2005 Writing Year in Review
Jan. 2nd, 2006 01:55 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
leahbobetSo I waited until it was good and over (and I had a day off) to crunch the writing numbers: first the meme-metrics, and then my own goal-setting ones.
Finished Novels: Claire de Lune, 122,310 words
Unfinished Novels: Toronto Book 2, 71,141 words
Queries Sent: 13, 1 response still pending
Finished Short Stories:
"Three Days and Nights in Lord Darkdrake's Hall"
"They Fight Crime!"
"Lost Wax"
"The Girl From Another World"
"The Spirit of One's Tools"
Unfinished Short Stories: Several, which I can't quite count. I'm not sure anymore what I started when.
Short story Submissions: 61
Acceptances: 9
Rejections: 44
Other responses: 2 market closures
Awaiting response: 6
Short Stories Published:
"Building a Taller Chair" in Fortean Bureau
"Bliss" in On Spec
"Displaced Persons" reprinted in The Year's Best Science Fiction and Fantasy for Teens
"They Fight Crime!" in Strange Horizons
"Dog Days" in TEL: Stories
Other Neat Things: Honourable Mention for "Sonnets Made of Wood" in the YBF&H, some very good reviews received all around, much story love.
Poems written: 6
Poems Published:
"Clothbound" in Dreams & Nightmares
"The Lady, In Waiting" in Aoife's Kiss
"Glass Slippers" in Aoife's Kiss
"Happily Ever After" in Aoife's Kiss
Award nominations: 1, for the Rhysling, which I did not win.
Words Total: 203,750 MS Word.
So, the goals for the last half of this year were to:
-- write a grand total of 300,000 words MS Word. 'Cause, y'know. Obviously I can.
-- complete 6 more stories and poems as the mood strikes me
-- complete 3 novels (that'd be Claire de Lune, double back for the end of Toronto Book 2, and then full speed ahead on the Victorian Book)
-- sell some more stuff. I won't set numbers for this, for it is not wholly my decision. :p
-- sub more. I've been experiencing longer wait times from markets since about November; other people have said they're waiting longer too.
-- send out queries and such for Claire de Lune and get that in motion.
-- hopefully get the grant, but again, not in my hands. *g*
-- and oh man, did I mention I really want to to go WFC this year?
Pulled a 50% average on that, which isn't bad -- I think writing 3 books a year might be ambitious for me. I tend to burn my brain out on one or two.
So for this year:
-- Write a grand total of 250,000 words MS Word. Let's take that up in baby steps.
-- Complete 2 novels: whatever shows up next and either the end of Toronto Book 2 or whatever shows up after that.
-- Complete at least a story per month (so 12 new shorts) and keep them in the mail.
-- Sell some more fiction. Pro. There's something to be said about preserving one's momentum.
-- Finish the second draft of Claire de Lune and have queries out by February.
-- Enact Project Grant Application II: This Time It's Personal.
-- Make it to WFC Austin in November, Ad Astra in March, and maybe hopefully Worldcon in L.A.
-- Investigate and work on nonfiction possibilities: reviews, articles, etc. Learn a bit of journalism as well as fiction writing.
I'll add more as I think of them. But for now, I have to meet someone for lunch. *runs*
Finished Novels: Claire de Lune, 122,310 words
Unfinished Novels: Toronto Book 2, 71,141 words
Queries Sent: 13, 1 response still pending
Finished Short Stories:
"Three Days and Nights in Lord Darkdrake's Hall"
"They Fight Crime!"
"Lost Wax"
"The Girl From Another World"
"The Spirit of One's Tools"
Unfinished Short Stories: Several, which I can't quite count. I'm not sure anymore what I started when.
Short story Submissions: 61
Acceptances: 9
Rejections: 44
Other responses: 2 market closures
Awaiting response: 6
Short Stories Published:
"Building a Taller Chair" in Fortean Bureau
"Bliss" in On Spec
"Displaced Persons" reprinted in The Year's Best Science Fiction and Fantasy for Teens
"They Fight Crime!" in Strange Horizons
"Dog Days" in TEL: Stories
Other Neat Things: Honourable Mention for "Sonnets Made of Wood" in the YBF&H, some very good reviews received all around, much story love.
Poems written: 6
Poems Published:
"Clothbound" in Dreams & Nightmares
"The Lady, In Waiting" in Aoife's Kiss
"Glass Slippers" in Aoife's Kiss
"Happily Ever After" in Aoife's Kiss
Award nominations: 1, for the Rhysling, which I did not win.
Words Total: 203,750 MS Word.
So, the goals for the last half of this year were to:
-- write a grand total of 300,000 words MS Word. 'Cause, y'know. Obviously I can.
-- complete 3 novels (that'd be Claire de Lune, double back for the end of Toronto Book 2, and then full speed ahead on the Victorian Book)
-- send out queries and such for Claire de Lune and get that in motion.
-- hopefully get the grant, but again, not in my hands. *g*
Pulled a 50% average on that, which isn't bad -- I think writing 3 books a year might be ambitious for me. I tend to burn my brain out on one or two.
So for this year:
-- Write a grand total of 250,000 words MS Word. Let's take that up in baby steps.
-- Complete 2 novels: whatever shows up next and either the end of Toronto Book 2 or whatever shows up after that.
-- Complete at least a story per month (so 12 new shorts) and keep them in the mail.
-- Sell some more fiction. Pro. There's something to be said about preserving one's momentum.
-- Finish the second draft of Claire de Lune and have queries out by February.
-- Enact Project Grant Application II: This Time It's Personal.
-- Make it to WFC Austin in November, Ad Astra in March, and maybe hopefully Worldcon in L.A.
-- Investigate and work on nonfiction possibilities: reviews, articles, etc. Learn a bit of journalism as well as fiction writing.
I'll add more as I think of them. But for now, I have to meet someone for lunch. *runs*
