This post first appeared on the Children's Book Academy blog.
This New Year’s Eve, we will be ringing in a new year and a new decade. It’s an ideal time to take stock of goals and to make plans to achieve your creative dreams. Here are a few concrete steps to help celebrate 2020 with writing resolutions in mind:
Start a Vision Board – gather words, phrases, and pictures from magazines or online; special photos; song lyrics; and other memorabilia that resonates and helps you to visually imagine moving forward with your goals.
Get Organized – Fill a notebook, journal, calendar, or online system with to-do notes and deadlines. These small goals and dates can all shift as you move into the year but it’s often helpful to at least have a starting point you can commit to.
Join Some Free Writing Challenges – there are many free writing workshops and challenges available at the beginning of the new year. Here are a few to consider:
January - StoryStorm
February - Nonfiction Fest (NF Fest)
March - Chapter Book Challenge
Recommit To Your Critique Group – check in with your critique group and recommit to make 2020 a banner year for supporting your writing partners. If you are not yet part of a group, make it a goal to get involved. Helpful resources for finding critique groups include your local SCBW.org chapter and free resources on Facebook such as KidLit411 and Sub It Club.
Consider Stretching your Brain in Other Ways - take a children’s book illustration course like this one and literally discover new ways of seeing and doing things.
Let me know in the comments about the resources you find helpful as you gear up for the new year!
Cheers to making 2020 your best year yet!
Happy creating!