New Year, New Goals, New Post

Another new year is upon us. I, like most people, look at January as a time to make a fresh start, but I don't make resolutions anymore.
This year, I'm making goals for myself. I recently read a blog post by Nina Amir, where she talks about SMART goals and how to ensure your success. You can read the article here.

Source: NinaAmir.com

I've already got a few irons in the fire that will help me toward a more productive 2016.

-I've temporarily stopped querying agents and hired an editor to help me make THE CLOVER KEY a better manuscript.
-I'm setting up a blog calendar for this blog, and I'm in the process of starting a blog for our automotive business.
-The chosen attendees for The Work Conference will be notified on January 15th. I'm nervous and excited for the results, but in the meantime, I'll be working on the second draft of my second novel.
-I know I have to lose weight, get organized, etc, etc, but I'm also working on making time for fun with family and friends.

Baby steps, small attainable goals, and a strong desire to make 2016 productive, happy, and less stressful should help me succeed.

What about you? Do you set goals or make resolutions?

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Happy NEW Year!

Wishing you all a Happy, Healthy, Productive, and Prosperous

2013

Well, we made it!

Either the Mayans were wrong, or we misunderstood something. In any case, the world did not end, giant meteors did not crash into the Earth, and zombies did not eat my brains. (Although, after the Christmas Craziness, I could have sworn a few chunks of gray matter were missing.)

It's a new year. Time for a fresh start. No, I don't mean I'll be telling you about my New Year resolutions. I don't believe in them. My thoughts on resolutions

I'm talking about my new really cool calendar!

Oh, yeah, and a few new features on this blog:

~Holiday Fun Facts. Fun Facts seem to be very popular, so I've continued the posts this year. I've already covered all of the calendar months and decided to write about popular holidays. I hope you enjoy the posts and possibly learn something new.

~Page Tabs. I cleaned up the blog a bit. If you haven't noticed, there are now tabs at the top of the page to make finding a particular type of post a little easier for you.

~Behind the Keyboard is where I'll talk about the journey and process of writing.

~The Clover Key. Since I'm sooooo close to completing my first YA novel, I thought it would be a good idea to talk about the novel. I'd like to do posts about the characters, the settings, and include relevant pictures and information about my research.

~Last, but not least, is my favorite new feature. Four For Friday will be a weekly post by authors of both children and adult fiction who will answer four questions in character. I'm hoping this feature will be enjoyable to everyone involved. There may even be monthly prizes!

Don't worry, I'll still do some book thoughts and market news and the occasional random ranting post that spews from my brain into my fingertips, but I'm really excited about the new features.

So, what do you think? Is there something that doesn't interest you? Is there a feature you would like me to add? 

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Plus, sign up for e-mail updates from this blog in the top right-hand corner of the page.

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Fun Facts about New Year

2013

The Year of The Snake

Image: 'Burmese Python (Python molurus bivittatus)' 
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Found on flickrcc.net

New Year's Eve

(Source)

Throughout the year, visitors to Times Square in NYC can write their New Year wishes on pieces of official confetti. At the end of the year, the wishes are added to the one ton of confetti that showers the crowd at midnight. (I didn't know this! We were in Times Square a few months ago!)

The Times Square New Year's Eve Ball came about in 1907 as a result of a ban on fireworks. 

The first ball was an illuminated 700-pound iron and wood ball adorned with one hundred 25-watt light bulbs.

The modern ball, designed by Waterford Crystal, weighs 11,875 pounds, is 12 feet in diameter and bedazzled with 2,668 Waterford crystals.

The ball was not lowered in 1942 and 1943 due to wartime restrictions.

In Columbia, Cuba, and Puerto Rico, families stuff a life-sized male doll with memories of the outgoing year and dress him in old clothes from each family member. At midnight, he is set on fire.

In Brazil, a sacrificial boat filled with jewelry, candles and flowers is pushed into the ocean from the beach in Rio de Janeiro.

In Belgium, New Year's Eve is known as St. Sylvester Eve. 

In Wales, the back door of the house is opened and shut immediately at the first toll of midnight. At the 12th toll, the door is re-opened to welcome the new year.

The Spanish eat a grape at every toll of the clock, to symbolize the coming twelve months of the year. 

In the US, people believe that kissing at midnight is a lucky gesture that purifies everything that is evil.

New Year's Day

Image: '2010' 
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According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau, more vehicles are stolen on New Year's Day than on any other holiday.

40-45 percent of American adults make one or more resolutions each year. The top resolutions include:  weight loss, exercise, quitting smoking, and better money management.

