So, it’s a little late for New Year’s resolutions. But just thought I would add in some great literary resolutions that I and some other blogging pals have been trying since January. For the list, visit the Loft.
January: Read a classic that has always been on your list. (Mine is Jane Eyre which I have yet to finish!)
February: Write for at least 15 minutes every day. Take away the pressure and swear you’ll never show anyone this new work. You’ve heard it before, I’ll tell you again. Just get it flowing. Conquer the blank page. This is a short month. You can do it. If fifteen minutes turns into an hour, send yourself a valentine.
March: Go to at least two author readings at your local book store, library, or literary center. If your community does not have authors passing through, you can watch a reading online. After hearing from the author, read the book.
April: Celebrate the foolish. Find some of the best humour writing and see what makes you laugh out loud. “Right ho!” You can never go wrong with P.G. Wodehouse. Then, give yourself a humor writing assignment. After you make someone laugh from a quip or joke, try to write it down. Can you capture spoken humour in the written form?
May: Spend the month rereading your old work. Read fragments, half-finished essays, and rejected work. Invite one piece back into your life for revisions, and a second chance.
June: Get an anthology of poetry and read the same poem twice every day—once in the morning, and once at night. Does coming back to it in the evening change it? Take June to think about language—what draws you in, what bores you?
July: Spend two hours a week working on one long piece. This could be a rescued piece discovered in May or something new. Take off the pressure: tell yourself just one month.
August: Reread your favorite book from childhood. Why did that book make such an impression on you?
September: Submit. Submit to your dream of being a writer. Submit your work to a contest, a local newspaper, a literary journal.
October: Read a best-selling mystery. What can you learn from a well-paced page turner?
November: Jump on the NaNoWriMo bandwagon and try to write a novel in a month. NaNoWriMo offers plenty of online resources and many communities have meet-ups. The Loft offers a weekend novel writing conference to offer inspiration in early November. Ahem! Don’t know about this one???
December: Buy books, give books, talk about books, and spread your love of literature throughout the holidays.
