My Successes for 2016

Children’s author Julie Hedlund, challenged participants of her 12 Days of Christmas for Writers series to post SUCCESSES (rather than resolutions) on our blogs this year. She believes the way New Year’s resolutions are traditionally made come from a place of negativity – what DIDN’T get done or achieved in the previous year.  Instead, she suggests we set goals for the New Year that BUILD on our achievements from the previous one. I decided to participate in this Anti-Resolution Revolution! Here is my list for 2016.

This year has been an amazing year of highs and lows, of incredible personal challenges, yet it had many exciting plans that I have seen come to fruition.

​I have a chronic illness, Fibromyalgia. One of the ways that I deal with a chronic illness is to keep a gratitude box. This list was not a surprise but it was nice to see it all in one place. And this is just the beginning… 

Day 3: Successes

1. At my first Writer’s Conference, Meet the Publishers, I pitched two picture book manuscripts, and the editor asked for them both.
2. I physically got through the writer’s conference. I lasted right to the end. (Having a muscle disorder, this was a huge thing for me.)
3. I had my first author school visit at a local primary school. It was successful and I received positive feedback. (As for #2. I won’t be doing a whole school/all day visit again any time soon though. Lesson learnt)
4. My blog has grown. I have subscribers. Yay!
5. I have made some wonderful connections throughout the Kids Lit Industry.
6. I am now blogging on two Australian Kids Lit websites, Just Write For Kids and Creative Kids Tales.
7. I have three manuscripts to publishable standard.
8. I joined The Australian Writers Centre, and the Victorian Writer’s Centre.
9. I have my manuscript, ‘Raymund and the Fear Monster’, to publishable standard, and I have started the process to get it published. It will be out late 2017.
   

​I have had an incredible year, and 2017 promises to be yet another year of challenges and successes, and another year of amazing growth.