Welcome to the Serious Writers’ Accountability Group!
Post your goals for this month and let us know how you got on with last month’s goals.
Leave a comment below telling us how you got on last month, and what you plan to do next month, then check back in on the first of each month, to see how everyone’s doing.
(It doesn’t have to be fiction. Feel free to use this group to push you in whatever creative direction you need.)
Did you live up to your commitment from last month? Don’t remember what you promised to do? Check out the comments from last month.
And don’t forget to celebrate with/encourage your fellow SWAGr-ers on their progress!
Download your SWAGr Tracking Sheet now, to keep track of your commitments this month
****
Examples of Goals Set By SWAGr-ers in previous months
- Finish first draft of story and write 3 articles for my school paper. – Courtney
- Write on seven days this month – Clare
- Extend my reading and to read with a ‘writers eye’- Wendy
- write 10,000 words – Mary Lou
So, what will you accomplish this month? Leave your comment below (use the drop-down option to subscribe to the comments and receive lovely, encouraging notifications from fellow StADa SWAGr-ers!)
(Next check-in, 1st of the month. Tell your friends!)
Hi, my first time using a program like this. This new normal is calm and different too. I am retired and can write any time of day. Until recently I had to write by hand. I had a tv tray for a desk. Played clear tv tray and set up for writing. Half hour later I lost interest.
Accomplished:
Have a new desk
Old laptop crashed, welcome new chrombook in.
GOALS:
start my web sight
My main goal is to finish my current round of revisions on my novel manuscript. I would also like to post 4 times to my blog, ideally once a week.
The link for the tracker sheet does not seem to be working.
Excellent. Good luck with those revisions.
For blog posting I find it helps to brainstorm the ideas ahead of time and batch-write them. Might or might not be what you want to do…
(And thanks for letting me know about the link. I think I’ve fixed it now)
March Goals:
Week 1 – One narrative-driven song
Week 2 – 1st short screen-play about emotional progression. Some research is also required on multiple genre conventions.
Week 3 – 2nd short enemies-to-lovers puzzle screen-play.
Week 4 – Revisions on each of the projects for the month
Big goals! Good luck!
In February, I finished reading Heiress Weds Coachman, which I read as research for my novel.
I revised one poem and wrote two more.
I made progress on revising my website.
My goals for March are:
Finish another book as part of my research.
Finsh updating my website.
Do some volunteer proofreading to give me further experience and practice.
Enter my research terms on NewspaperArchives. com
Excellent progress.
I bet you could find some willing partners for your volunteer proofreading in the Superstars Slack!
I have been mostly lurking but now is the time for me to grow consistency in my writing. So, in March 2020, I will start with 2 small goals:
a. write 10 installments of my book/course
b. read at least one chapter of any book on my Kindle.
Welcome into the light! 😉
I love that you have a reading goal in there with the writing one. It’s important.
And writing 10 installments of your course/book doesn’t sound like a particularly small goal to me! Good luck!
My February goals:
Revise at least 4 stories I wrote as part of IWriter – done
Write and post at least one blog post – done (did 2)
Submit 3 works – done, barely.
March goals:
Write and post 2 blog posts
Get my online store (not writing, but creative so including) catalog photos done
Submit 3 works
Participate in critique group
Revise 3 stories
Write 1 new story
This is ambitious and I’m pushing myself during a traditionally busy month at work, but I’m going to give it a try.
WTG with your Feb goals, Peyton. And there is nothing wrong with stretching our goals, it’s how we grow. Do you find that having built-in rewards for certain goals helps you achieve more?
Great question, LuAnn!
Well done on meeting those goals!
Sometimes it pays to set ambitious goals. If you’re feeling bold, go for it (and I love that you included your online store work in here too.)
Hi all,
This is the first time I’ve participated in SWAGr and I’m super excited. I’m a uni student, school tutor, and aspiring novelist who wants to prove to herself that she is a writer today, not someday. I’ve jut gotten back into the habit of recording my writing sessions in a writing log and I’m recommitting to establishing a daily fiction writing habit.
MARCH GOAL:
– Write 250 words on my novel or a piece for a writing comp per day. (More than 250 words is awesome, but 250 words ticks the box.)
– Enter 2 short story comps (More than 2 would be brilliant, but entering 2 ticks the box)
– Spend 1 hr per week getting my blog up and running.
Good luck everyone, and thanks for keeping me encouraged and accountable!
Chloe
(Sydney, AUS)
Welcome, Chloe!
I LOVE that you have what look like manageable minimums in your goals.
The only tweak I might make is to encourage you to have an ‘if/then’ plan: if you don’t manage to get your 250 words done one day, what will your contingency plan be? Let it go? Write twice as much tomorrow? (I do not recommend that, but you do you…) Put a small heart on your calendar to indicate compassion for flawed-you?
This isn’t an excuse to miss your goals, but simply an acknowledgment that it happens and we need to have ways to move past it without wasting energy on regret 😉
I didn’t meet my goals concerning my novel due to writing for my local magazine and entering a Lockdown competition.
I ACHIEVED:
*reading with a Writer’s eye
*writing Story Sparks.
MARCH GOALS 2021
* research and development of my villain
*Set a goal for the year based on what I have learnt after reflecting on 2020 and getting advice on goal setting.
* Identify the meaningful changes occurring in my novel.
*Pinpoint what is unique and important in my novel.
* continue with story sparks
* continue to expand my reading with a writer’s eye and keep notes.
* Research storage solutions in my cluttered writing corner.
Enjoy Spring everyone 💖
I bet a lot of writer’s goals changed (like everything else) due to Covid. It’s great that you could write for your local magazine. And I feel your pain on the cluttery corner where you write. I’d be interested to hear what works for you, as I have not found that magical combination as of yet. :p
Sounds like you swapped one writing goal for two others last week. I think that’s a win!
I like your goals for March. Sounds like they’ll keep you moving forward.
And I hate to say this about the clutter but sometimes we have to let some of it go… (remember you can take photos of things and store them digitally!)
Hi, the link to the SWAGr tracking sheet isn’t working, something I think sounds particularly useful for me! Writing something, mostly every day
Oops! I’ve fixed it now. Thanks!
February Goals:
Finish FFFX fic, part 2–DONE
Work on the other exchanges I definitely didn’t need to sign up for, but did anyway–DONE
Extend Dynamic Duo zine submission–NOT DONE
Write moar–OH GOD SO NOT DONE
March Goals:
I have….six exchanges, one digital zine, and one Big Bang I’m doing. Three are due this month, the other five are due in April, and I’m gonna lose my MIND if I do this to myself again.
Oh well….
So, I realized I said I hadn’t written much in January, but I actually wrote over 17k that month. In contrast, I wrote 1,300-odd in February. Wild how that feels so different.
One of my exchanges is for 5k of original fiction (we’re given a pairing & tags to work from) for someone. I’ve never done this long of an original work for someone else, so this should be very interesting. The rest are (hopefully) going to be all fanfic, which at least gives me built-in characters, haha.
Hey Fleet,
Respect for your consistency and the varied ways you approach your writing. 🙂
Ha! I’m sensing a theme with your pledges never to do this to yourself again 😉