Well, this week has been a bit slower than most. I know, it's difficult to believe given the sheer amount of chaos I've had to endure this year. Sure, Christmas shopping kind of interfered a bit, and all of the running around I'm doing is still on the table until after January 1st. But the computer decided to install updates a couple of days ago, which ground my progress to a screeching halt for roughly 8 hours.
Gotta love Windows...sigh.
I think I'm going to invest in a Chrome Book after the beginning of the year. That way, when Windows decides to screw me for a day, I can still work on the vast majority of my projects, such as editing blog posts or working on my books and blogs. I still need my PC due to the software I use and such. But something cheap that'll just work on the Internet can save me a TON of grief when Windows needs to do its thing.
Eh, I wouldn't know what to do with myself if everything worked according to plan for a solid week. I would take it as a sign of the end of days. The calm before the storm, so to speak.
In any case, I'm still working to keep all of the tops spinning regardless of who or what knocks the table.
Planning Out Next Year's Content
One of my goals for 2024 is to keep all of the blogs and YouTube channels on some kind of routine. It'll probably be about one published piece of content per week as I have so many different projects running at any given time. So, I am going to plan out several months' worth of blog posts and videos. That way, I can just jump in and get it going.
It looks like the vast majority of my traffic for both the blog and YouTube channel for WriterSanctuary is more focused on self-publishing and writing books. That's where I'll start. Don't get me wrong, I'll still cover blogging information as I believe it is still incredibly important for an author to have his or her own blog for marketing and community building. But I plan on doing a lot more with writing apps, world-building, and novel writing in general.
For instance, I have plans for more tutorials involving the Reedsy writing platform, Scrivener, and Atticus. I'm not sure when those will be published, especially since I've been using Reedsy quite a bit lately to write the Witcham series and the new novel. But I am using Scrivener for VII and Despair while I've started Skeletal on Inkitt with Atticus.
One of my ideas for 2024 is to turn blog posts into an eBook. I plan on creating a tutorial for how to do it with WordPress, but I want to set up the posts to create an eBook people would want to read. Then, I'll put it up on MichaelBrockbank.com as a free book. So, I get several pieces of content from the setup while adding another book under my belt. Converting blog posts to books is actually quite easy with the right plugin. I'm actually very interested in this coming project.
Fury is Getting a Major Upgrade!
Fury is going to wind up taking longer to write than I originally wanted. Again, it has little to do with having time to write it, but more with the fact that I've learned so much in the Reedsy writing course and want to polish the manuscript before handing it off to beta readers.
Mostly, it seems like it's a lot of small habits I have that are interfering with a good read. While the final draft of Kingmaker was lightyears ahead of the first run of the manuscript, Tom Bromley has pointed out a lot of mannerisms I have that are creating a bit of a disconnect. And I agree; there are several things I know for a fact that I am doing wrong...habitually.
So, as I gain more knowledge every week, I wonder if I shouldn't rewrite Kingmaker. Or, at least go through and polish it up even further. The only printed copies are my own and I believe Amazon updates the eBook with the newest version anyway.
Or, I can just take it on the chin and make sure that the series going forward is simply better.
Either way, Fury is going to be an awesome book. Not only am I applying everything I've learned in this master class, but because of the actual plot in the story. It picks up shortly after the events of Kingmaker and has much more to it. I'm pretty excited to get it out there.
Reedsy Has a Contest Goin' On
Speaking of writing courses, did you know that Reedsy has a contest going to win a free spot in the upcoming master class in 2024? You can find out more information about it in Reedsy's YouTube video.
I've always been a fan of expanding your knowledge regardless of what you want to do for a living. There is no such thing as knowing too much when it comes to any career path. And learning from different masters of their trades only works in your favor by giving you an opportunity to strengthen your own strategies and skillsets. It's all about incorporating everything you learn into a more cohesive style of what works best for you.
Not to mention that it hits differently when experienced authors and editors point out things that could ultimately improve how you put together a story.
Over the past seven weeks, I've learned a great deal during the course. I've identified a lot of problematic habits I have and am working to solve them. The bottom line is that I have no doubt that my next books are going to be incredibly better mostly because of the Reedsy master class.
If you're interested in writing a novel, I suggest checking out the Reedsy video. The course has made a profound impact for the better on how I write.
Breaking My Best Year for Word Count
I am just over 9,000 words away from breaking last year's word count record. Keep in mind this includes blog posts, novels, and video scripts. And although I didn't get as many words written into the books as I wanted, I did create a great deal of content.
At the pace everything has been moving, I am relatively confident that I'll hit more than one million words next year. I haven't done that since my peak days at Textbroker when I started blogging regularly on top of the client work.
Because I had a couple of rough days recently, I don't know if I'll break my monthly record for December. I am still 58,780 words short. That's only 3,458 words per day for the rest of the month, which I would normally be able to smash out of the park. But with ALL of my kids being here this year, it's just been incredibly hectic.
Nonetheless, my yearly word count is usually my priority, and I should hit that mark by this Sunday.
Always relish in the victories you have, regardless of their size. Every moment you spend creating a better version of yourself is always worth the effort. You probably won't make those massive leaps and bounds you daydream about. But at least you're still in the game and moving yourself forward.
I often talk about how breaking your records, even if it's just by one, is still setting a new record. Whether it be writing one more word today, publishing one more blog post this month, lifting an extra pound at the gym, or uploading one more video this month, it's still forward momentum that you should be proud of.
Realize that a lot of people give up too easily, especially today. Never give up, never surrender!
Is Your December Moving Smoothly?
Aside from a rough and bumpy road, December is still going to be one of my better months. Will I break my monthly record? I don't know...it'll be awfully close. But regardless, I'm still having a great month with the kids as well as my writing. It's not as smooth of a ride as I would have liked, but at least we haven't ditched the car yet.
How are things progressing in your world to wrap up 2023?