RESOURCES

“Every journey begins with the first step of articulating the intention, and then becoming the intention.”

― Bryant McGill, Voice of Reason

One of my favorite parts of planning a trip is plugging my starting point and my destination into Google Maps to see what the journey might look like, and what’s achievable in a day of travel. I love playing with the different routes, checking to see what my arrival time will be if I leave in the morning or an hour later. I like to see the route laid out so I can investigate the places I’ll be passing by. 

These days, I rarely go anywhere without using my Google Maps because even when I know the route I’m planning to take, I don’t always know what time I’ll arrive, so having an estimate makes me less anxious that I’ll be late. And god forbid, there is a road closure! Before I had a GPS map at my disposal, I was famous with family and friends for getting lost in my own town, or taking three hours to get somewhere because I couldn’t keep the turns and street names straight in my head. Even with a paper map I couldn’t always get where I needed to go. But a GPS map gives me a specific, relevant route to take, with an idea of the time constraints and measurable distances. And most importantly, it can change according to my needs.

My writing experience was as chaotic as my non-GPS driving. Without a goal to work towards, and a plan to accomplish it, I flounder around, hoping I’m headed in the right direction. I don’t have a vision of what I want my writing to be on a daily or weekly basis, and so it becomes easier to quit when I’m feeling challenged. When I discovered and began to apply SMART goals to my writing, I had a map to follow and I could identify the points along the way that I could accomplish in a day or week of writing. Having a SMART goal allows me to feel more confident because I know what I’m trying to accomplish and I also know that it is actually achievable. I’ve designed it to be big, but specific enough that I can accomplish it, even when I feel overwhelmed or blocked. And, if needed, I can adjust it to better reflect my changing life. 

Your SMART goal is a map to help you see where you are going. The map isn’t the journey, and it doesn’t even give a perfect idea of what the journey will be like, but it does help us plan, anticipate and prepare for that journey.

You might be thinking “but writing is an art form! I can’t put constraints on my craft! I can’t apply goals and objectives to art!” I hear you! I do! But if you want to write a novel, you are doing a very different kind of craft than, say, painting a landscape. It’s easy to see on a painting what is left to be done. It’s easy to identify at a glance what you’ve accomplished and what you want to finish. For most of us, writing isn’t so simple. We can’t hold all of it in our head, and we can’t see the overall vision. A SMART goal helps us keep track of the vision and helps us know where to aim. 

SPECIFIC - What will you achieve? What will you do? 

Be as specific as possible. A goal like “I will achieve a novel for young adults” can get more focused. Novels come in all different sizes after all! And it can feel overwhelming to think of writing a novel. It’s a huge thing! It also requires revision and editing and all sorts of things that could be broken up even further. So “I will write a 100,000 word first draft fantasy novel for young adults” is more specific and also helps you remember your bigger vision. 

MEASURABLE - What data will you use to decide whether you've met the goal? 

This data depends on what your goal is, but it needs to be something that can be measured to see if you are progressing. It might be word count, or minutes you’re dedicating to writing. It might be days, or chapters revised. Whatever you need to help you identify that you are accomplishing it. 

ACHIEVABLE - Are you sure you can do this? Do you have the right skills and resources? What obstacles are in your way? 

Don’t get discouraged by that first question. It really just means “is the goal something you can accomplish in the time you’ve set?” If your average word count is 500 per day then setting a goal of writing 1500 words a day isn’t realistic unless you are adjusting the amount of time you spend writing or using some other strategy to boost your word count. If you aren’t sure you can do it, adjust the goal! No one is checking over your shoulder. We just want you to be successful, and you can build your writing resiliency by achieving a small goal and then creating a bigger one. If you don’t have the right skills or resources, and have obstacles to overcome, then be honest with yourself about what you need, and then start asking for help. Maybe you want to sign up for some book coaching. Maybe you need to start saying no to people, or start making time that is dedicated to writing. Maybe you need some podcasts or books to help you build your skills.

RELEVANT - Does the goal align with your writing journey? How will the result matter to you? Why this goal?

These are all entirely based on your writing journey but identifying what makes this goal relevant to you and why it matters will help the goal feel tied to your life and dreams in a way that makes them feel tangible and necessary. 

TIMEBOUND - What is the deadline for accomplishing the goal? 

Set a time that is in relation to the achievability of your goal, or if you have a time-bound date already, adjust the achievability. Look at what your overall goal is, then your calendar. If you want to write 50,000 words and can average 5000 a week, then your deadline should be at least 10 weeks out.

So how do we put it together? Let’s imagine that your starting goal is something like: 

“I want to write a novel for young adults.”

If we work to make it more specific we can add in some more details and also change the verbs from “I want” to “I will” because we’re stating not just want we want to do but what we are going to do:

“I will write a 100,000 word first draft fantasy novel for young adults”

We have a measurable goal here too, because we’re using words as a unit of measurement. Now we need to ask ourselves if this is achievable, or what we need in order to accomplish it. Can we write 100,000 words? Yes. Can we write a first draft fantasy novel? Yes. Can we write it for young adults? Yes. I might need some resources to make sure I’m hitting the right tropes and genre conventions or level of writing for young adults, but I can do it. And, I’m keeping my goal more achievable by saying it’s a first draft. The pressure isn’t as high! 

