• Kamy Wicoff
  • Three Wishes for My Writing In The Coming Year: Will You Tell Me Yours?
This blog was featured on 09/01/2016
Three Wishes for My Writing In The Coming Year: Will You Tell Me Yours?
Contributor

It isn't just a new year for She Writes, it's a new year for me, as my birthday and She Writes's are very close together.  (Mine is today!)  For the anniversary last week, we asked She Writers all over the world to get together and share their wishes for the coming writing year.  For my birthday, I am going to take a big leap and write mine down here for all the world -- or at least all She Writers -- to see.

This is a big step for me.  As some of you know (but many of you don't), I started She Writes two years ago at a time of deep emotional turmoil and pain.  My marriage was ending, and with two small boys to protect and my own guilt and grief to process, I wasn't able to write.  I tried, but the words just didn't come, and the isolation writing requires was dangerous for me in the throes of so much depression and anxiety.  (My journalling was critical to my survival and mental health, but my journals are not something I would ask any other human being to read!)  I needed to reach outward at a time when I couldn't go in.  So on the advice of a very wise friend I decided to do the next best thing, responding to my own need for a home, a community, and an empowering space for women writers, a place where all of us can turn during those times when writerly isolation is hard to bear.

Two years later, I am thrilled to say that I am ready to write again, and writerly isolation sounds heavenly!  (Now if I can only find some.)  I have ideas that have been percolating for some time, and are now too urgent, and too inviting, to ignore.  I am also aware that the very existence of these ideas and creative impulses has been comforting me for months now, making me feel as though I have accomplished something when in fact nothing has been tried.  That must come to an end.  It's too easy to bask in projects yet unattempted and unrealized -- in that hazy, dreamy light, they all seem doable and brilliant, and it is tempting to leave them in their idea-state just for that reason.  But I owe it to myself, and to the stories I want to tell, to subject them to the harsh and unflinching light of the work itself, and see how they hold up.  

So without further ado -- three wishes for my writing in the year to come.

I wish that...

1) By this time next year, I will have completed a television pilot and have settled on a novel idea (I've got several in my head), and have gotten it well underway.

2) By this time next year, I will have found a writing group to support me in my efforts, and be settled into a routine for doing the work regularly.

3) By this time next year, I will have written something I am willing to share with my agent.  (Ack!)

How about you?  Declare your three wishes here, and ask other She Writers to hold you accountable.  I know that this is one of the places where I will get the support, and the gentle hounding, that I need in the year to come.  That is certainly one of the things She Writes is for, and I can't tell you how good it feels to to know that, now that I am ready, it's here.

Let's be friends

The Women Behind She Writes

519 articles
12 articles

Featured Members (7)

123 articles
392 articles
54 articles
60 articles

Featured Groups (7)

Trending Articles

Comments
  • Carolyn Barbre

    Happy Birthday Kamy. I'm on countdown to a 19th of July B'day.

    Starting She Writes was genius. The seeds of deep emotional pain can blossom into transforming creativity that benefits multitudes, as you have done for us all. Thanks. 

    Goals: By my next birthday I will have restructured my memoir, and polished it.

    I will have submitted it to the publisher of my choice and when they accept it I will connect with the right agent to handle the deal. (Thinking positive.)

    And three, due to my remote rural location, I hope to have connected with an online critique group of like-minded (memoir) writers, or started one. Anyone interested leave me a message. Thanks. 

     

     

  • Jennifer O.

    Wonderful post. I'm really identifying with what you said about basking in the glow of unfulfilled projects.

     

    So here are my three writing goals:

     

    1. Polish and submit my poetry and short fiction to literary journals.

    2. Finish my ms.

    3. Find an  agent.

  • Victoria Noe

    Kamy -

    Happy birthday (mine is Friday)!

    Such a good time to reflect and pat yourself on the back for all  you've accomplished in such a short amount of time. These kinds of reflection are truly life-affirming. My 3 writing goals for the next 12 months are:

    1. Finish, sell and publish 1st book.

    2. Finish and sell second book.

    3. Continue to be motivated by my writing group - 6 women, all in their 70's or 80's except me, who keep me and my writing honest. They are a continual inspiration to me.

     Congrats again to you!

     

    Viki

    (who believes most of the best people are born in July) ;-)

  • Samantha Anastacia

    Happy Birthday Kamy and those are great goals!

    I hope that you would peruse and consider my new group on Shewrites called Blooming Late, its growing fast and already theres alot of group interaction and support. We are all 40 and up finally deciding to get going with our writing and we would be honored to have you!

     

    My birthday is in February, does that mean that I get an extra two months then? :D

    Either way...

    My goals for the rest of the year are to finish a novel rough draft and participate in NANOWRIMO. If I finish NANOWRIMO that woudl give me two rough draft novels by the end of the year which would be MORE than awesome.

     

    Happy writing!

    Samantha Stacia

  • Taneisa Grier

    Great Post Kamy.

    Like many my increased interest in writing came out of a need to express myself. Which is interesting because I come from a family where the freedom to voice your thoughts was embraced almost since birth. But at some point the communication seemed hindered and thus the need to write became essential. I must admit it was not one event that led me to this place, it was a feeling. A feeling that someone wanted to project their issues on to me that didn't belong and the woman in me rose up like the hot Phoenix Sun. It was there in that space that both a love of writing and the need to do so met head-on. Ironically, years before at a lunch table outside under the tree at work, I wrote several thoughts and one of them was that there was a book in me. I still have that sticky note to this day. Since that time there’s been so much going on that I really need to see if my desire is matched by my will to do so. My three wishes are simply

    1. Flesh out my interests in writing
    2. Take a workshop or class pertaining to the discipline
    3. Work on a mini project that I can complete to see if I’m more invigorated and motivated to do more.

     

  • Angelina C. Hansen

    Best wishes on those goals, Kamy. For me it's simple:

    #1 Have a book contract in hand for the novel that's "out".

    #2 Finish the first drafts of my current YA WIPs.

    #3 Revise my Middle Grade novel.

  • Marcia Fine

    Thank you for honest sharing. You've shared a great gift! I am going to finish the 1st draft of my suspense novel (#6); keep marketing my satirical series ; and get booked into one of the Book Festivals for my historical fiction. Yes!

  • Valarie Rocha

    My three wishes would be:

    -To continue to make my blog successful ( up and running still working out bugs)Rhythmoenergy.com-Life Vibration

    -Finish book on Fetal Alcohol Sydrome

    -Do a child's book

    Thanks to all my She writers your the best!

  • Pam Dakan

    Kamy, Happy Happy Birthday to you. July is also my birth month and there are so many ideas and thoughts swirling around, about where I should be and what I should be doing that I have to tell my mind to quieten down as it can get quite deafening in there! I have been journaling all my life, and wrote a memoir about sexual child abuse at the hands of my father when I was a young girl. I have been thinking about the re-write for what seems like forever, but like you, I went through a painful divorce 5 years ago, and have two boys to raise, which I have been doing with no financial support or otherwise from the other party who helped create them. I find also, that I have a horrid writer's block whenever I am going through any difficulty, and can't write a thing.

    I am so happy to have found She Writes and I have only just started to really check it out, and I need to get to know more women to get and give support. We are all in different stages, and I think keeping the faith is sometimes the hardest part. So here goes for my 3 wishes for the coming year.

     

    1) To have finished re-writing my memoir and to have an agent by July of 2012.

    2) To be blogging at least 4 times per week and to have 10,000 Twitter followers that also read my blog. (I know, that's a big one!)

    3) To be more fluent in French so that I can get closer to my dream of going to live in Paris within 2-4 years.

     

    So, now they are declared! Everyday I will do something to bring me closer to these goals. Good luck!

    Pam

  • MCatherine

    Happy Birthday Yesterday Kamy.

    Congratulations on making lemonade for yourself and then create the She Writes space into which you invite others to further create healing.

    At the age of 17 I began journaling and bloody good thing too because at the age of 40 the 'practice' came in REALLY handy to help me sort through quality of life issues when I developed head/neck cancer forcing me to give up my performing artist status and find SOMETHING that would return my spirit-driven passion. I am happy to report that at 16 years out I FINALLY found a little something to ignite the flame! Thank Goodness because I was beginning to think I would never feel 'artistic satisfaction' again!

    I love business goal setting especially when I write goals down in INK and then tell someone else...that kind of puts the fire to my feet and I share my three and I'm copy/pasting then posting a sticky on the frame of the computer:

    1. A year from today the HAH blog (http://hideaheart.wordpress.com) will have a 5/10 Google page rank

    2. A year from today HAH will have a role in the way 1000 additional households create positive communication

    3. A year from today a television program will schedule me to share the story of HAH

    Now for three personal affirmations:

    1. I am patient

    2. I am compassionate

    3. I am devoted

    MCatherine

     

     

  • Marina DelVecchio

    Camy, thank you for sharing this. Writing is the only thing that feeds me and makes me like myself nowadays -- going through similar conflicts as you did when you began ShWrites. I love this community and have made wonderful friends. I also love the new look! Thank you! I hope you accomplish all that you endeavor -- we all seem to be in the same boat as far as our writerly wishes.

    1. I hope to have a publisher with the courage to publish my book even if I am not a marketable face/name -- just because they see the value in my experiences as an adoptee and with mothers and mothering and all its madness. 

     

    2. I hope to write another book. I have dedicated 6 years of my life to my memoir Drowning Squirrels, and now I'm looking to the fall to have the freedom to just write -- kids will be in school for four hours in the mornings -- I'm sure you all know what that is like -- being writing moms.

     

    3. I hope to find the courage to submit and publish articles to venues that will actually pay me for my work. I now write for five blogs (2 are mine), but no money comes my way. I write for free -- for the love of it. 

     

    Here's to seeing what the next year will make of me as a writer. 

     

  • Janice

    Very encouraging. I, too, find it hard to write when there is an emotionally cataclysmic event, such as a divorce, a break-up or even a death.

