Dianne E. Butts About Writing

 

The Writing E-zine for Beginning and Intermediate Writers

December 2007 ~ 223 Subscribers

 

Cover Story:

 

"Goals and Plans for the New Year"

 

    Your writing may take a vacation or at least may slow during this time of year with work-weeks shortened to accommodate the holidays. Or you may be working even harder to meet deadlines in the midst of interrupted weeks. Whether you're or taking time off to enjoy holiday preparations and visits from family and friends or you're rushing ever faster to get it all done, the end of the year is a good time to allow our minds to dream about what we'd like to accomplish in the coming new year. As we approach the end of this year, I'd like to challenge you to give yourself a gift, and this is it: Think about:

    Get out a sheet of paper that you can keep handy even when your computer isn't on or a small spiral notebook that you can carry with you. Then whether you're stuffing the turkey, shopping for presents, decorating the house, or trimming the tree, think about what you want to accomplish with your writing. Make a list. Mine includes a list of both nonfiction books and novels I want to write as well as goals for submitting magazine articles, since periodical publications are my mainstay at this point. This is not a list of every project I can think of--this is a list of those I want to accomplish soon. Or next. And so they are the projects I want to work on in the next year. Within this list, a few...or one...rise to the top priority. (Having trouble prioritizing? There's help in the Q & A section below.)

    Now it's easy to dream and list all the things we'd like to do. But accomplishing them is quite a different matter. Here's a key you may have heard from the business world: "If you fail to plan, then you plan to fail." We only accomplish those things we make concrete plans to do. I may have grand ideas for numerous projects, but until I actually plan out how I'm going to accomplish them and when I'm going to work on them, I don't get anything done. Without planning for times to work on my priority projects, my "big" projects are saved for later when I have more time (which never happens) while seemingly urgent but less important projects take over my minutes and hours and days. I need to plan.

    The past few years it has helped me to put a list of goals for the coming year in writing, print it out, and hang it in my office. I have to admit that I have yet to check off all the items I have on my yearly goals list. But it is satisfying to check off some of them. And my list of goals helps me throughout the year by reminding me of what I want to get done and therefore helping me be more intentional about working toward accomplishing those goals.

    After I have my goals written, my next step is to plan how I will accomplish those goals. I have both submitting to periodicals and writing books on my goals list, so I have to plan how I will accomplish both. You can find my "2007 Goals" for my periodical submissions in the Sidebar article below.

    For my book projects, I make a list of the steps I need to accomplish to meet the goal of writing the proposal for that book. I make a separate list for each book project and I call this list my "Action Plan." Here is my actual Action Plan for my current book project:

Write the book proposal:

    When I have an Action Plan like this, then whether I have five minutes or several hours to work, whether I can research online or am filling "down time" while away from my computer, I can pick an item and get to work. At this point, these items can be done in any order. So far I've worked on "Plan book and chapters" by using a large piece of newsprint to brainstorm and get down all my ideas. As I check off the steps I need to do to plan this book and write the book proposal, I'll piece it together both in hardcopy in a notebook and in an electronic file. When I'm finished, I'll have my book planned and my book proposal ready to submit. My goal is to have this book proposal put together by the end of the year. Whether I make it remains to be seen, but I'm working on it!

    My Goals and Action Plans not only keep me organized and tangibly moving forward on a project, they also reinvigorate my excitement for projects because I can see how I can and am actually making my dreams become reality.

    What would you like to accomplish this coming year? How will you begin to plan the steps you'll need to take to accomplish those goals?

 

Section 2:

 

Special Offer:   

    Here's another question: Do you sometimes feel overwhelmed by all the things you'd like to accomplish? Is it just too much? Even with planning and goal-setting, there's simply more than you can possibly get done in a lifetime...or two? How do you sort it out? How can you decide what to do...and what to leave undone? I've been thinking about this issue lately and I've written an article, "What Stops You? (And how can you overcome it?)," in the December issue of the Butts About It.com E-zine. If you'd like to read it, go to www.ButtsAboutIt.com, use the sign up box to subscribe, and confirm via the e-mail you'll receive. When I see your subscription come through during the month of December, I will personally forward you the December issue with this helpful article. (If you don't like the Butts About It.com E-zine, you can unsubscribe at any time.) Sign up and receive your sample copy of my new Butts About It.com E-zine today!