I also need to ask why it’s relevant to me. Perhaps I don’t include all of this in my goal, but maybe a little so that I can remember why it’s important to me that I achieve it:

“I will write a 100,000 word first draft fantasy novel for young adults because I’ve always wanted to write a book like the ones I read as a teen.”

Next, we need to add in the time-bound parts. If I know that I can write 1,000 words in an average writing session, and I write five days a week, then I’m going to write 5,000 words a week, then my deadline will be at least 20 weeks from now. Let’s assume this goal was started at the beginning of the year for ease of scheduling. That means my deadline is in mid-May. Keep in mind that there might be occasions when you can’t write five days a week, or get 1,000 words each day. You might want to add in some buffer time to help. So, my new SMART goal is:

“I will write a 100,000 word first draft fantasy novel for young adults by May 31st because I’ve always wanted to write a book like the ones I read as a teen.”

Now, you’re ready to start breaking it into tasks and setting your weekly intentions!

Once you have a big writing goal it’s not enough to stare at it every time you sit at your desk. Just like looking at a destination won’t get you there (believe me, I’ve tried!) setting a goal won’t get the book done or the query letters sent. Our next step is breaking the goal into smaller tasks so we can focus our energy on them day by day or week by week and actually achieve them. 

Setting a weekly intention helps you reflect on where you want to be spending your energy and recommit yourself to the bigger goal. That way, you can think about the upcoming week and make sure that you are creating space in your days to accomplish the things you want. 

It’s also a chance for you to look back at the week before and adjust things as needed. It’s good to be ambitious in these writing goals, but they don’t leave a lot of room for the days or weeks that go off the rails. A weekly intention can help correct for this and makes the bigger goal seem do-able. 

When I taught college composition the final grade was always a ten page essay. Students would look at that assignment and I could see the panic begin to well up in their eyes. I began to ask them to trust me, that I was here to teach them how to write an essay but also how to organize their approach so they could write the essay. One student told me later that she had taken and dropped at least three other composition classes because it was so overwhelming, but the way I made them write in steps, rather than tackling the whole thing all at once made it feel possible, and she was finally able to pass the class.

That’s what we’re doing here– breaking down the SMART goal into steps so you can stop feeling overwhelmed and start taking control of your writing. Or, maybe you don’t feel overwhelmed, but you like connecting all the weekly intentions for little celebrations of your progress, like stars in a constellation all your own. Whatever your reason is, the practice is powerful!

1. Start by looking at  your SMART goal and identifying how you can divide it into smaller parts. 

Can you do it by time– by weeks or days? By word count, chapter or some other measurement? Maybe you want to track your time in your chair, or time spent revising. Maybe your goal is related to another writing task, like querying agents. Can you pick a number or a task? 

Using our earlier example of 5,000 words a week (see the SMART goal resources above), I’m going to divide 5,000 by the number of writing days I have per week. That will give me my daily writing goal. I try to write 3 days a week, so my daily writing goal is 1,666. I’m going to round it up to 1,700 because that will help cover my bases if one of those days are a little rougher. 

2. Consider the specifics: 

• How are you going to achieve the daily writing goal?

• What do you need to achieve it?

• Do you have what you need or are there obstacles? What are they?

• What can you do to go around or through them?

I’ll start by asking myself how am I going to achieve my goal of 1,700 words. Knowing what I know about myself, my answer might be that I’ll use a writing blueprint and outline the story. I’ll also want to consider where I’m writing, and if this helps or hinders my progress. I’ve found that it’s easiest for me to write at the library or a coffee shop, not my home office. So, I write during my son’s preschool hours at a nearby coffee shop or library. That gives me about three uninterrupted hours and I know from past tracking of my writing sessions that I can usually get 1,700 words in that timeframe. If I couldn’t get them done then I would need to observe the obstacles in my way and identify as many as I can. I’d ask myself why I’m struggling. Is it because I don’t have a strong sense of what I want to write, or I’m getting mired in plot issues, or writer’s block. Am I getting distracted by my surroundings or things online?

3. Create a plan that realistically answers these questions.

Now that we know what the obstacles are we can come up with a plan to overcome them. It needs to be realistic, not just what we want or think we should do. A lot of writers have an idea that they should write every day, or write first thing in the morning or late at night. That might work perfectly for you, or it might be causing more anxiety because you’re not living up to this ideal. Instead, it’s better to observe what your actual life is like and work from there. Although right now I am able to write for three hours three days a week, I’ve also spent a year writing in my thirty minute lunch breaks from work because that was all I could actually commit to. Maybe you can only write on your phone, or during your child’s soccer practice. People have done it and made it work. Only you know what you can do, and it’s better to get a few steps closer to your goal than never start. Don’t be afraid to give yourself grace. 

