Okay, the next couple of days I’m going to be thinking about the goals and deadlines I’m setting myself as a writer over the next year.  I always do this and I think it’s helpful to set clear resolutions when it comes to something as slippery as writing.  Without fixed outlines, it can be hard to ever get that novel or short story on the page.  Months can slide by without the work I want to do getting done.  Writing needs dedication and, for me, dedication comes from setting myself a timeline and ensuring I meet it.

Have you thought about setting yourself writing goals this year?  Make your goals realisitic, specific and measurable and see if it helps you achieve what you want as a writer.  Think too about setting some goals for reading – I always write a list of books I plan to read through the upcoming year, believing that reading is crucial for any writer.

Write a list tonight of ten things you want to achieve in writing/reading over the next twelve months.  Hone and think about this list between now and New Year’s Eve.  When you toast in 2011, know your writing is off to a good start.

Keep writing. Keep doing it and doing it. Even in the moments when it’s so hurtful to think about writing. –Heather Armstrong

Writing can sometimes feel like the loneliest most pointless activity ever. Reading over the reams of words I’ve scribbled onto hundreds of pages, or reviewing a poem or a short story I’ve attempted can be depressing and tiring. Why did I bother? Who’s going to read it? Publishers reject most of the stuff they receive so what’s the point? Is what I’ve written even any good? How can I tell?

Good news. These are questions any writer has to wrestle with. It’s true that for most writers, especially as they’re starting out, very few people care if they’ve written their novel or told their story. That can feel terrifying. But what any real writer discovers is what matters is the act of writing, the excitement of creating something out of nothing, the pleasure in seeing your characters come to life, not getting published or getting a book on the bestseller lists (writing isn’t the best way to go about making money—I’m pretty sure trading in stocks or working as an accountant might be the way to go about that).

Sometimes writers forget that the point of writing isn’t publication and rave reviews. It’s wonderful when people read your work and report back on it. But more wonderful even than that is the thrill of crafting your imagination and making your words do what you want them to do.

I write because I love it. Eight years ago, I received seven rejection letters in one week. As I picked up the latest one from my mail box, I slipped and fell down the stairs to end up lying in a crushed heap of pathetic misery on the ground (with a very sore ankle). Sure, as I lay there, I asked myself all those questions about the point of writing. But I picked myself up, ignored the despair and got on with working on my next project.

For me, the point of writing is that it inspires and informs me. It thrills and excites me. It helps me understand my world.

Adair Lara’s new book, Naked, Drunk and Writing is full of advice on how to write a personal essay or memoir. Two paragraphs in the opening of her essay What’s Your Angle? give a taste of her writing style and make me want to stop what I’m doing and craft an essay of my own:

Adair Lara: You can’t just come out and say what you have to say. That’s what people do on airplanes, when a man plops down next to you in the aisle seat of your flight to New York, spills peanuts all over the place (back when the cheapskate airlines at least gave you peanuts), and tells you about what his boss did to him the day before. You know how your eyes glaze over when you hear a story like that? That’s because of the way he’s telling his story. You need a good way to tell your story.

An angle is a way to tell a story. It is to the essay what a premise is to a book, or a handle is to advertising, or a high concept is to a movie (dinosaurs brought back to life for a theme park!). It’s a gimmick or twist or conceit that grabs the reader’s attention long enough for you to say what you want to say. Think of the angle as the Christmas tree. Once you have that six-foot pine standing up next to the piano, it’s pretty easy to see where the decorations go. Without the tree, what have you got? A lot of pretty balls on the floor.

You can read the rest here.