Happy New Year Writing Prompts

Times Square New Years Eve Ball, a photo by LeSimonPix ★ on Flickr.

Happy New Year, Everybody!

Since it is the new year according to the standard calendar most of us live by, this prompt will ask you to reflect on something new you want to in your life this year. No, I'm not talking about a new house, sports car or anything tangible. I'm talking about a quality within yourself that will help you in your life.

Do you want a renewal of patience?

Do you want to have more gratitude?

Do you want more time for praise?

How about health or peace?

Do you want more time for writing?

Whatever you would like to add to this new year, I don't want you to just write about it, but I also want you to break it down into some steps that will help make it happen for you. Yes, a map to the goal always helps.

And good luck!

Part 2 is just for your writing goals.

Every year I ask my close writing friends to reflect on their writing. I like them to reflect on the goals they have reached and the success they have received over the last year.

And then, they set writing goals for the new year. And only goals that they have control over. For example, getting published is not a goal---unless you are talking about self-publishing. However, submitting to an X amount of publications is most certainly a goal you have control over, so that counts. The idea is to set goals that you can control, and hopefully, if you stick to them and nurture your writing, you will celebrate some success along the way.

What will your writing goals for 2012 be? Will you write an X amount of new poems? Will you try a new form? Will you revise the last few chapters of your novel? Will you write 3 new short stories? Will you start participating in a writing group or take a class? Will you subscribe to an X amount of journals? Will you set aside time every week for writing and/or submissions? How often will you give yourself time to write?

Set your goals, but first reflect on your goals from last year if you had some and see where you went wrong and right and let that starting point guide you.

Note: It is a good thing to review your yearly goals every 3 months (or more if you'd like) so that you don't lose sight of them. And of course, I believe in weekly goals as well.

And as always, you are free to comment and tell us which writing goal is going to be most important for you this year.

I wish you all the best!!!