 

 

Q & A: Dianne Answers Your Questions about Writing

 

Q: I don't want to be tied down to my goals. Goals make me feel boxed in. Any ideas about that?

A: You're not a slave to your goals--they are to serve you. If you review your goals half way through the year and they no longer serve your purposes or excite you, change them!

 

Q: I have so many projects that I want to write! I'm having trouble deciding which one(s) I should make my priority project(s). Any advice?

A: At her May conference in Estes Park, Colorado (www.WriteHisAnswer.com), Marlene Bagnull has put this question to those in attendance: "If Jesus Christ was to come back this next year, which one completed project would you most want to lay at His feet?"

 


 

Sidebar

"Goals for Periodical Submissions"

 

    Here are the goals I made in 2007 to keep magazine articles circulating. I didn't complete all these goals, but they did spur me on to accomplish more than I would have otherwise. I'm still thinking how I might want to revise them for 2008:

Submit to one paying market. (Reprints are okay. Article queries count. Book queries to publishers and agents count. Book proposals count.)

Write a short story (fiction) or a tract.

Study one new market.

Submit to a new market.

Submit to a devotional.

Query one high profile market.

 

 

Section 3:

 

Period.

 

    If you don't make goals and plans, you probably won't make much progress toward accomplishing your writing dreams. So give it some thought. Make some goals that are both realistic and yet stretch and push you. Don't get overwhelmed. Review your goals throughout the year and revise them if necessary.

    You can do it! Period. No buts about it.

 

 

Back Cover Copy

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Bio: Dianne E. Butts has been writing for publication since 1989 with 200+ articles in more than 50 periodicals and contributions to fifteen books. Her articles have appeared in Focus on the Family magazine, The Lookout, Light and Life, The Salvation Army's War Cry, The Plain Truth, On Mission, Bible Advocate, Live, Evangel, the Christian Motorcyclists Association's HeartBeat, The Quiet Hour, Christian Communicator, SpiritLedWriter.com, and more. Book contributions include stories in Chicken Soup for the Christian Soul 2, For Better or Worse: A Devotional for Married Couples by Marlene Bagnull, Beauty is Soul Deep, A Cup of Comfort Devotional for Women and Mothers, and Zondervan's New Women's Devotional Bible. Her work has appeared in Great Britain, Poland, Bulgaria, Canada, and Korea.

 

 

Subtopic 1:

 

Pull Quote

 

"...divide the book into smaller pieces--chapters--and then subdivide those into still-smaller pieces... When you feel overwhelmed, step back and figure out how to break the work down into smaller steps--conducting research, doing interviews, transcribing notes, writing a draft, and so on--and focus on one step at a time." Kelly James-Enger, $ix Figure Freelancing p. 209.

 

~ ~ ~

 

My Book: Dear America: A Letter of Comfort and Hope to a Grieving Nation (Ampelos, 2002). Available from www.DianneEButts.com or here, from Amazon.com:  Dear America, - A Letter of Comfort & Hope to a Grieving Nation.

   

 

 

 

Subtopic 2:

 

Resources

 

 

 No Plot? No Problem!: A Low-Stress, High-Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days

 

 

 Six-Figure Freelancing

 

 

 

 

(Link to Writer's Digest magazine currently unavailable.)

 

 

 

  VistaPrint Free Business Cards

 

 Save 30% Off All Letterhead, Brochures, Flyers, Folders

 

Subtopic 3:

 

ComingConferences:

 

Dianne's Writing News

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                    Miracles of Nature Deadline: 12/21/07

                    Miracles in Tough Times Deadline: 2/4/08

 

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