How We Can Use Resolutions to Grow as a Writer

by Tim Suddeth @TimSuddeth

A tradition many writers (and others) have for the new year is to make resolutions. We can use them to help us focus on what our publishing priorities are. And they can be helpful. But let’s admit it, often they are our way of dealing with the guilt from something that didn’t satisfy us the previous year.

That guilt is why so many gyms fill up in January. And why stores sell so many self-help books at this time of year.

We look at resolutions as getting a chance to take a mulligan, a do over. Last year wasn’t that great, but if I just make a couple of changes with my writing life (whether they are tweaks or total demolition), the new year will be better.

Now some of you, as soon as you heard resolution, tuned me out. You’ve been there, done that. I mean, New Year’s was over a week ago. How many resolutions have we already set by the curb?

But before we completely give up on our resolutions, let’s try looking at them a little differently.

Three New Ways for Writers to Look at New Year’s Resolutions.

1. Don’t give them too much power.

I love watching college football. What those athletes can do on the field is astonishing. This huge guy flies down the field with another huge guy by his side. He jumps and reaches for a ball that if I tried to catch, it would knock the breath out of me. He grabs the ball in a hand the size of a catcher’s mitt and lands, dragging his foot just inside the line.

All this happens in a split second.

But wait, they review the play, and what happened in that split second, they inspect frame by frame. They determine that his size thirteen shoe just grazed the line. They reverse the call, and the celebration comes to a crashing halt.

The player could hang his head and feel like a failure, even though he still made an unbelievable move.

That’s what we often do with our resolutions. When we miss a day at the typewriter, or a day at the gym, we consider it a failure and give up. Worse, we may label ourselves as a failure.

Instead of giving up on the resolution, why don’t we do like most players? Shake it off and get back in the writing game.

Although we call them resolutions, that doesn’t mean we write them in stone. (Somebody else, capital S, does that.) Maybe it would help if we called them New Year’s suggestions. Remember, we make the resolution not to make us feel bad, but to help us improve.

2. Don’t think one size fits all.

It’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of others. Someone on TikTok mentions they plan to read a different book on the writing craft each week for a year, and they get a long stream of comments. Everyone in your writer’s group thinks it’s a great idea. And you agree.

Except you discover you need to read the book slower to get the most out of it. And you fall behind.

What do you do?

I encourage you to go back to why you picked this resolution. If you are learning from the books, it sounds like it’s working.

But then you worry you won’t read 52 books in the year. Do you think someone is keeping score?

Do what works for you. Everybody forgets about resolutions by March anyway. But if they help you start a new habit that is beneficial, good for you.

3. Don’t be afraid to challenge yourself.

Too often, we are so afraid of failing (There’s that word again.), that we don’t make resolutions that stretches us as writers. We make a generic resolution like, “I’m going to lose weight. Or I’m going to read more.” Those could be for anyone, anytime.

There are two problems with resolutions like these. First, you can’t tell if you kept it or not. When you set goals, you need to set clear steps of you need to do. A good way is to make sure your goals are SMART. (You can find articles about making SMART goals by searching this blog.)

Second, a resolution like this doesn’t really test anyone. To make a resolution most effective, you want to choose something that stretches you.

Remember, the resolution is for you. It isn’t a judgement. If circumstances keep you from completing it, or you decide you don’t want to do it, that doesn’t minimize you. You’re not a loser or quitter or whatever that nagging voice in your head likes to use. Sometimes, this just isn’t the right time for you to make this change.

But there is power in making resolutions. Whether you do it now, or at another time in the year, it’s always good to take time to look at your writing life and objectively decide what priorities you want to have, and what steps you should take.

Whether or not you made your resolutions, chose a Bible verse, or a word for the year, I wish you a very happy and blessed new year. May 2023 be a year where you see God’s power and love show off in your life.

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How We Can Use Resolutions to Grow as a Writer, insight from writer @TimSuddeth on @EdieMelson (Click to Tweet)

Tim Suddeth is a stay-at-home dad and butler for his wonderful, adult son with autism. He has written numerous blogs posts, short stories, and three novels waiting for publication. He is a frequent attendee at writers’ conferences, including the Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writers Conference and a member of Word Weavers and ACFW. He lives near Greenville, SC where he shares a house with a bossy Shorky and three too-curious Persians. You can find him on Facebook and Twitter, as well as at www.timingreenville.com and www.openingamystery.com.

Featured Image: Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash