“To follow, without halt, one aim: There’s the secret of success.”
Anna Pavlova

“We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called ‘Opportunity’ and its first chapter is New Year’s Day.”
Edith Lovejoy Pierce, twentieth-century poet and pacifist

Now that we’re starting out the New Year, let’s take a little time to dream dangerously. Let’s pick a few goals — three sounds like a good number — that we want to accomplish over the next twelve months. And let’s make them part of “one aim” — one over-arching objective that we want to achieve in our pursuit of the writing life. For me, my “one aim” — the goal that I intend to pursue without halt — is to become a best-selling fiction writer. There, I’ve put it in print. That’s what I want: I want to reach lots of readers and entice them to enter the worlds that I create.

Novels, short stories plays, maybe a musical — I intend to explore lots of different creative outlets. But since I have to stay focused right now, I’m going to pick three short-term goals that I plan to reach this year related to my YA novel. I want to:

1) complete a polished draft of my full story: I’m almost there. I’m working with a few readers and getting feedback on my opening chapter from my writing group.

2) start circulating my novel to a short list of dynamic YA agents: I’m gathering names now and networking with friends for ideas.

3) find the perfect publisher and land a fabulous book deal!

Now, that’s writing dangerously: putting my intentions into cyberspace for the universe to support! I’m going to take a tip from my friend and mentor Rob Gilbert’s Success Hotline (973.743.4690 — check it out!) and write my three goals on a small index card, then put it in my wallet, so I can look at them every day to help keep me motivated.

How about you? What’s your “one aim”? And how about your three short-term goals? Let’s write them all down this week and move toward them “without halt.” As my dear friend Terri wrote to me: Happy New Year!! May all of our cherished hopes and dreams become reality in 2012!