Meaningful Resolutions for Writers

by Lynn H. Blackburn @LynnHBlackburn

Resolutions to eat healthier, lose weight, scroll less, read more…I don’t need to go into detail. You know exactly how this works. 

I can’t remember the last time I made New Year’s Resolutions. I lean toward a “word of the year” approach. 

But this year, I started thinking about my writing goals and decided it was time to make some resolutions, Jonathan Edwards style. He had seventy resolutions. I’m going to keep it to six. You’re welcome!

6 Resolutions for Every Writer

1. Resolved, to pray for my writing. I could read more books on the craft (and I will). I could take more classes (and I will). I could attend more conferences (and I will). But there is no other thing I can do that will have a greater impact on my writing than my intentional surrender—every day—to God’s will and God’s direction. 

2. Resolved, to pray for my writing community. God has gifted me the friendship and love of writers all over the country and the world. Lifting them up during deadlines, illness, and the inevitable ebb and flow of their careers is a private way I can support them as they live out their calling. 

3. Resolved, to be content with what God is doing with my career. Sure, there are writers out there who can write five books a year, in three different genres, that win multiple awards and make all the bestseller lists. I am not that writer. When they are lauded for their achievements, I will acknowledge their success without trying to emulate them. I will remember that how God chooses to use my offering is up to him. And I will be thankful that He hasn’t given me that much writing to do, because, seriously, one book a year is all I can manage right now!

4. Resolved, to trust the process that works for me. I don’t claim to have all the answers, but I’ve been doing this long enough that I’ve learned that some things work for me, and some things don’t. When others insist their way—whether in writing, marketing, or other business decisions—is the right way, I will refuse to doubt myself. And when, inevitably, I do doubt myself, I will take it to God in prayer, rather than to ten other people who will have ten different opinions. 

5. Resolved, to strive to improve my craft. I’ll never reach a point where there is nothing more to learn. But if I’m not intentional about my efforts to grow as a writer, my growth will be inconsistent. I will not shy away from legitimate criticism and will focus on the weak spots in my writing. 

6. Resolved, to love and pray for my readers. I already do, but recently I’ve been compelled to pray specifically for the readers who will come to my stories at some point in the future. The readers for whom God is giving me words now…words that will encourage them when they need it. It’s an extraordinary thing, to serve a God who exists outside of time, who knows and sees everything, and who is, even now, working out all things for our good and His glory. 

What would you add to your list in 2023? Share it with us in the comments! 

Happy New Year!

Grace and peace,

Lynn

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Lynn H. Blackburn loves writing romantic suspense because her childhood fantasy was to become a spy, but her grown-up reality is that she's a huge chicken and would have been caught on her first mission. She prefers to live vicariously through her characters and loves putting them into all kinds of terrifying situations while she's sitting at home safe and sound in her pajamas! 

Unknown Threat, the first book in her Defend and Protect series, was a 2021 Christy Award finalist and her previous titles have won the Carol Award, the Selah Award, and the Faith, Hope, and Love Reader’s Choice Award. Malicious Intent, the second book in the series, released March 2022.

She is a frequent conference speaker and has taught writers all over the country. Lynn lives in South Carolina with her true love and their three children. You can follow her real life happily ever after by signing up for her newsletter at LYNNHBLACKBURN.COM and @LynnHBlackburn on BOOKBUB, FACEBOOK, TWITTER, PINTEREST, and INSTAGRAM.

Featured Image: Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash