My Writing, Bookish, and Publishing Goals for 2017

2016 was a seriously busy year for me. I published the first two books in the Eternals Trilogy, wrote book 3 of the Eternals Trilogy, a novelette to go with the Eternals Trilogy, and a standalone YA High Fantasy novel - not to mention turning this blog into a full-fledged book blog where I blog 2-3 times a week, reading at least 74 books - including quite a few ARCs, and getting into #bookstagram on Instagram. 

With the exhaustion of this past year behind me and no sign of slowing down, what do I have in store for 2017?

Publishing:

1.) Publish Through the Fog (Eternals Trilogy  #3) and Eternal Fire (An Eternals Trilogy Novelette) 

I finished writing Through the Fog and Eternal Fire over the summer and I'm preparing to get the publishing process for both started after the first of the year. I'm planning - if all goes according to plan - to publish Through the Fog and Eternal Fire together either at the end of June or beginning of July 2017!

2.) Figure out which course of publishing I want to pursue for my YA High Fantasy novel and begin the process.

I haven't decided whether I want to try to submit this book to a traditional or small press, seek out a literary agent to help me find a publisher, or self-publish this project. Ideally, I really believe this could be the book that changes everything for my writing career and I want it to find a broad audience so I haven't decided which route would be best yet. After the first of the year, I'm planning to sit down, make a few pro/con lists and see what happens from there. Either way, you probably won't see this book available until at least early 2018. 

Writing:

3. Pick A Writing Project (or a couple) and See What I Accomplish in the next 12 months.

I'm not sure which writing project idea to pursue next, but I'm going to look over the ideas I have and see what I feel like working on. I'd like to write at least 2 full-length novels in 2017.

Possible projects:

-A collection of short stories that occur in the Eternals Trilogy world pre-Out of Darkness.

-A classic novel retelling with an unusual twist.

-A vampire romance set in Green Bay, Wisconsin in the 1960s.

- An upper YA paranormal romance set in Nashville. 

4. Participate in NaNoWriMo 2017 and actually attend some of the write-ins.

This year's NaNoWriMo was a huge success for me and I can't wait to see what I come up with next November! I couldn't make it to any of the write-ins for my region due to my schedule and the weather but I'm hoping next year I'll be able to attend a few! 

Bookish:

5. Read at least 30 books in 2017.

I like to set the bar low so I can exceed my goal. 30 books is an easily doable goal. 

6. Expand my blog viewership/subscribers/readership to 2,500 to 3,000 views per month.

Right now between 1,500 to 2,000 of you amazing readers view my blog every month. I am beyond grateful to everyone that stops by! Let's keep growing in 2017!

7. Take better #bookstagram photos and gain more followers.

I've just really gotten into the #bookstagram community on Instagram the past few months and I'd love to try out some new props and see what shots I can come up with in 2017. I've met some amazing people that inspire me every day through the community!