Progress Bar from Writertopia
I do like how this forces me to examine the results I made in the previous year. Often I surprise myself.
Stories I finished:
"Words of Parting" - 4966 words, the only original story I finished all year. I submitted it to the Triangulation contest, but it wasn't selected for publication.
"Something in the Air - 2673 words for Crossover Challenge #4. It's a brief glimpse of Glitch and Az in Kansas from the sequel to Dragons and Ninjas. If I participate in more of these challenges, I may get the major scenes of this story written before I actually write the story.
"Representing the O.Z." - 198 words written for tm_challenge Round 20. I couldn't resist answering the challenge with a little bit staring the Mystic Man and my OC Franklin.
Tin Man/Medical Investigation: Alchemy - 33,804 words for the annual BDPT. This story had been banging around my head for a while, so I made it fit into the prompts to help my team win, and then the results were never tallied!
I wrote 107,062 fictional words in 2011, which leads to a new section in this meme. Stories I didn't finish:
Untitled steampunk mystery - 434 words. I have the characters, setting, and plot, but it hasn't gelled completely yet. I typed up an opening scene and haven't gotten back to it.
Tin Man: Prince of the Outer Zone - 8974 words are done in this sequel to Tine Man: Pirates of the Nonestic. I thought turning to this story on Mondays (which are brutal days to write on with the paying job) would give me a boost when I turned back to Stellar Gift of Death. I didn't really see a boost, but I have typed the first two chapters now.
Stellar Gift of Death - I wrote 56,013 words in 2011, giving this story a total word count of 74,148. I have the beat sheet and it works. I have characters who I understand. So I think my brain, Perfect Girl, and the Fear Monger are latching onto what I don't know about the setting and the universe to freeze up the process. In 2012, I will have to break past that.
My favorite story this year: Alchemy. I was a tad bit nervous about the Medical Investigation half, but everyone who has read it has enjoyed it.
Story most under-appreciated by the universe, in my opinion: "Something in the Air" but I really don't blame anyone. I think it needs the context of the rest of the story.
Most fun story: "Representing the O.Z."
Stories I wrote that I never thought I'd write: "Words of Parting" I didn't think this part of Mealte's back story could work as a separate story. It needs revising, but the core holds up.
Hardest story to write: Stellar, otherwise I'd be finished with it!
Biggest disappointment: I only typed 158 days out of 365. Granted some of the remaining 207 days were spent on rough drafts, plotting, or unmeasurable world building stuff, but that still leaves plenty when I didn't do any of that.
Biggest surprise: Miles/Az in Alchemy. With as much brainstorming I did on that story, it didn't develop until I started writing.
Looking back, did you write more fic than you thought you would, less, or about what you predicted? I got really close to the total number of fictional words I wanted to write 182,500, 59% complete. But I had a goal of not writing fanfiction until I finished four original stories and I only finished one. And still wrote three fanfics!
Did you take any writing risks this year? What did you learn from them? I meant to submit more and promptly forgot all about doing that.
Did you meet last years' goals? Write 182,500 fictional words between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2011
- Specific: Write at least 500 words every day - Considering I only have 158 days when what I wrote was countable, I'm mildly impressed I got to 107,062 words.
- Measurable: Post the weekly total every Saturday at DUF using the Writertopia progress bar - I've been consistent with the posting.
- Keep track of daily progress with a marathon spreadsheet - I've been consistent with this posting too.
- Action-oriented: Finish Stellar Gift of Death by March 20, 2011 - nope.
- Finish a 5000-word short story for Triangulation submission by March 31, 2011 - yes.
- Finish steampunk mystery - nope.
- Finish another story in the Piper of Shadows universe - nope.
- Finish the "Blue Man on the Porch" - nope.
- Realistic: Finish four original stories before any fanfiction - nope.
- Trackable/Time-based: Each story has a marathon tracker of its own, and metrics are posted daily at DUF - yeah, I think tracking is now a habit.
- Specific: Submit to six markets by Dec. 31, 2011 - I submitted to two markets and neither was accepted.
- Measurable: Find a tracking method that I can update without fuss. - I found Sonar3, which I like for as little as I have used it.
- Action-oriented: Look for 12 markets - didn't do.
- Realistic: Send out at least one story in February, April, June, August, October, and December - didn't do.
- Have conversations with the Fear Monger; it helps - didn't do.
- Trackable/Time-based: Honestly note the anxiety over each submission on tracking method - Sonar3 lets me do this; I just banished the whole goal of submissions out of my mind.
Do you have any goals for the coming year?
Fiction Writing
- Specific: Finish Stellar Gift of Death
- Edit "Words of Parting"
- Edit "Blue Man on the Porch"
- World building for the steampunk mystery
- World building for Piper of Shadows universe
- World building for Zy's universe
- Edit Forget the Sun for Mez's 2012 project.
- Write 2000 words a week and pick out a new project once Stellar is finished.
- Measurable: Post the weekly total at DUF using the Writertopia progress bar.
- Action-oriented: Dedicate at least 30 minutes on a writing project every day.
- Realistic: Write what I feel like I can't not write.
- Trackable: Each story has a marathon tracker of its own, and metrics are posted every day at DUF.
- Specific: Submit to three markets.
- Measurable: Enter submissions into Sonar 3
- Action-oriented: Look for 12 markets.
- Realistic: Look for email markets.
- Trackable: Note how anxious I am about the submission in Sonar3.
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