In 2017, You Will!
Posted by David Duhr in 
This is our final post of 2016.
It’s a simple one.
I want only one thing from each of you.
And that one thing is for you to fill in the blank with a response involving writing and/or reading:
“In 2017 I will _____________________”
Your response can be one word long, it can be 100 words long, it can be 1,000 words long.
(It can even be zero words long: “In 2017, I will!”)
So long as it involves a writing and/or reading goal for 2017.
Even if that goal is to not make any goals regarding writing or reading.
Include the appropriate punctuation at the end.
Because you’re so confident and excited that a period just can’t hold you!
Or you want to leave us hanging off a cliff…
Or because maybe your response is a question?
(In which case, feel free to change “I will” to “will I.”)
Please leave your response in the comments section below.
(I know, I know, that makes it two things I want from each of you.)
(Take take take.)
(And here comes a third.)
Tick “notify” to receive an email alert when someone replies to your goal.
Or you can remain anonymous if you’d prefer, and enter a fake name and fake address. But!
Put some thought into it.
But not too much thought; this isn’t binding.
There will be no public humiliation for missed goals.
(Unless you want that; in which case, say so, and tell us what — within reason — kind.)
It’s just your chance to lay down, in a public forum, your literary goals for 2017.
Because accountability.
Support.
Cheering each other on.
And all that.
And hey, leaving a comment of support for another writer while you’re here?
It’s good karma.
Later in 2017, let’s check back in and see where we’re all at.
Until then, well, we’ll see you here every week anyway.
And here’s a bonus for those of you who’ve read this far:
We’ll choose some number of favorite responses.
Then we’ll send each of you a book that will help fulfill your 2017 reading goal.
Because we’re cool like that.
Happy New Year, WriteByNighters!
WriteByNight co-founder David Duhr is copy editor and fiction editor at the Texas Observer and has written for the Dallas Morning News, Electric Literature, Publishing Perspectives, and others.
WriteByNight is a writers’ service dedicated to helping you achieve your creative potential and literary goals. We work with writers of all experience levels working in all genres, nationwide and worldwide. If you have a 2016 writing project that you’d like a little help with, take a look at our book coaching, private instruction and writer’s block counseling services. Join our mailing list and get a FREE writer’s diagnostic, “Common problems and SOLUTIONS for the struggling writer.”
In 2017 I will..chain myself to that writing table upstairs and write until my gnarled hands compress into knots as I keel over from repetitive stress syndrome from typing on tiny iPad keyboard and wife places soup with straw next to my prone head in vain attempt to revive me. (I said this last year. Planning on better chain for 2017).
Upgrade, my dear…..there are full sized keyboards for an i-pad. I had one. I find a laptop more useful as the tablet doesn’t have the functionality I need or use (ie, several screens open at once, split screens, multiple programs such as scrivener, WritingProAid, NaturalReader, etc.) i-pads are for play, not work unless you are working while going to and from work or during a lunch break.
Good luck, Kenneth! Our money’s on you. Though I do question the nutritional value of soup that can be taken in via straw. Starving artists don’t have to literally starve. Put something in that broth, man! And then hire someone to spoon-serve you daily.
And maybe have someone else chain you to the desk? And only after you piss him/her off? Maybe the problem in 2016 was that you didn’t chain yourself tightly enough.
Or maybe you’ll hit your stride and you won’t need chains at all?
Finish what I started, which includes books I’ve
abandoned and books I’ll begin (both reading and
writing)!
Sounds good, DSD. Knock ’em dead!
In 2017 I will find my laptop, open it, secure the K key with a drop of Elmers, and finish whatever it was I started in 201…it doesn’t really matter how long ago I started it.
George Washington Carver: 90% of the failures in life are those who have the habit of making excuses.
I refuse to be a failure by making excuses for not living my dreams and one of those is writing. Make it fun and enjoy and have fun with what you are doing and you won’t need the glue to keep you going.
The BITCH principle does work (Butt In The Chair) but if you aren’t enjoying what you are doing, then why are you doing it? If you love to write, then see above. Cut the excuses and get busy!!
BITCH principle. Ha! Never heard that one before. Now when someone asks me what I’ve been doing, I can say with sincerity that I BITCH my way through the day. Sadly, most will not ask for an explanation.
Did you lose the laptop that had your WIP on it? Or this was just (“just”) the laptop you preferred writing on, and you have all your stuff on hard drives?