4. Finally, put them all together. 

Spend some time reflecting on what you were able to accomplish last week, and what your calendar looks like this week. What is your goal and what unit will move you closer to it? Then, write your intention.

Here’s an example of mine:

I will write 1,700 words on each of my three writing days during preschool hours to accomplish my goal of 5,000 words a week. 

Once I’ve set this intention it helps me shape my time and remember that this writing time is valuable to me and makes me more likely to create that space, rather than spending it on a household chore or something else that won’t help me achieve my goals.

When your brain isn't cooperating, and you can't think straight, it can be hard to find the word you mean. Sometimes, skimming through websites all about words can be the jumpstart you need. Here are a few specific word lists that might help: 

• 73 words & adjectives to describe food

• How to Describe Food in Fiction Writing

• 204 words that describe colours

• List of words to describe colors

• Eyes, Ears, Mouth, and Nose: Character Descriptions for Your Novel

• How to describe character appearance the right way

• Words for Skin Tone

• 160+ Ways to Describe Weather

• Master List for Describing Weather

Podcasts are one of my favorite ways to get new information. There are podcasts for everything! But also, there are podcasts for everything! So, here is a list of my favorite podcasts about books and the book industry at this time. I’ve tried to break them down into categories, and this list may grow or change. Use your favorite podcast app and start subscribing today! Do you have a podcast you love? Let me know and I’ll check it out!

Fan Podcasts 

podcasts about loving books and/or genres

Fated Mates - Fated Mates is a romance novel podcast co-hosted by author Sarah MacLean and romance critic Jen Prokop. They’re fans but also professionals within the community and are great at banter, analysis and general love of the genre. Weekly episodes include romance novel read-alongs and discussions of the work, highlighting the romance novel as a powerful tool in fighting patriarchy…with absolutely no kink shaming.

Craft Podcasts podcasts 

focused on the craft of storytelling and writing

How Story Works - How Story Works is a podcast for everyone who loves stories. If you’re a writer, understanding how story works will help you craft better stories. If you’re a lover of stories, the podcast will give you added insight into your favorite tales, and extend the toolset you use to better understand the stories you love. Join NYT bestselling author and story expert Lani Diane Rich as she demystifies stories and storytelling, allowing you to better write and appreciate the stories you love. I’ve loved Lani’s podcasts for years and have learned so much from her. This podcast is a great round-up of all of her knowledge.

Writing Excuses - Writing Excuses is a fast-paced, educational podcast for writers, by writers. Their goal is to help Their listeners become better at their craft. Whether they write for fun or for profit, whether they’re new to the domain or old hands, Writing Excuses has something to offer. It’s got a huge backlog, and breaks up every season by a topic they’re tackling. Each episode is about 15 minutes long, so it’s great to listen to in short bursts. Their guests and the panel that rotate in and out of the episodes are veterans of the publishing industry, but this podcast is an excellent one for new writers too.

Deadline City - This podcast straddles the craft and business side of things. Zoraida Cordova and Dhonielle Clayton are two New York City-based authors who share an office and work on multiple books at a time. Between them, they have 40 books published and under contract, mostly in the YA genre. They tackle topics from pen names to book themes, and are great at breaking down both story telling and querying.

Publishing Podcasts 

podcasts by authors all about the business of being a professional writer

Publishing Rodeo - The Publishing Rodeo podcast aims to answer why some authors seem to have all the luck and some have a floundering career, despite doing all the same things and even writing in similar markets, using collated experiences from ourselves, friends, colleagues, and a slew of industry professionals in an attempt to deconstruct what makes or breaks a book, along with how to build and maintain an author career. This podcast is focused on authors who are working within the trad pub model, but is full of useful information about the industry for everyone.

The SPA Girls Podcast - The SPA Girls are Trudi Jaye, Cheryl Phipps, Wendy Vella and Shar Barratt: four New Zealand authors who between them have had more than 100 books published, and have been self-publishing since 2013, and Wendy Vella alone, has sold more than 2 million copies of her historical and contemporary romances. The SPA Girls Podcast (SPA = Self Publishing Authors) is one of the industry’s leading publishing podcasts globally, with over five years worth of weekly top-rating episodes. Aimed at the beginning self-publisher, the podcast has received rave reviews from listeners and guests alike! Each week the SPA Girls bring listeners a new episode covering all things self-publishing, writing craft, marketing advice, advertising strategies and expert guest interviews.

PublishHER - For all writers, this podcast covers all parts of publishing, book launches, book marketing, tips, tools, and resources to write, publish, and sell your book. Self-publishing, hybrid publishing, and traditional publishing. Author interviews and industry experts. Hosted by Alexa Bigwarfe of the Women in Publishing Summit.

January 2024

February 2024

March 2024

April 2023

May 2023

June 2023

July 2023

August 2023

September 2023

October 2023

November 2023

December 2023