Writing Goals for 2025

Above: My cat, Kona, cozied up in a fluffy white blanket on the papasan in my office.

January 9, 2025

Happy New Year! I hope you all had a peaceful and cozy holiday season. Mine was filled with family time, good food, great reading, and a slow ease back into my normal writing routine.

Updates

Convergence of Connection: As I mentioned previously, this book is ready for the editor! I’ll be reaching out to her next week to see if I can get on her schedule for March/April.

The Way of the Wielder, Book Four: This book’s outline is complete, and I’m itching to start writing it. I can feel the characters calling out to me, begging me to write the epic finale they deserve. “In time, my friends. All in good time.”

Middle Grade (MG) project: This is my main focus right now. I hit 17k words earlier this week, which is about halfway, maybe a bit more. Honestly, I’m really digging where it’s going. Essentially, a boy who’s searching for adventure hears a heartbeat over the sea—and finds a submarine waiting to take him there. It’s a fun one, and I’m hoping my nephew likes it.

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The beginning of January always brings up the question, “What are your resolutions for the new year?” I don’t like making resolutions, but I do have writing goals. Let’s take a peek at what’s up for 2025.

The Master Plan

The first document in my writing folder is a master spreadsheet titled, “Long-Term Book Planning”. Here, each row lists every project currently on my radar, while the columns are a running calendar spanning from December 2023 through—checks spreadsheet—2030.

There are 21 projects currently listed in this spreadsheet. Only 13 are planned for publication within that six-year window, and two of those are already published.

But this spreadsheet lists more than just the publication of my work. I break each project down into phases, including: drafting, editing (self), cover art, editing (professional), pre-publishing, and published.

Some of these phases take months, some overlap, some are just one day on the calendar. Regardless, this lets me pace myself in a manageable way, ensuring I don’t take on too much at once and burn out.

What’s On Tap for 2025?

According to this spreadsheet, I’ll be working on FIVE projects this year. Gulp.

MG Story:

• Finish drafting
• Perform editing (all phases) and get cover art
• Read-through and publish (in July)

Convergence of Connection:

• Send to professional editor
• Get cover art (in May)
• Read-through and publish (in July)

The Way of the Wielder, Book 4:

• Begin drafting (February)
• Finish drafting (August)
• Perform self-editing
• Send to professional editor

Rise of Iron (The Tredania Chronicles, Book 1):

• Perform self-editing

Fall of Gold (The Tredania Chronicles, Book 2):

• Outline and begin drafting

Allowing for Grace

This list is…ambitious. I’ve never worked on so many projects at once in my writing career. While I do think it’s achievable, I’m going to allow myself some grace if I fall a bit short.

That being said, there are a few things going for me. The MG story should be drafted by the end of January. Convergence of Connection is ready to be sent to the editor and cover artist. And Rise of Iron—the first book in my next series—is already written, and I think editing it will be relatively quick.

Still, it’s a lot.

When I was working in PR, I had several projects going on at once. In fact, I recall my list having upwards of 15 at one point. Some projects were really heavy lifts, others were much less so, but all of them required my time and attention. I realize now I never allowed myself the grace I needed to avoid burnout back then. I continuously gave, and rarely—if ever—took the time I needed to rest and recharge.

My 2025 projects are only five in number, but they mean more to me than any project I worked on in my previous career. And if I need to rest and recharge to do right by them, I will allow myself that grace.

I won’t make that mistake again.

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Thanks for reading. Until next time, be well, and stay creative!

~Sarah