Goals for 2008

[ysabetwordsmith]

Okay, yesterday I took stock of my accomplishments from 2007. Now I'm thinking ahead.


Here are some of my goals for 2008:

• Update book proposal and sample chapters for Into the Green and give to agent.



• Finish writing the poems needed to complete The 50 Poetic States collection. Keep shopping around the proposal for it in hopes of finding an editor who likes it and can afford to buy it.



• Write at least one other book. Preferably on purpose and preferably something that will sell.



• Write at least 200 poems. Aim for one Poetry Fishbowl per month.



• Sell poetry to at least 3 new markets.



• Get at least one speculative poem of 1-10 lines published so that I'll have something eligible for the Dwarf Stars Award. This award is a good idea, and I want to help make it succeed.



• Write at least 3 stories. Take more care not to let fiction engine idle until things spurt out sideways at inopportune times.



• Experiment with cyberfunded creativity for my writing.



• Obtain at least one new, regular writing or editing job that pays reasonably well.

Ongoing goals:

• Sell something to Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine.



• Become Poet Laureate of Illinois.



• Establish Pagan fiction as a genre.



• Write the Great Terran Novel.

So ... what are some of your goals for 2008?

Comments

[gumnut.livejournal.com]

Wow.

And here I am staggering around trying to get Chapter one of my novel written.

You go, m'dear, go gettem :D

Nutty
(disorganisedly organised)

[ysabetwordsmith.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I wish you luck with the novel.

[haikujaguar.livejournal.com]

I am going to pull out my hair soon if you don't get a book of poetry published somewhere. The scrapped pages you send me are the only thing keeping me from wandering around like a zombie in a horror movie, going, "POOOOEEMMMZZZ!!!"

[ysabetwordsmith.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I feel the same way. But you made me laugh so hard -- now I've got this image stuck in my head. I even have a fan who's also an avid consumer of zombie movies.

Zombie Poetry Junkie Fans, unite! Tell the editors of the world that you require poetry or you will resort to eating their brains, and make them buy my poems. Then you can have all you want. Really. I have thousands.

[ysabetwordsmith.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I feel the same way. But you made me laugh so hard -- now I've got this image stuck in my head. I even have a fan who's also an avid consumer of zombie movies.

Zombie Poetry Junkie Fans, unite! Tell the editors of the world that you require poetry or you will resort to eating their brains, and make them buy my poems. Then you can have all you want. Really. I have thousands.

[haikujaguar.livejournal.com]

Hmm. I wonder if you would have better luck at this point self-publishing. Do you think? Maybe you could do an Aphorisms-style thing where people toss in a few bucks to read the poems here, and then maybe buy a collected version with a couple of illustrations here and there?

[ysabetwordsmith.livejournal.com]

I've considered it. I was surprised -- and rather dubious -- when I came across a reference that a "best-selling" poetry collection was considered to be 50 copies. I thought, sheesh, I could sell that many to people I already know, let alone sales to strangers. I'll see how the overall interest in poetry measures out, and if it looks promising, start investigating self-publishing options. I have no qualms over selling where the money's at; if the traditional route isn't viable, chuck 'em.

[padparadscha.livejournal.com]

-Finish the second half of the story I'm writing
-Try not to get myself blown up
-Beat Super Mario Galaxy

That's about it for now ...

[ysabetwordsmith.livejournal.com]

*laugh* Good list.

[stars-in-return.livejournal.com]

Hello, I have seen your posts in the poems community. I was thinking that since you seem to know quite a bit about the world of writing, maybe by being your friend I could get to know some more. I write a lot of poetry and hopefully will publish a book of it some time. I also have another plan for a book but it's still forming.

Would you mind if I added you?

Thank you!

[ysabetwordsmith.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you've found my posts useful. You're welcome to Friend me; when I get the note, I'll add you to my Friends list too.

Yes, my blog is a good place for poets to hone their skills. I frequently talk about poetry, writing, and the wordsmithing business. I've done a couple of Poetry Fishbowls; there will be more regularly. I might try hosting an online writing workshop sometime too.

Re: Thank you!

[stars-in-return.livejournal.com]

What is a poetry fishbowl?

Re: Thank you!

[ysabetwordsmith.livejournal.com]

In general, a fishbowl is an activity where someone is put in front of a group to do something while others contribute and critique. In a writing context, it usually means the audience provides ideas for the writer to write about.

What I do on my blog is ask people for poetry prompts: characters, settings, actions, themes, forms, etc. Then I put those together and turn them into poems. I always post at least one of the poems for everyone to enjoy. Sometimes there are ancillary discussions of poetry or theme or other things. It's a lot of fun. I usually get a good 10-12 poems out of the exercise.