Don’t use too much Elmer’s, pal. Because, well, you kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkknow why.
I will publish two novels in 2017 and complete the drafts for two more. Hmm….I guess I’m going to be a bit busy….but I do have the drafts to six novels completed and three others in various stages of completion, so the only difficult goal will be the publishing bit. I guess I’ll need to figure out how to acquire the funds to pay an editor for those two novels…so add: I will obtain the funds to pay an editor to enable me to publish two novels. Okay, I have the goals, back to work on my edits for the… Read more »
If there’s anyone here I’d bet on to put in the time to publish two novels this year and write two more, it’s you.
My Dear Ms. Mealer, your output is the lighthouse at Cape Cod to my flickering candle. Very impressive and a lesson to us all; if we plan to hit one out of the park, we have to get the bat off the shoulder. And you are correct about larger keyboard-a thought that had occurred to me. It also occurred to me that Charles Dickens wrote “Great Expextations” in longhand on foolscap. Surely I can cook up something publishable with fully capable-if elfin-keyboard. That’s what I think as i lean into the chain.
Concluding 2016 I completed my second draft of my 379 page novel. I’ve been prolific over the winter break, punching out more pages than at any time before. My third draft is shaping up to be closer to 600 pages. Meaning my 4th draft in 2017 will be painful…removing my treasured words…so others can appreciate what I’ve constructed…I would like by the end of 2017 or start of 2018…to find a publisher.
You’re doing great. Good luck with your goal
Gee-whiz, John. Going from 379 pages to a pace of around 600? “Prolific” is right. You’ve got a one-word “How I Spent My Winter Break” essay on your hands: Writing.
Keep up the good work!
Finish my second Book
Yay! You got this, Marcia.
In 2017 I will… finish the first draft of a WiP completely.
Hi Glynis. Good to hear from you. And good luck! Will this be a new WIP that you’ll start writing this year, or something you’ve already been working that you intend to finish?
I will work on writing a second novel and enjoy the experience! I love to write and I hope to make a business of it. My greatest joy would be to become a published novelist, but I would like to write for children’s magazines as well. Let’s face it, I just want the time to be able to do both as well as paint! What funnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn! Yahoo! What an exciting year to come! Let’s all make it happen!!!!!!!!!!!
Hi Cathleen. Nice to see you here. Sounds like you’ve got plenty to look forward to this year. Good luck and keep us posted!
I’d like to think that right now, at this very moment, you’ve got a paintbrush in one hand and a pen in the other.
In 2017, I will … not make any writing resolutions!
Sorry. It’s a new tactic, because i make one every year to finish a book and then I always miss it and feel like a failure.
That doesn’t mean I won’t TRY.
Good luck. You can do it. <3
Hey, no need to apologize for not making a firm resolution. (I didn’t either. But don’t tell anyone!)
At least you didn’t go for the “My resolution is not to make any resolutions … oops, that’s a resolution” joke. Which I appreciate.
And hey, all we can ever do is try, right? I know you will.
In 2017, I will continue to see the word “revise” not as a bad thing but helping me on my journey. Reaching more hearts in my second book, lovingly and sometimes critically edited by Justine, fuels that fire towards completion. There are too many people out there who are facing rejection from the personal choice of never having or raising children. This second book will help them overcome that!
Love you Justine and David! Happy New Year!
That word can become a monster, if you let it. REVISE REVISE REVISE. But you’ve learned all the tools you need in order to handle it, Marcia. That’s one thing we know for sure! So yes, continue on that journey. And we’ll continue to enjoy watching it.
In 2017, I will write my first book and read 50 books….and make time for exercise. After all that sitting, I’m definitely going to need the exercise.
Great goal. Love that you’re including reading this.
Are you one of the lucky few who can read while walking? I am! It’s so helpful. I try not to do it on the sidewalks, because that’s how bones get broken. But if I’m on the treadmill for an hour, it doubles as an hour of reading. Minus a few minutes of jogging and a few minutes of coughing up blood. And hey, if you’re nearing year’s end and are many books shy of fifty, you can always loosen your definition of “book.” That’s what I did, kind of, when I resolved to read eighty books a few years… Read more »
Have a manuscript evaluation of my second book, then begin my rewrites. Would like a polished manuscript by years end. In the meantime, continue exploring plot and characters for my third book.
