Emma’s Big 2013 To-Do List

Because I like numbers! And I like lists!

My plans for 2013 have a heavy focus on personal creativity, then personal culture, and then being more social/getting involved in the writing community. It's a fairly involved plan so we'll see how it goes, though I achieved much more last year than I ever expected to.

New Years Resolutions

1. Waste less time aimlessly browsing the internet.
2. Read more.
3. Write more.
4. Have fun and spend more time outdoors

To-Do List

• Finish two first drafts. At the moment, these look likely to be the REBEL AGAINST HEAVEN sequel and the 'flooded Britain' WIP, but we'll see.
• Edit and revise the 'Girls Who Fix Giant Robots' first draft. Planning to do this in February or in March. After that, the beta readers will get a taste!
• Bonus points if I manage to write some short stories.
• Get 12 illustrations done throughout the year.
• Post more sketchbook and work in progress images.
• Update the site's design. I'm thinking of using a theme that focusses more on my books, a writing portfolio of sorts.
• Read 35 books (focussing on the for review pile, the personal to-read pile, comics and some non-fiction).
• Read 10 short stories (collections count as '1' because I'm cruel).
• Finish 5 games. (Currently planning: Persona 4, Shadow of Colossus, Ocarina of Time, El Shaddai and Tales of Vesperia)
• Watch a few seasons of Buffy The Vampire Slayer and catch up with Season 8 of Supernatural.
• Go to Stornoway with the other half (he's never been) in February.
• Go to Cyprus (for a family wedding).
• Attend Strange Chemisty's YA Con (13/14th July in Birmingham if all goes to plan)
• Attend World Fantasy Con in Brighton (31st October - 3rd November in Brighton), most likely in the company of the lovely Laura Lam.
• Frown at the sight of my bank account.

Some other bits and pieces I have planned:

• Focus less on blog book reviews and more on personal, writing, and art posts.
  The last few years of book reviews were originally started as an exercise in critical thinking, to force me to dissect what I like and don't like about books. These days, with drama levels rising over whether authors can also review and the role of book bloggers, it's stopped being a fun learning experience and turned into an added workload. I don't like finishing a book and going 'ugh now I need to put together a review', so I'll be slowing down on the reviews.
• Do more THINGS. Get LIFE EXPERIENCES. This one is an utter pain to do because... how do you add more excitement to your life? I dunno! But I guess I'll try to find things. The conventions should help, especially because I'll get to do some travelling and meet lots of writer friends offline.
• 'Pay it back' to the art community a bit by getting commissions from artists I love. I love doing this, but I need to be careful because good art costs.