2017 Ta Da List

Now that Christmas is over I’m looking ahead to the new year. Next weekend it will suddenly be 2017… And good riddance to 2016! What a weird year.

I haven’t always been big on New Year’s resolutions, but I do like making to-do lists and checking things off. This post from The Caffeinated Writer inspired me to think of it that way, so here we are.

Here’s my Ta Da List for the next twelve months!

Blogging:

• Get 250 followers.
  • December: 138
  • January: 146
  • February: 153
  • March: 158
  • April: 176
  • May: 181
  • June: 179
  • July: 191
  • August: 196
  • September: 198
  • October: 202
  • November: 207
• Get 4000 views.
  • December: 2012
  • January: 2167
  • February: 2287
  • March: 2356
  • April: 2776
  • May: 2914
  • June: 3035
  • July: 3173
  • August: 3277
  • September: 3309
  • October: 3429
  • November: 3466
• Post a few times a week. (Should be easier now that I’m more used to writing on my phone.)
• Experiment with posting book reviews, 3-5 minimum.
  • One • Two • Three • Four • Five

Writing:

• Finish a second draft of Todd’s story. And for heaven’s sake, come up with a title!
• Start second draft of Growing Magic, or at the very least some up with some sort of organized world-building bible.
• Write and post at least one short story per month. (Goal: 12. Total so far: 30.)
  • January: (1) Dear Diary; (2) The Homecoming
  • February: (1) Driving; (2) Well (pt i)
  • March: (1) Well (pt ii)
  • April: (1) Awake (pt i, pt ii, pt iii, pt iv); (2) Bound; (3) Shallow (pt i, pt ii); (4) Manny’s stories (Death, Heartbreak); (5) Engagement; (6) Fool Triumphant; (7) Good Girl; (8) Monster Hunter stories (Journey, Watch); (9) Kindness; (10) Love; (11) Music Box; (12) Nightstand; (13) Presence (pt i, pt ii); (14) Queer; (15) Trust; (16) Voodoo
  • May: (1) Presence (pt iii), (2) Youth
  • June
  • July
  • Aug
  • Sept
  • Oct: Prologue for Todd’s story
  • Nov: First 50k words of Todd’s story
  • Dec

Reading:

• Listen to 15-20 new audiobooks.
  • One (Divergent) • Two (The Infinite Sea) • Three (Blackout) • Four (The Bone Witch) • Five (Big Little Lies) • Six • Seven • Eight • Nine • Ten • Eleven • Twelve • Thirteen • Fourteen • Fifteen
• Read 5-10 print books.
  • One • Two • Three • Four • Five

Personal:

• Go on an Disneyland vacation!
• Loose 30ish pounds. (Eat out less, cook more, stay the hell away from hot pockets, etc etc.)
• Put at least $5000 into a long term investment.
• Keep my bank account around $10,000 or more. No more catastrophic dips to $0!
• Go out and do things with new people. Seriously, we need friends who live up here.

Those are my goals. Ta-da!

2017 is already looking really positive. I’m coming off a NaNoWriMo victory with a first draft that’s probably 75% viable and not in need of too many drastic changes. We’ve already won that 8 day vacation package, so lodgings are paid for and we just have to pick a destination with reasonably priced flights and shell out for food, drinks, and activities. Our kitchen is so much more organized now, plus our Christmas haul includes a make your own gluten free pizza kit (sauce, mozzarella kit, pizza pan) and our very own can opener (lol), so we’ll be doing a lot more home cooked meals. And I also got good hiking boots, so here’s to getting more exercise in the new year and exploring all the local parks I keep advertising at the magazine.

I might post again before January 1st, but in the meantime I hope we all make the best of what’s left of 2016. Cheers!

What’s on your Ta Da list for 2017?