Thanks Jivan. Continued sucess and fun creating and revising…and exploring that which needs to be explored
Hi Jivan. It’s great to see you here. Those are wonderful goals. I’m always wowed by anyone who can work on more than one book at a time. Good luck! You can do this.
In 2017, I will take a damn good stab at mixing erotica with horror.
Teresa, have you considered mixing erotica with humor? The vast canon of erotic writing leans heavily toward the horrible-as do the films. Especially the films. And someone wrote them. Giggling has to suppressed. The field is wide open.
Hi Teresa. Even a damn bad stab at mixing erotica with horror is sure to be colorful and interesting and fun. Good luck! And thank you for stopping by.
I will have my book edited and finalize my manuscript. I will query agents as I’m reading books they’ve published. And as I’m receiving rejections (ha, ha), I will still write and look for inspiration in every corner of my world.
Hi Emily. Thanks for commenting.
That’s a great idea, familiarizing yourself with the clients taken on by agents you intend to query. The worst that happens is you discover a particular agent isn’t a good fit for you. And there isn’t an agent alive who won’t enjoy and appreciate a prospective client who has done her research and can chat knowledgeably about the agent’s clients’ books.
Yeah, rejection is the unavoidable part of the game. Sounds like you have the right outlook. Good luck! Keep us posted.
finish my first novel.
Good luck, Linda. We’re in your corner! Have you already done some work on this novel?
I will finish my first novel, which I started in 2016, and begin work on getting it published.
Sounds great, Jen. What kind of novel are you writing (and will soon finish!)?
Thanks for stopping by.
In 2017 I will start my coaching journey and see what happens! I feel grateful, happy and blessed! May we all be safe, well and prolific!
Happy New Year Everyone!!!!!!
Hi Cecilia. Thanks for coming by. Everything you said here = my sentiments exactly. And hopefully your coaching journey will be one of the most fruitful (and enjoyable!) of your life.
I have never been so energized! So far, your site/biz has been nothing but professional, fluid and enjoyable.
Thanks, Cecilia! We appreciate that feedback, and sure do hope you continue to find us helpful. Energy and inspiration, that’s our goal.
My dreams will be realized this year, and apparently, I am in good company. Not only will I finish my novel, but now I have contact with supportive, like-minded people, and I have signed up for a writer’s conference and writing courses. This is getting positively serious. It feels great! (Cue Nina Simone’s wonderfully appropriate song, Feeling Good. If you can listen to this song and not be moved to get things done, see your physician.)
This is our year, fellow writers. It’s going to be a productive one.
I love being with other writers. I learn from them like they learn from me even though I’m still a newbie. My first book was published 11/29/2016 and I’m editing the second one while writing, taking classes, working and living. Keep enjoying the journey!
Hey E. A writer’s conference?! Writing courses?! This is a wonderful development. I am going to need a full report. (When you have time!)
Also, isn’t it amazing how helpful — dare I say inspirational — it can be just to find a few like-minded people?
“This is Getting Positively Serious” would make a great book title. May I?
In 2017, I will write a memoir piece that will make you laugh, cry, laugh, cry… until both responses hurt so much that you crumple to the floor in a hot mess.
“To be sane in a mad time is bad for the brain, worse for the heart.” –Wendell Berry
To that, I’d say be a little insane or don’t believe these times are crazier than any other. Can’t wait to read it. Of course, then I will look crazy, lying on the floor alternately laughing and crying.
What if I am already crumpled on the floor in a hot mess? Because that’s how I wake most mornings, and I do a lot of reading then. I also read a lot during lunch, which I take while crumpled on the floor in a hot mess.
Your work always makes me laugh. Now let’s see if you’re up to the challenge of making me cry. I bet you can do it.
In 2017, I will finish my recovery memoir, A Survivor’s Journey; Living with Mild Traumatic Brain Injury. I began it in 2010 without knowing the truth about how to write a memoir. I spent last year learning how. I was injured 5 years after ending a 32 yr. marriage, 2 yrs. after graduating from college and 1 year after experiencing a good new relationship. I am facing my 83rd birthday. I have never written a book before in my life. I have written short stories, essays and poems. None of my writing were published until last year in the local… Read more »
We all face troubles, but you have been through an awful lot and are still putting it down on paper. Any excuse I might have had not to sit and write today is gone. All the best to you.
Thank you for stopping by, Eleanor. It sounds like you’ve got a great head of steam built up; check in with us now and again about your progress. We’ll be watching. And rooting for you!
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