Wanderer's Pen: Goals for 2018

I'm back, peeps! I didn't plan on doing this post, but I've seen a bunch of people doing goals posts and so I kinda want to do one, so I am. I covered some of these things in my Monthly Summary/Year End post, but I tried to keep my points brief or else that post will be more monstrous than it already is, so I'm dedicating my first post of the year to the goals I have for the year.

1.) Prepare Silhouette for Pitching in July - Silhouette was my NaNo novel for 2017 and a story I've had in my head for years. It's an adult science-fiction novel and I heard at Realm Makers last year that adult is easier to sell right now, so I want to get this one read to pitch at Realm Makers 2018. It's a mangled mess, so it's going to be tons of work, but it'll be worth it.

2.) Revise Red Hood and Resubmit to Publishers - If you've been following me for a while you'll know that my steampunk fantasy fairytale retelling has gotten close to publishing several times, but still hasn't gotten past the last hurdle. Last January 17th, a publisher gave me some detailed critique for it and now I've finally gotten the courage to go over it and do revisions. I'm about a third of the way into it and I'm seeing a good many things I need to change. The plot is going to be very similar, just modified, so we'll see how fast I can get this done and resubmit to publishers. I will also need betas for it I'm hoping by March or April. I'm having to revise the back cover copy so I don't have a definite one at the moment, but I will have an application form in February if you're interested in betaing.

If Red Hood were a manga.

3.) Make Two New Cosplays - Last year, I did two new cosplays Fem King Graham from King's Quest and Ymir from Attack on Titan season 2. This year I'd like to do two more cosplays. Eowyn from the Lord of the Rings I'm doing for sure, I'm hoping to complete by April. I'm starting work on it in February. Then I'd like to do either Yuki Sohma from Fruits Basket or Lady Bishimon from Norigami. So a big one then a smaller one. I'm also going to modify my Ymir cosplay to make a scouts version of her as well.

I'm debating on doing a modest version of this outfit.

4.) Read 20 Books - Yes, I knew this is kinda pathetic, but I tried last year to do 25 books and it didn't work, so I'm lowering the bar so I can try to hit the bar then go up from there. XD I've already read Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo, so one down! And I'm currently reading White by Ted Dekker and Rhett and Link's Book of Mythicality.

This is a list of books I'd like to read this year. I know it's more than 20 including the ones I've read, but I hope to read more than 20 books if I can:
Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo
Green by Ted Dekker
Germ by Robert Liparulo
Never to Live by Just B. Jordan
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling
Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas
Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas
Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas
Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
Blood for Blood by Ryan Graudin
City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare
The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger by Stephen King
The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan
The Mortality Doctrine by James Dashner
And Then There Were None by Agitha Christie
Watcher in the Woods by Robert Liparulo
The Evaporation of Sofi Snow by Mary Weber
A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket
The Spiderwick Chronicles: The Field Guide by Tony DiTerlizzi
Paper Towns by John Green

5.) Be More Active - I hate exercising. Workout videos make me want to throw up. I don't like my sizeable chest swinging around while I'm jogging. Running makes me wanna die. Therefore, I've settled on brisk walking and my neighborhood has a lot of hills (Thanks, Appalachian Mountains), so it gives me a considerable workout and I can do it in a half an hour. I'd like to try out yoga and going to a local gym this year, but I'll have to see if my budget will allow that.

Red Top Mountain, one of the local areas I went walking

Leita Thompson Memorial Park, one of the local areas I went walking

6.) Attend MegaCon 2018 - I've been attending MegaCon for the past two years and I want to keep up the streak. It's become a highlight of my year and I want to show off my Eowyn cosplay there. ;) I'm not sure what celebrities are going to be there yet, but I'm sure there's going to be several I'll squee over.

MegaCon 2016

MegaCon 2017

7.) Attend Realm Makers 2018 - I love this conference and it's my opportunity to speak to professionals in person, so I definitely want to attend for my fourth year. This year it's being held in St. Louis which is much cheaper to fly to than Reno. XD It's also another opportunity to show off my Eowyn cosplay ...

7.) Save Up to Attend the Iceland Writers Retreat 2019 - My plan changed. I'm no longer attending Realm Makers this year, but I am saving up for the Iceland Writers Retreat for next year! I'm really excited and I feel like things are already lining up and I'll be applying for scholarships as well. I've missed Europe and I can't wait to go to a country where part of my Red Hood series is based on!

Realm Makers 2017

8.) Continue Making Rest Time a Priority - I take off the last two hours of the night to just relax and take one day a week off to relax. I started doing this in fall of last year I believe and it's done wonders for my mental and physical health. I sleep better and I feel much less burnout. I often have to fight thoughts like "I'm being lazy. I could be doing so much more with this time. But if I have one more hour I could do this ...", but I feel like this rest time has made me more productive than ever and I feel just happier as a human being.

I love to draw during rest time. Here's my fanart of some critters from King's Quest. (left to right) Dangling Participle, Cedric, Hole-In-The-Wall, Treasure, and a spelling bee

9.) Participate in NaNoWriMo - I want to participate in April Camp NaNo for sure because I'll need that time to rewrite Silhouette. I'm also hoping to do either a rewrite of the second Subsapien book or the last of the Red Hood series for November NaNoWriMo, but we'll see how the year goes. If I get good responses for the Red Hood rewrites I'll probably do Black Hood, but if I need a break from that series I'll do the second Subsapien book rewrite.

I miss my Subsapein babies.

10.) Visit Canada in the Summer - I've been to Canada twice in the winter, now I'd really like to visit it in the summer. I'm hoping to go in August, so I can spend some time with my good friend and walk on a glacier. *crosses fingers *