Goals for 2016

Since 2012, I've created a list of annual goals which I hope to achieve within the following twelve months.  This is one way to keep track of the progress of various projects and it's a bit of self-entertainment.

My goals for 2015 were:-

1.  Move house;
2. Finish Fabian;
3. Write at least one short story or poem a month;
4. Finish the NCC Skills course.;
5. Continue with the NVQ Level 3 course;
6. Fun stuff - swimming; doll collecting; photography; art.

We certainly moved house.  We sold our 1940s box-like semi in West Kirby and bought this lovely four-bedroom Victorian home, built in 1879, in Oxton.  Both of us consider that buying this house was one of the best decisions we've ever made.  We have a garden, an art room, we both have our own rooms - his for his films, music and Dr Who collection, and mine is where I write and keep my dolls houses and doll collection.  The dogs have settled in well.  The only thing I miss about our previous house is my pond.  I have been eyeing a corner of the lawn.

Fabian is finished.  More or less.  It's currently being edited and polished in readiness for publication in the spring (date TBC).  The front cover isn't done yet, but the props for the photoshoot are ready and waiting.  Memo to self: buy camera batteries.

I successfully completed the NCC Skills course.  However, the NVQ course is still in progress; I had hoped to have finished this, but the course turned out to be much longer than anticipated.  My tutor, a lovely bubbly lady, recently said I'd probably have it finished by July/August.  The course requires a huge amount of writing, which seems silly for what is supposed to be a vocational course.  I could have had another novel written in the time it's taken me to do this!

In August, I changed jobs; still with a similar role but with a much larger company.  There was an in-depth induction training programme, which I have now completed.  I genuinely like my new job, which also brought a nice pay rise and improved working conditions.

These changes, and the time consumed by doing courses, has meant that my intention to write at least one poem or short story per month totally went to the wall!  I wrote all of five poems and didn't complete any short stories.  There is a story on the backburner, which looks likely to evolve into a novella rather than a short story.  I'd 20,000 words of it drafted already before my old PC died - and guess who'd not made a copy on disc.  I began re-writing it, but it seems to be morphing into a quite different tale this time - but that's perfectly ok. 

I haven't been swimming for nearly a year, which is something I hope to fix soon.  I miss going and its good exercise.  It's also quite meditative, focusing on the pull of muscles through the water.  We're looking to buy an exercise bike for the house, but this won't be as much fun as swimming.  On the other hand the background music will be better.

My doll collection has only four new additions, and I've not done much photography.  However, I have been making good use of our art room, creating several watercolour paintings. I've also been doing some rapid sketching around Birkenhead Park.  Some of these have been posted here on this blog over recent months.

So, here are my goals for 2016:-

1. Publish Fabian;
2. Finish the NVQ Level 3 course;
3. Write more poems and short stories;
4. Create more art and photography.

My list of goals seems to get simpler each year.