by Christy Barritt, @christybarritt

It’s a new year and that means new resolutions. I actually prefer to call them goals. That word is less daunting.

I’m big on setting goals. In fact, people who write down their goals are more likely to achieve them—at least, that’s what psychologists say.

So what are some good writing goals that you may want to jot down for the new year? Here are some ideas:

1. Make a goal to finish. Whether it’s a short story, a novella, a novel or even an article, be someone who is a finisher.
2. Word count goals. Word count goals are what help me to reach the finish line. I set a daily goal for myself as to how much I need to write per day in order to reach my deadlines. Maybe your deadlines are self-inflicted or maybe they’re given by a publisher. Maybe they’re daily, maybe weekly, maybe monthly. But figure out a way to reach them by writing with goals in mind.
3. Commit to strengthening the craft. Is there an area you struggle with in writing? Maybe your critique partners point it out. Or reviewers. Or editors. Make it a goal to develop your skills in those areas. Maybe it’s deepening your characterization or creating more descriptive settings or heightening conflict. Find blog posts or books or podcasts that talk about these things, and dig in. It doesn’t matter where you are on your publishing journey—it should always be a learning process.
4. Social media goals. Social media can take over our lives. But it’s also important, as authors, that we maintain our presence there. So figure out what works for you. One post a day? One post a week? You can even schedule some of these things ahead of time. Goals help make this manageable and help to develop boundaries.
5. Write down where you’d like to be in ten years. I like to dream big. Ten years ago, I created big dreams for myself. And I’m happy to say I’ve met all those goals now. So now I’m crafting more big dreams for myself in ten years. Some are outrageous. But big dreams stem from big goals, so why not shoot for the stars?
6. Print your goals. Then place them in a prominent place where you can see them and be reminded of them. Otherwise, it’s too easy to write the goals and forget about them. Seeing them will remind you of what you want to accomplish.
7. Review your goals on a regular basis. Evaluation is an important part of goal setting. Sometimes, we need to reframe the goals we’ve set. But we’ll never know if we’re making progress unless we take time to review what we are—or aren’t—accomplishing.

Hidden Currents

You can take the detective out of the investigation, but you can’t take the investigator out of the detective.

A notorious gang puts a bounty on Detective Cady Matthews’s head after she takes down their leader, leaving her no choice but to hide until she can testify at trial. But her temporary home across the country on a remote North Carolina island isn’t as peaceful as she initially thinks.

Living under the new identity of Cassidy Livingston, she struggles to keep her investigative skills tucked away, especially after a body washes ashore. When local police bungle the murder investigation, she can’t resist stepping in. But Cassidy is supposed to be keeping a low profile. One wrong move could lead to both her discovery and her demise.

Can she bring justice to the island . . . or will the hidden currents surrounding her pull her under for good?

Christy Barritt 

USA Today has called Christy Barritt’s books “scary, funny, passionate, and quirky.”

A Publishers Weekly bestseller, Christy writes both mystery and romantic suspense novels that are clean with underlying messages of faith. Her book, Hazardous Duty, is currently being made into a movie, and her Worst Detective Ever series has been optioned for film.

Christy spent six weeks straight as the #1 author on Amazon in the Religion and Spirituality category, and she’s sold more than 1.4 million copies of her novels. Her books have won the Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Suspense and Mystery, have been twice nominated for the Romantic Times Reviewers Choice Award, and have finaled for both a Carol Award and Foreword Magazine’s Book of the Year.

She’s married to her prince charming, a man who thinks she’s hilarious—but only when she’s not trying to be. Christy’s a self-proclaimed klutz, an avid music lover who’s known for spontaneously bursting into song, and a road trip aficionado.

Christy currently splits her time between the Virginia suburbs and Hatteras Island, North Carolina.

For more information, visit her website: www.christybarritt.com.