2018: Byeeeeee! Not Sorry to See You Go

To put it nicely, 2018 was not my favorite year.

It wasn’t a horrible year, but it wasn’t great. It could have been much, much better. 2018 was a year with a lot of wheel spinning, a lot of goals that went unconquered, and way too much worry expended on unnecessary things. It was a year of limited adventure, too many days at home feeling like I couldn’t make a dent in my list of things to do. Lots of days where I felt unhappy, overwhelmed, and really just wanted to cry (and did.)

But it wasn’t all meh… there were some good things. Ashes Swept continued to get great reviews on Amazon and Goodreads. Reviews of Ashes Swept were featured in some digital magazines and book review blogs. I even entered Ashes Swept into a book award contest, and though it didn’t win, it was such a huge step for me–so far out of my comfort zone–I count it as a win anyway.

In the final months of the year, I started to really think about the things that were causing me unnecessary stress and keeping me from accomplishing my goals. I changed some habits, started working on my mindset, began to fix and change some of the things that were no longer working for me. And now, for maybe the first time ever, I’m going into a new year feeling a little bit invigorated. Cautiously optimistic, perhaps, but ready to tackle another trip around the sun.

I don’t put a lot of stock in New Year’s resolutions, but if I had to choose a few, they would be:

• publish “The Outpost”
• read one indie book per month
• read one traditional book per month
• keep up with social media
• stress less, relax more
• move more
• eat better
  
  

2018 Favorites:

Book: All the Crooked Saints by Maggie Stiefvater
TV Show: Timeless (Honorable Mention: The Expanse)
Binge Show: Brooklyn Nine-Nine
Movie: Black Panther (Honorable Mention: Isle of Dogs)
Music: Tycho
Game: Covet Fashion
Social Media: Instagram

Have a safe and happy 2019!