My top goals for 2021 & what’s new with the blog!
Welcome to my first post of 2021, aka the New Year we all hope will be nice to us!
Is it safe to assume you welcomed 2021 with open arms full of hope and enthusiasm? I realize skepticism is probably tapping on your shoulder, and while I’ll admit to some worry about how 2021 will treat us, I feel better when I ignore skepticism and look ahead with optimism at what this New Year can offer us.
My last post included a review of the previous year, such as it was, and while there were many hiccups, I was also able to make time to focus on what I wanted from the coming year. One area I focused on was what I could do to make this next year a more creative year for me, which in turn would make it more entertaining for readers.
As an author, goals generally remain the same: write more, publish more, find new readers, keep those readers, grow the email list, gain more sales…rinse and repeat, year after year. It can begin to feel overwhelming, and tedious. So imagine how relieved and excited I was when I discovered a way I could make this next year a more creative year.
On to my yearly goals
That leads me to the first goal of the New Year, only because it’s the one with the largest amount of change coming its way. My first goal is to change the regular content on this blog. My blog will still offer updates about my writing, sale promos, events and books published as they occur, but it will also offer a monthly taste of at least two of the following types of posts:
Character Coffee Chats
Each month I’ll be offering a character interview where you’ll learn more about the characters you love. You’ll get a little more backstory about each that may not be in the novels, hear updates since they were last featured in a book, or gain insight into interactions between them and other characters. The first interview this month will be with Jorja Matthews, as she is the protagonist in the series. I plan to post her interview next week and I hope you enjoy her interview, as well as the idea of spending more time with individual characters.
The P.I. Post
About once a month or every other month, I’ll share posts about PI topics, unique cases, interesting characters, and true crimes case studies that I find interesting. Eventually, I hope to add interviews of other PI’s currently in the field and offer additional content readers might indicate an interest in.
Nonfiction Nuggets
I don’t share true cases I may have worked on as a private investigator in my series, but there are many real-life cases or circumstances that are similar to what my characters go through and this is where I’ll share some of those nuggets as I come across them. I’ll be sharing a Nonfiction Nugget post this month about mothers who harm their own children. Of course, some of the material I share in these posts might be off-putting to sensitive readers and before each post I’ll offer a word of caution, but if the subject matter doesn’t bother you, you can look for the first Nonfiction Nugget post later this month.
Mini-Mysteries with Jorja Matthews
This is another idea I have that’s still a WIP at this point, and I’m not sure if it’ll be shared on the blog or just with the newsletter group. I’ll decide once I figure out exactly how I can make these stories work alongside the series. When this idea is up and running, and if I decide these posts will be shared via the newsletter, I’ll share that here so readers have the option of joining my newsletter if they want to receive these stories.
Beyond the blog, there are books to write
You may wonder if adding more content to my blog will take time away from my writing, and I’m happy to say that it won’t. Not only have I already created enough posts to get me through the next year, I’ve enjoyed writing them, which means they aren’t as difficult or time-consuming to write. They also add fuel to my desire to stay with my characters or involved with legal cases that peak my interest.
My next goal is to complete the next novel in the Jorja Matthews mystery series and have it published soon. This novel should have been published last year, but alas…that didn’t happen. Still, it’s in the final stages of completion and I look forward to wrapping up Jorja #6 very soon so I can begin on the next book in the series.
Let’s add a new series to the mix!
In addition to what I decide will be in store for Jorja in her next novel, I’m going to focus again on a new series I already have in motion but haven’t spent time on lately. One of my goals for 2021 is to publish more often, which is difficult to do with my mystery series when the books are over 300 pages in length. One book a year is what I’m able to manage, if that. I’ve decided I’d like to publish shorter novels in my new series so that I can offer them in between the Jorja Matthews mystery series. I’ll share more about this series when the time is right, and I’ll do my best to make that sooner than later.
My top 3, plus one more
The Jorja series, my blog and the new series are my top 3 focus points for 2021, but on the side I also hope to add more short stories to the mix. Some relating to characters from my mystery series, some from other ideas I’ve had brewing for some time, but all are stories waiting to get their turn on the page. This goal will be a fun bonus for readers and myself if I can make it happen, so I’ll do my best to try.
My top goals all summed up
So my top goals for 2021, at this point, are to complete and publish Jorja #6, begin Jorja #7, offer the new blog content on a regular basis, complete drafts of one or two novels in the new series, hopefully publish at least the first novel in the new series, and maybe add another short story to my list.
Am I expecting too much of myself?
Maybe.
But if I take advantage of the time my butt is in the chair I know I’m capable. And besides, as the saying goes, why not shoot for the moon? Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars. I hope you’ve mapped out grand plans for yourself this year and that you find time to reach as many goals as possible.
Well, time to get back to my writing. Check in again next week for my first Character Coffee Chat. Until then, Happy New Year and happy reading!