By the second week of January, 25 percent have abandoned their resolutions.

Lucky traditions around the World

Image: 'Maneki-neko 招き猫' 
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Found on flickrcc.net

In Italy, people wear red underwear.

In England, the first guest of the year should be a male, bearing traditional gifts such as food for the kitchen, drink for the head of the family, and coal to light the fire.

In Denmark, people throw old dishes in front of friends' doors. This symbolizes friendship and brotherhood. The home with the most dishes outside has the most friends.

In China, every front door is painted red and all knives are hidden. 

In Germany, people pour molten lead into cold water. Whatever shape the lead takes predicts the future.

In Greece, special bread is baked with a coin buried inside the dough. The first slice is offered to God, the second to the head of the home, and the third is meant for the house. 

In the Philippines, they believe round things are lucky. They consume grapes, carry coins, and wear polka-dotted clothing. 

Lucky Food

Image: '.fortuna.' 
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Grapes

Cooked greens

Legumes

Pork

Fish

Cakes (especially round or ring-shaped)

To avoid setbacks, you should NOT eat lobster and chicken . Lobsters move backward and chickens scratch backward. 

On New Year's Eve, my family holds money in our hands at midnight. 

What are your plans for the New Year? Does your family have any special traditions?

Changes For The New Year

(Source)

"Goals are dreams with deadlines." ~Diana Scharf Hunt, Author (The Tao of Time)

As I said last year around this time, resolutions are not my forte, but GOALS are a horse of a different color. I read somewhere that writing down your goals can help them become reality. So, instead of resolutions, I've decided to write my goals for 2012.

If we are to believe the Mayans and their calendar, we don't have much time left. Hopefully, I will accomplish my goals before December 21st.

Financially:

I will cut my debt in half.

I will save enough money to cover our household expenses for 2 months. (I'll work up to saving 6 months.)

Health:

I will be smoke-free, for good.

I will lower my weight by at least 10%

Business:

We will increase productivity and sales.

We will raise our customer base.

Career:

I will complete YA novel

I will complete one children's fiction piece, one children's non-fiction piece, and one adult piece per month.

I will stick to a realistic writing schedule.

I will have at least twelve new works published by the end of the year.

Notice how my career list is twice as large as the other lists? That's because I've raised the bar for myself. Hey, I'm not getting any younger.

"Part of the issue of achievement is to be able to set realistic goals, but that's one of the hardest things to do because you don't always know exactly where you're going, and you shouldn't." ~George Lucas

In 2011, I worked hard. The scrambling and juggling I did to accomplish tasks always made the end-result feel less than fulfilling. True, our home was in constant upheaval most of the year and I spent as much time as possible with our fresh-out-of-the-military daughter, but those are excuses and excuses are never productive. In 2012, I will work smarter.

2012 will also bring a new blog schedule. I've noticed people are downsizing in the number of blogs they follow and the amount of time spent online. My twice weekly blog entries took time to research. Time I could not spend on my novel and short stories. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed blogging immensely, but to stay productive, I've decided to cut my posts down to a more manageable once a week. I hope to make the posts engaging, informative, and fun with publishing news, markets, fun facts, book thoughts, and taking the leap into doing author interviews!

"Action and reaction, ebb and flow, trial and error, change - this is the rhythm of living. Out of our over-confidence, fear; out of our fear, clearer vision, fresh hope. And out of hope, progress."
~Bruce Barton (1886-1967--Author of The Man Nobody Knows.)

Progress. My #1 goal for 2012. I didn't write nearly as much as I wanted. I have this thing where I feel the need to tidy the house, wash the dishes, write bills, put in a load of laundry, or whatever before I settle in to write. I don't know why. Considering I hate doing all those other things. I feel as though writing is my reward for getting my chores done, but in 2012, I'm going to be naughty and enjoy my reward first. Kind of like eating ice cream for dinner. Who's going to yell at me?

“The greatest discovery of all time is that a person can change his future by merely changing his attitude.”--Oprah Winfrey

Attitude is everything. Having the right attitude can help someone heal, develop self-confidence, accomplish a difficult task, or bring one closer to publication. 2012 is the Year of The Dragon, and I can already feel the fire under my butt!

"It is never too late to be who you might have been." ~George Eliot

I came across George Eliot's quote about four years ago, soon after I applied to the Institute of Children's Literature. I wrote it down on a piece of paper and tucked it into my wallet. I am excited about the coming year. In June, I will turn 50 years old (YIKES!) and the quote has never felt more appropriate for me.

"Try not. Do or do not. There is no try." ~ Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back