Monday, December 24, 2012

Highlights of 2012

Merry Christmas, everyone! With just one week left 'til New Year's Eve ... can you believe it? 

So what did 2012 bring for you? For me it was a mixture of creativity, big changes, and a whole lot of fun, starting with:
  1. Publishing my Gothic romance novel, Overtaken in both paperback and Kindle editions.
  2. Creating the book trailer for Overtaken.
  3. I sold my house (a miracle in this current market).
  4. Moved into a rental condo--and I love it. No maintenance. No gardening. No "what if I want to sell it?"
  5. My day job moved into spacious new premises.
  6. Although I had a great little studio at my old house, I now have a new space three times bigger.
  7. I participated in National Novel Writing Month, and reached my 50K goal!
  8. Took a fantastic 3-day screenwriting seminar aka "screenwriting boot camp" and learned that writing a screenplay is just as difficult as I thought it was, LOL.
  9. I also took a 6-week oil pastel class and found my true north. I absolutely adore oil pastels now--especially Sennelier brand.
  10. Went camping in an RV for the very first time--and found out I love RVs. Will have to do this one again very soon.
  11. Prepared two manuscripts for 2013 submission: my nonfiction book, A Pet Owner's Book of Days, and a new novel, The Abyssal Plain.
  12. Kept up with this blog and had two fantastic giveaways. Big congratulations to my winners!
That's a lot--more than enough, I think--for one year's worth of memories. 2012 has been a fantastic year for me, and I hope the same is true for you. Drop me a line and let me know some of your favorite moments!

Tip of the Day: As a journaling exercise for next year, make a practice every evening of writing down 12 things that made the day special for you in some way: for instance, accomplishments both large and small; important insights that arrived unexpectedly; a line from a book that caught your imagination. Remember to not judge, just write.

2 comments:

LadyD Piano said...

I love this New Year writer's tip! After interviewing my family and asking them what was their highlight moments of Christmas, I realized I could incorporate a similar theme in my daily writer's journal. Happy New Year, Valerie!

Valerie Storey said...

Happy New Year to you too, Diana! So glad I could give you an idea for journaling. Enjoy--and thanks for visiting.