So here it is, January again, and it’s time for my annual reflection on the year past. Last January my goals for 2015 were modest ones–sort of–and I’m ready to check in to see how I did.
1. Publish my second book (fingers crossed my editor likes it!)
She did, and I did. 🙂 My second book, Secret Promise, released October 30.
2. Finish and submit two more books
Um, no. I started four books, but haven’t finished any of them, yet. One of the things that 2015 taught me is that it’s okay to go at my own pace, and that my pace is slow and meandering, like those Family Circus cartoons showing Jeff’s wandering path through the neighborhood–yes, that’s my brain.
3. Go to the RWA National Conference in New York
I did! It was fun and informative, and I got to shake the hands of some of my favorite authors. Although I usually wanted to curl up in a tiny ball of introvert at the end of the day, I am glad I went. I even pitched to an agent for the first time, which was a bit demoralizing (she hated the idea I pitched, which led to the unfinished nature of one of those books above) but not quite as bad as I thought it would be (she was very nice and liked an idea for another one–also one of the books above). My husband and son came to NYC with me, so we spent hours at the end of most days, exploring the city and eating phenomenal food.
4. Go to England for *ahem* research
Didn’t make it to England, but I did make it to Paris for my 20th wedding anniversary, which was awfully nice. It did, however, involve more wandering through museums, eating amazing French food, and drinking delicious French wine than research, and I left my laptop at home. 🙂
So what’s on tap for 2016?
2016 will see me finish at least two books (really!), and hopefully more. One is very close to done, thanks in large part to my discovery of the Ruby-Slippered Sisterhood’s Winter Writing Festival. Check it out, writer friends!
I hope to make it to RWA Nationals again this year, since it’s in San Diego, which I love. I would like to query one of those books mentioned above to an agent, and see where that goes. And I still desperately want to make that trip to England.
As always in January, despite the snow and the cold (and this year, the mind-numbing sadness at the loss of so much artistic talent), I am hopeful about the new year’s possibilities.
May you reach for, and achieve, your own dreams. Happy New Year!
About Marin McGinnis
Marin McGinnis has been a voracious reader ever since she could make sense of words on the page, but she came fairly late to writing. She dabbled with a mystery in her 20s, but didn’t start writing in earnest until after she discovered historical romance a decade or so later. While her very first manuscript will forever languish under the bed, the next one, Stirring Up the Viscount, won two contests in 2013 and was published by The Wild Rose Press in January 2015. Her next three books, Secret Promise, Tempting Mr. Jordan, and Treasure Her Heart, were also published by The Wild Rose Press. Check out her Bookshelf for more info. Marin lives in a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio with her family. She is represented by Margaret Bail of Fuse Literary.