2020 Wrap-up + Yes, I'm Making New Year's Resolutions

To be honest, 2020 was tough. And when I say tough, I mean tough. Yes, it might not have been as hard for me as for a lot of people in the world, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t hard. There were just moments in 2020 when you feel you’ve got it all together—and then the next moment it’s like nothing’s perfect, nothing’s right, and the world is crashing down all around you (not literally, though! That would be bad).

Not gonna lie, that was me in 2020.

But instead of giving you a ranty post on the horrific things that happened this year, I’m going to give you a post where I count my blessings—including crazy 2020. I hope it inspires you to do the same.

Writing-wise. . .

I still remember watching the ball drop in New York on TV, eating pop tarts and writing a blog post (writers never take breaks, y’all, even on New Year’s. Or at least I don't). I was hosting a ‘writer’s countdown to 2020’ workshop on my then-co-owned-blog, and the topic? New Year’s resolutions as a writer.

I remember thinking to myself, I’m going to write a ton in 2020. I’m going to even publish a book.

Well, hello, naive thirteen-year-old me, you were right. 1000% right.

A few things I did this year, writing-wise:

• I published the second edition of A Change of Heart in March 2020, a few weeks into lockdown. Thank goodness I did, because I didn’t know how long it was going to last—and I wouldn’t have a way to make money this year like in previous years without this book!

• I joined The Young Writer’s Workshop, aka YDubs. I made some new writer friends and jump-started my writing in a way I wouldn’t have dreamed possible. My family was extremely supportive in this “leap” for my writing, and honestly, I’ve grown so much as a person and as a writer just from being on YDubs. And that was in April.

• I put out my first novella for betas, A Journey of Courage (the sequel to A Change of Heart). It was a new experience—and honestly bewildering to me—but though I never ended up getting further than that with A Journey of Courage, I learned a lot about organizing beta readers (which later proved valuable, as you’ll see).

• I participated in July’s Camp NaNoWriMo and wrote a fantasy novel (and the longest piece of writing I’ve ever worked on), False Crowns. That one was a giant fantasy mess. . . but it was fun (because that's what counts, right? ;)). Plus, I was growing as a writer and learning to be more disciplined with my writing.

• I participated in multiple group writing competitions on The Young Writer’s Workshop, including Crazy Writing Week. Definitely look into it if you want to meet with like-minded Christian writers and get a taste of what YDubs is like! It’s completely free, and there are some pretty awesome prizes.

• I wrote my fourth novel(la) since joining YDubs. This time, it was a YA contemporary fiction. And guess what? People liked it so much I decided to get it published. Well, I’m still working on getting it published.

• I started a blog! Yes, this one. I hope to keep it for a while now!

• I learned about marketing, launch teams, and how to launch my book properly. So I’m no pro. . . yet, but I’m always learning.

• I got a mentor, and became a mentor! Honestly, I’m not sure how either happened. But I’m so happy and beyond blessed.

This list would go even longer, but honestly, I’m getting tired of talking about myself and I’m pretty sure you are getting tired of hearing me talk about myself. So I’d like to ask you: If you’re a writer, has 2020 proved a vital milestone in your writing growth? If so, how?

Now, onto the fun stuff.

Life-wise. . .

Life-wise, 2020 was a bit rougher than usual. I’m in my second year of teenhood, and while it hasn’t exactly been a smooth ride, it hasn’t been especially bumpy until this year.

COVID cancelled a lot of things I was looking forward to, including three productions I was going to participate in. Stuck at home, classes cancelled, I had nothing else to do but to write (hence all the above).

• I started to rebuild my relationship with God. I began reading the Bible. I began praying more. Yes, my life wasn’t immediately perfect—but I feel like I’ve established a deeper connection with Him. And in doing so, He revealed His plan for my life—and helped me see the future more clearly.

• Being stuck at home, my family and cats kept me sane. In doing so, I was able to spend a lot more time with them (when I wasn’t writing).

• Being quarantined helped me stop and think. About the future, about relationships, about how I was using my time.

• Besides reading the Bible, I also was able to start reading other Christian books, like Do Hard Things and Start Here by Alex and Brett Harris and This Changes Everything by Jaquelle Crowe Ferris.

• I joined Do Hard Things University, which teaches how to rebel against low expectations as a teenager and grow in Christ.

Last but not least, new year’s resolutions.

New Year’s resolutions have a reputation of not being kept, or being too far-fetched. But honestly, even small things count. They don’t have to be big—they don’t even have to be impactful—but they still count.

This year, I’m making new year’s resolutions. And the reason I’m writing them here is so you all can hold me accountable.

Without further ado. . . here are my new year’s resolutions.

1. Manage my screen time.

No idea how I’m going to do this one, but I guess I’ll start by tracking my minutes. During COVID, I found myself doing a ton of useless scrolling and Hangout chatting, and seriously, I never felt great about it.

2. Read the whole Bible in one year.

Back in those years when I wasn’t writing as much, I read the Bible through multiple times. I haven’t been reading the Bible as much this year. . . so I’m planning on fixing that next year.

3. Read at least 10 new books.

Eek, this one’s going to be hard. . . considering I love re-reading and don’t have many books I’d actually like to read in my audience. Most of the time, it’s so much work searching I just don’t read altogether. Which isn’t exactly great.

4. Write a full-length novel (even if it’s just for fun).

To be honest, novellas are more my thing, so I generally avoid writing novels. But I’d like to at least write one once a year or so, to kind of get me thinking of the bigger picture of writing.

5. Cut back on commitments.

This is what happens when I think I have a lot of time on my hands. . . I go crazy signing up for a bunch of commitments. Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but when I’ve evaluated why I do it—let’s just say it’s not too great, especially when stress kicks in. In 2021, I’m hoping to cut back on some commitments that have become more of a distraction to me.

And. . . that’s all. I’ll be attempting to do monthly wrap-ups in 2021, so I’ll keep you all updated on how it’s going!

What are your new year’s resolutions, life-wise or writing-wise? As you can see, I have a little bit of both. :)

For 2021, I picked the word trust for the word of the year. I want to stay focused on trusting God with my writing and with my life, so that word reflects that.

Also, last year, I started a thankfulness jar. Once a day, I would write one good thing that happened to me that day. Little did I know how much I would need it as 2020 got crazy.

On New Year’s, I’m planning on taking every little slip of paper out and reading every single one, just to remind me that 2020 was a good year.

With that said, how was your 2020? Would you consider it more of a blessing or a curse? What has God shown you through 2020?

Have a very happy new year, even amidst the craziness of the world around us!