Sunday 14 April 2013

2013 Resolutions: The First Quarterly Audit

I promised myself I'd keep track of my resolutions every quarter and come closer to achieving my goals this year.


Writing Resolutions:


1. Post at least once a week.
When I miss a week, I squelch my conscience by making two posts the following week.

2. Start reviewing books on Goodreads.
Started! I've linked the Goodreads widget to the blog.

3. Give some thought to converting this blog into a website.
I'm still weighing out the pros and cons of shifting to Wordpress. The cons are currently winning.

4. Send articles to publications every month and build a writing portfolio. Rewrite and edit the unfinished write-ups from last year.
Got rejected, then had a piece published! It appeared in the April issue of bazaar magazine. Working on old and new ideas.

5. Have a tryst with Fiction.
I had an awesome dream a week or so after New Year. It was vivid, heart-rending and is going to be the foundation for my first novel. Except for scribbling down a few notes on the protagonists and a couple of scenes (that appeared in my dream), I haven't really begun writing it yet, although I replay said scenes in my mind everyday. It'll be challenging, will require a ton of research, and the novel if completed may never be published, but I foresee it as a journey I must embark upon.

6. Make a wholehearted attempt at writing a screenplay.
Watching more plays and encountering Max Landis at the Middle East Film and Comic Con in Dubai last week (write-up coming soon) has only impassioned me further on writing one, but I haven't come up with anything decent yet.

7. Continue recording dreams. Skim through past records for potential material.
See 5. Haven't done any skimming yet.

8. Add to the vocabulary arsenal and draw from it.
In progress. Wodehouse and Doyle are assisting me. 

9. Get in touch with like-minded bloggers and writers; read and comment on their work.
In progress, but I don't comment as much as I should. I will.

10. If the words start flowing, put them on paper/Notes app/Kleenex/currency notes/what have you IMMEDIATELY.
Long live the trusty Notes app! It's been an indispensable tool for when the words are aroused.

I haven't really been working on my Reading or Continuing Education resolutions (only read five books so far), except for turning to Wodehouse when in dire need of mirth, and attempting to pick up more Arabic.

What are your resolutions or goals for 2013? Are you keeping track of your progress or is your list lying forgotten in a drawer? Pick it up, blow the dust off and get a move on.

5 comments:

  1. hehe audit :P

    eagerly awaiting that screenplay!

    personally i want a recorder device, like for dictations etc. but they look goofy and cost a small fortune, you can record sound bytes on smart phones but its not the same "/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Didn't we have this exact same conversation a couple of years ago at Toastmasters?

      Delete
  2. Toastmasters? Which one were you in?

    ReplyDelete
  3. 1,2,4,9... I can totally relate! And that screenplay sounds exciting..faber acaddemy browse is due! :-)

    ReplyDelete

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