Goal Setting

I am at a friend’s cottage this weekend. I love my friends, because a writing retreat is exactly what I need to get my brain to switch gears. Fortunately, my friends are also writers, so they are also keen on getting a weekend away.

I am writing this blog entry from a comfy chair, as the spotty internet might mean I can’t post until I get back.

As day two marches onward, I thought it might be nice to state my goals clearly here. After all, if I set goals, I can be held accountable for them – if only to myself.

Thirteen weeks. What can I do in thirteen weeks? Hopefully a lot. I am a bit of a blitz writer after all – I think my best weekend was around 12,000 words. No, that’s not a type-o. Technically I’ve done more than that, but we aren’t talking proposals or work-related reports here – just writing.

Goal 1: Finish the Draft of Summer of Flight.

With only a few thousand words left before the first draft is officially done – this is the most achievable goal on my plate. Of course, the truth is that I’ve already finished the draft – I just need to go back and add a few important scenes in the middle. I’ll get there.

Mind you, I also have to make the book good, write a query letter and synopsis, and hopefully send it out to agents. I likely won’t start submitting until I get back from Hawaii (since I want to be conveniently located if an agent is interested), but I do want to be ready.

This goal of course is also flexible based on the interest of my first reader. If she says the draft is awful, I will believe her, and will take the time to make it work. And since this is the reason I got the grant, if it is awful - rewriting this will be the only thing on my plate. After all, I need to prove I can accomplish my task.

Goal 2: Finish the Screenplay.

When I decided to go to the Austin Screenwriters’ Conference this year, I bribed myself. I said if I got two finished scripts done, I could go. The first is done and polished. The second is a handful of pages in. But I promised – so I will deliver. Mind you, I am cheating a bit – I am writing a screenplay based on the book. I figure this gives me two benefits:

1. I know the story, so don’t need to write a treatment; and
2. I will no doubt find all the plot holes by writing the movie, than I might have found otherwise.

I also don't expect this one to take very long. My first draft of The Santa Quest was written in 4 days - I figure even if this one takes 5, it should fill a nice niche in my schedule. ::chuckle::

Goal 3: Write the Sequel to Summer of Flight.

This is my November plan. Assuming all goes well with the first book, I will be able to turn my attention to Book 2. I picked November for this because I will be on my own in a different time zone, and won’t have too many ways to procrastinate. Sure, I will be in Hawaii in the fall (while writing a book about Toronto in the fall) but hey – at least I will be lovely and warm and writing in one of the most inspiring places in the world. I will be there from Oct. 31 – Dec. 2, 2009 – in case anyone is wondering.

Considering it is freezing here, I think I am making a good decision.

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So those are the big goals. There’s nothing there that isn’t doable – and doable in three months. I figure the screenplay will be the easiest, and editing Summer of Flight the hardest. But that’s okay. I’ll get there.

I also hope to get some work done on a collaborative project – but that’s more fun than anything. A friend and I are working on a book with two very different points of view – with each of us writing one. It may be a disaster, but it will be an adventure at least.

I could also do some work on my Napoleonic sea adventure fantasy novel – but that’s probably the least likely. I have some ideas floating around, but I imagine I won’t write that one until after I go on my tall ship adventure trip. Still, in the interest of full disclosure, I figure that I’ll mention it.

It will be interesting to see what happens. After all, things can always change.