Writing career goals and planning notebook

Sitting at home with a cold and a significant lack of motivation to polish the first five chapters of my current work in progress, Die Trying, I’ve settled into a fun project I strongly advise for any author or would be author.

Planning for the future!

Whether you’re a career romance novelist or writing is your second job, it’s important to have goals.  My goals are lofty, to publish 3 books next year and 3 the year after.  Because I do write erotic romantic suspense, among other things, epublishers are a viable and profitable option.  And they’re faster at the whole acceptance/rejection thing which is great if you’re impatient!

But here’s the second part of the whole goal thing.  In order to achieve your goals, you must also have a plan.  It’s not enough to say, “Hey, I’m going to publish three next year.” You also have to plan when you’re going to write, edit and polish those books and when and how you’re going to submit them. Because in case you ahven’t noticed, life has a way of moving along quite quickly with or without you.  When you plan for your goals, and follow through on your plans, then success starts happening!

What to consider putting into your writing/publishing/career plan.

1.  What you’re going to write

2.  When you’re going to write

3.  What you’re going to submit for publication, where you’re going to submit it, and when (It pays to have a system to track your submissions.)

4.  Your writing memberships and organizations. There’s nothing better to motivate you than a fellow group of writers.  They’re also great for keeping you on track and continuously improving your craft.  Romance Writers of America, www.rwanational.org is a great place to start.  I belong to several chapters of the RWA and the Passionate Ink online chapter is fantastic!

5.  Continue your education.  The only way to improve your writing skills is to keep writing and keep learning about the craft and the industry!

I like to attend at least one workshop each quarter, more if possible, and many of these workshops are free through your RWA chapter.  Additionally, I have a library of writing books, more for inspiration than anything else and there’s a great course designed specifically for Romance Writers by successful romance writers that covers everything from how and what to write to how to manage your career.  It’s a one stop course on making a living writing romance - check it out.

Don’t wait for the next time you’re feeling under the weather to plan the next two or three years of your writing career.  Sit down for a few hours this weekend and create a plan for your romance writing future!