Thank you

I'm most productive and happiest in the Spring and Summer. I wish those days could stretch on forever. And, truth be told, here on Mayne Island, we have enjoyed seemingly endless days of sun and warm weather. Still it wasn't enough. But try as I might I was unable to will Autumn away. And it came, bringing with it a chill breeze and falling leaves. 

Photo by Leanne Dyck

Change isn't easy. But it is made easier with the support of a friend. It is made easier with your support.

"An unexpected gift from a thoughtful neighbour"

photo by Leanne Dyck

This year I felt forced to reduce the number of blog posts. I wanted to focus on my goal of finding a publisher for my writing. I wanted to focus on developing and completing more writing projects. For this reason, I made the decision to post once a week instead of twice. But I worried about this change. Would you, would I forget about this blog? Would it die a slow death? I enjoy this blog and want to continue to nurture it. I'm so glad you feel the same way. Thanks to our mutual support this blog will continue to survive and it will strive. Here's to many more years of blog posts. Here's to many more years of change.

Photo by Leanne Dyck

My goal is to continue to strengthen my writing skills. For many years, I received guidance and support for this goal from my Mayne Island writing group. That's why it saddened and worried me when that group folded. Where would I find the support I need? How could I continue to write? Thankfully, one of the members of that old group decided to form a new group. And I'm pleased to report that, with the help of a few new members, the group is now as strong as it ever was. And it gets even better because I've also found a first reader. My first reader gives me individual help on my entire manuscript. It is so much fun working with her that I have to pinch myself to make sure I'm not dreaming.

Photo by Leanne Dyck

Many people have helped and are helping me with my author journey. To them, to you, I say thank you. 
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An Easier Way to Achieve Your Goals by Leanne Dyck

Jenny Hansen wrote an interesting article titled:  Is Fear Freezing Up Your Creativity? In the article, she discussed a strategy she's used to abandon her fears and work toward her monthly goals. She concluded the article by asking a series of questions. But one stood out for me: How do you approach your goals?

I used to make a long list of goals. I even added a fun goal at the end to help with motivation—something like eat chocolate. But nothing worked. Lists were usually abandoned, half-finished. Well, I chided myself. But all that did was make me feel bad. 

My overall goal was to build my author career. I knew what I needed to do to work towards this goal. I was doing it—every day. But the lists didn't reflect this. Clearly, something had to change.

2014 dawned, and, with help from my friend Laurie Buchanan, I fell into a brand new plan. This year I choose one word to summarize my goal. That word was 'keep'—as in I will keep writing, keep submitting, keep working on revisions, keep learning the writing craft, and keep building community. 'Keep'—that one word is so easy to focus on. Motivated, I now do at least one thing every day to work toward my goal. At the end of the day, I use a journal to document my progress; this helps to keep me on track and motivates me to build on my daily successes.