Happy New Year! Part 1

It's that time again… time for me to look at what I've completed in 2010, and plan 2011 accordingly!  :) 

The New Moon falls on Tuesday, so I will do my Fire Ritual then.  (And post about it on Wednesday for those unfamiliar with it. :) )

I'm also going to change up my New Year's post a bit and break it into three parts, because the 2000+ words I've done in one post for the past two years: a bit long for a blog.

And, if you've been reading my blog for some time, you know I'm constantly trying to better organize things.  And breaking this down = better organization.

2009-2010 Compare and Contrast; 2010 Accomplishments

Fiction

Short Stuff

Submissions:   25, which is better than 2009's 24 (and 2008's 18)

Acceptances:  1

Completed Written:  1 (not as good as 2009's 4)

Incomplete:  1 (Confession: 2 of 2009's five have been given up, 1 finished, 1 turned into a novel.)

Novels

Completed:  1  Until an agent or editor says otherwise, A Silent Starsong is done

Actively in Progress:  4 - Kelpie, Algorithm, Aurelio and Shepherd's Blood (with Christy)

Revisions: 1 (also A Silent Starsong)

Queries: 13 - I didn't actually give a # for 2009 or 2008, but I know this is better.

Partial Requests: 2

Live Pitches: 0 - no difference from 2009

Thoughts: I don't like how I was tracking progress in the earlier annual tallies, and I'm not sure I'm satisfied with this. 

I started Kelpie (the short story that turned novel) this year and am about 2/3 done with it.  Algorithm for a Soul has been an ongoing writing project for me for about 3 years now.  I love the story, but keep getting distracted from it.  With Shepherd's Blood, it got dropped mostly because Christy and I had one of our falling-out-of-contact periods.  Aurelio is a script for a graphic novel/comic book.  I may change my 2011 annual tally up to better reflect that, but for now, I'm counting it with the novels.  Now, those are the four novels I have been actively working on in 2010. 

The problem (sorta-kinda problem) is that I have multiple unfinished projects.  There's the completed-but-seriously-needing-edits Yesterday's Shadows that Chris and I finished in 2009 and didn't even touch in 2010.  And there are about 6-10 other novel projects that I have notes for on my computer.  Some have several chapters already done!  They get thought about with certain regularity, but I've tried to stay focused in 2010 on the stuff that I felt I could finish… which, sadly, only ended up being one thing.  As I plan for 2011, I need to keep this in mind so that I stay realistic.

Poetry

(I took crappy notes last year, so here's fresh ones.)

Written:  5

Submissions: 7

Acceptances: 1 (not paid)

Chapbooks sold:  er… yeah, about 12?  I think/hope? Bad Trish for not keeping records!

Performances: 3 (one in front of ROGUE FROM THE CRUXSHADOWS!!)

Thoughts:  I know this isn't any major moneymaker, but it's part of me.  I have more plans in the works for my poetry.  What I find hard is that I hate token pay, which is what most poetry submissions are.  That said, I think I might just settle for some token pay so that I can get more of my work out there.

Non-Fiction

Total written, paid articles:  53 - Crap, that's a little over half of last year.  Blech!

Total pro-bono: I just know this is a few, too.  Mostly all for Bay State Equine Rescue.

Essays written: 2

Essays sold: 0

Misc.: Some minor hourly work for existing employers.

Editing (for others):

1 Academic chapter

1 novel

2 web page copy pieces

Tutoring:

I love my tutoring job, but there's really not a lot to report besides that I do my job, and I like to think I do it well.  I'll write more of a blog post on it later this year, but for now, I'll just give it the credit it's due as my dependable income that I love, constantly learn from, and strive to better myself with.

Other Business & Life Accomplishments:

BAD-ASS FAERIE sales

I got a pointed question, last year, from my accountant about books sold.  I will get it again this year if I don't hurry up and do a tally.  I just have not done it yet. 

Conventions

Attended:  7 - one less than last year, but with finances, that is perfectly fine.

Attended as guest/participant (besides RFRs):  5 - again, lower number than last year, but one less convention I spent $ at.

Attended as dealer/volunteer:  7 - see, I worked at every single one even if I wasn't on the roster

Parties: 

This needs an explanation line.  I helped with the Bad-Ass Faeries 3 release party by sending Danielle macaroons, but I had to attend Wiscon that weekend as a member of the Broad Universe Motherboard.  That said, I also threw a most excellent party at Wiscon.  The Dealer's room at Arisia was basically a party and possibly one of the most profitable BU sales events of the year.

Broad Universe

This was my first full year on the Motherboard of Broad Universe, and this accomplishment deserves a reasonable explanation.  A year after being asked to be part of the motherboard, I am still deeply honored by this responsibility and I've dedicated a lot of time and effort to this organization because I so strongly believe in our mission of promoting, honoring, and celebrating the women of speculative fiction. 

In this position, the two biggest accomplishments I've had have been giving us a stronger presence at conventions through readings and events and creating our podcast, the Broad Pod, so that women all over the world can have their voices heard.  Closely related to that, I've helped with several other non-convention events, assisted with the redesign of our website, and helped us promote and appreciate members through advertising.

Most of this was started in 2009, but 2010 saw it all come to fruition.  I hadn't even included any of this in my 2010 New Year's blog post; I had no idea how big these endeavors would be. 

I love it when things grow beyond your wildest dreams!

Calico Silver

A summary of 2010 would not be complete without, perhaps, the biggest life change I've had in a while.  I adopted Calico Silver.

While I've had animals for more than half my life who I have loved - and still love - dearly, a horse is hardly comparable in cost in responsibility.  I had never dreamed this would actually happen to me, but it did, and though I still am worried about costs, I could not be happier I made this decision. 

Husband-of-Awesome

And finally, perhaps the greatest accomplishment that 2010 marks is my 10th anniversary to Scott.  I would not be where I am now - citing all of these lovely accomplishments, moving forward from what I did not accomplish - without his constant love and support. 

And he's still wicked cute.

With the added explanation and reorganization, this post is almost as long as the compiled ones of prior years!

That's ok.  It's more functional.  As much as I share this openly in hopes of helping others with their writing careers and planning, this is also for me.  It's my accountability plan, my business research, and my goal setting exercise.

I just hope y'all enjoy it and join me for the following installments!

Happy New Year!