Goodbye 2010

And good riddance.

It's not that 2010 was a bad year for me. It just sucked for people I care about, and was not good enough for other people I care about, and that makes me mad at it, even if it was good for other people I care about and pretty decent for me.

I started going through my date book and recapping the good and bad, but it got long, so I'll list it instead of recapping.


Bad: Dolly and my uncle died.

Good: I reconnected with a childhood friend and had a fantastic family reunion, plus an end-of-year visit from my brother and his family.

Bad: I lost my agent.

Good: I sold a novella to Amber Quill Press and a novel to Carina Press.

Bad: I only completed one novel all year, in January. That doesn't mean I didn't WORK. I've worked on four new books and the revisions/edits for the two sold stories, plus editing for Soul of the Dragon. But it feels like I didn't do much when I didn't complete much.

Good: Jason Manns performances!

Bad: Only two Jason Manns performances. :(

Good: Two writers retreats and the Salute to Supernatural.

Neither Good Nor Bad: Both J and I starting new jobs, rearranging our lives.

Now, the stuff I address every year:

Weight and Exercise
I didn't set a goal for weight, but lost 3 pounds. The three I gained in 2009, I guess. LOL I didn't keep track of exercise, which didn't affect anything. I did pretty well until July, when I sprained my ankle and started a new job. I plan to get back into it starting Monday, prompted, as always, by my spaghetti muscles.

Entertainment
This is always my favorite category to do. :)

I read 107 books in 2007, 95 in 2008, dropped to an appalling 88 in 2009, and rebounded to 93 in 2010, which is good considering the job factor. There were only 16 books I started and didn't finish in 2010, less than half of 2008.

Book format breakdown:

Mass market: 21
Kindle: 23
Hardcover: 41 (many from the library)
Trade paperback: 8

I saw 13 movies on DVD or VHS (plus 1 I didn't finish), 2 on iTunes (plus 1 I didn't finish), 1 on TV, and 17 in the theater, for a total of 33. That's how many I saw in the theater in 2009! I have a feeling 2011 will be similar to 2010. I did watch 17 seasons of TV on DVD, too (Felicity=4, Doctor Who=5, Torchwood=3, Supernatural=4, and Entourage, plus 4 Doctor Who specials).

Writing
The most important category!

Fiction: 166,606 words
Nonfiction: 42,656 words
Total: 209,262

That's an increase in over 53k, reversing a three-year declining trend! \o/ I'll ignore the fact that most of it was nonfiction.

I also submitted 7 titles throughout the year, edited 2 books not in production, and have 2 new books nearly complete. I met 3 of my 5 writing goals for 2010, which was the same number as in 2009.

Professional work completed (up/down from 2009):
55 bios (up)
~145 pages of text written (up)
2065 pages critiqued (some paid, some not) (down)
4078 nonfiction pages edited or proofed (down)
12 RWR columns compiled (equal)
613 contest pages judged (down)

I added a freelance job at the end of the summer that isn't easily quantifiable. I have to say that to make myself feel better about how much I struggled with things over the last half of the year. :)

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I think I did succeed in 2010 in keeping a more positive attitude, something I vowed to do at the beginning of the year and then never really thought about again. LOL Selling a book in August helped a lot with that, I think.

So now, hello, 2011! I feel very good about what 2011 is going to bring.

Hopes:
More Jason Manns concerts
More sales
The same number of writer meetings despite changes in our schedules

Goals:
1. Format Soul of the Dragon and upload to Kindle/Smashwords.
2. Write synopsis for Hummingbird and submit.
3. Finish draft of Entanglement.
4. Finish draft of NaNo book.
5. Write post-apoc novella and submit.
6. Edit Zoe book and submit.
7. Edit More Than You Know.

I'm tired now. I think I'll veg for the rest of the night. LOL

Happy New Year, and may 2011 be better than 2010 for everyone!