to win an opportunity to ask Jill, Steph and me a question for one of our upcoming writing panels. Once you leave your response to the writing prompt in the comments section, use the Rafflecopter below to enter. Next week, Rafflecopter will select one winner and we'll contact you for your question via email. Happy writing, friends!

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