    Hrm, let's see, my three would be:

    1. A year from today, I will have a published article.

    2. A year from today, I will start writing a book.

    3. A year from today, sending query letters will be of second nature to me.

  • Kamy, thanks for sharing your story and for encouraging us all to formulate three specific wishes/goals/affirmations. And thanks and congratulations for SheWrites!

    My three:

    1. a year from now my first novel, On the Way to Somewhere Else will be beautifully published.

    2. a year from now I will have completed the first draft of my second novel, now just begun

    3. a year from now I will have a group of like-minded friend writers to meet with regularly for encouragement and inspiration.

  • Happy Birthday to Kamy and congratulations on your entrepreneurial effort and good writing spirits! All the best to you. 

    I have read many wishes for the coming year as comments to your post, and I must say that although it is great to have ambitious goals I think that many of you put too heavy burdens on your shoulders when you have three goals that could take all your time the coming year. There are other things in life as well that requires time and effort. So, be ambitious, but remember to be satisfied with what you actually achieve along the way. When you evaluate yourself at this time next year, don´t get disappointed. Or better, don´t set too high goals, it might lead to a writers block instead of inspiration if you realize that you don´t have enough time to do everything on the list. 

  • Happy Birthday, Kamy, and congrats on getting back on writing! This is a wonderfully-timed post, by the way. Makes us all re-think, re-group and return to the stirring wishes deep inside us.  My three wishes are:

    1) By this time next year, I will have completed and self-published 3 picture books.

    2) By this time next year, I will have created a programme that ties in with my 1st picture book, which is on encouraging children to embrace their introverted selves and to glow. This programme will include books on introvercy for the parents and educators, and talks/blog posts/articles by experts, and ... my picture book. =) Hopefully there'll be music accompaniment for a DVD. (Piano and clarinet.)

    3) By this time next year, I will have become a more authentic person, a more confident writer and a less-anxious-more-inner-stength publisher.

     

  • Ann Rodela

    Happy Birthday Kamy!  

    1) By this time next year I need to finish writing my first novel and whip it into shape!

    2) I would like to get know my fellow she writers better by participating more at shewrites.

    3) I want to make a book trailer for my novel by composing the music, mixing it and choosing decent visuals. 

  • Adrian Ruiz

    What inspiration to have come so far and through so much.  My inspiration to write has been my family, parenting and my work as a police officer.  My three wishes would be:

    1- This time next year, have at least a third draft of my creative non-fiction completed.

    2- To have worked with my writing group/friends/beta readers and family an honest review of the work.

    3-With the results of the two items above, be ready to finally submit proposals, chapter outline and queries to agents for feedback and more importantly, someone to believe in me and take me on. 

    http://themothercenturion.blogspot.com

  • Misz Lyla

    Nice comeback. Two years shows how strong you are. (clap) (clap). I'm not sure I would be able to do the same. ; )

    By the way, regarding my wishes, since I'm not really someone that's involved deeply into writing, I don't really have much wishes that even I'm sure I can realize. I do have a dream though, that is to be a writer like most of the members in she writes. However, if short term wishes are included, then I think can list out at least three. ; )

    1) Finish the stories that I have started to write on my blog and make a better effort in writing it weekly rather than monthly. (because I just get too lazy sometimes...hahaha...)

    2) Start to read novels again after I've left all my beloved novels on the shelf for a long time. (I think they've been reading me and not the opposite...hehe...)

    3) Be able to put all my thoughts and imagination into writing that even I would read a million times and not get bored. (I think I've got to brush up on my vocab before I actually can do that...heee~ )

     

    These are the three wishes that I really wish I could achieve before this year ends. Well, maybe the third one could be recycled for next year too. hahaha... Let's support each other!! ;)

  • Debra Elramey

    Happy Birthday Kamy! And thank you for sharing your story and your wishes with us. Wishing you all the best in your writing career and in life.

    By this time next year I’d like to:

    1. Complete a memoir I’ve been working on intermittently for the past couple of years… picking it up, putting it down… and finally holding it tight like a child I’ve been neglecting.

    2. Decide which publishing route to take… to self-publish or go the traditional route… find an agent or go it alone for awhile. These are the questions I keep mulling over. But perhaps I should wait until I get to the bridge?

    3. Make meaningful connections with likeminded writers who have already crossed the bridge.

    Debra

  • :)  Thanks for sharing some of your story - I'm a newbie so I appreciate it!  Happy birthday, too.

    1.  Have a complete manuscript of the novel I'm working on now.

    2.  Finish writing the play I started last month.

    3.  Follow through on creating my own company to publish my first novel.

  • E. Joyce Moore

    Three wishes: Completion of both novels, script from one novel sold or on spec, children's books picked up.

  • Patricia Woodside

    Happy birthday, Kamy, and congrats on the success of SheWrites.

     

    By this time next year, I will:

    1.  Have two completed category romance manuscripts ready for submission.

    2.  Be actively submitting to agents, editors and contests.

    3.  Have at least two steady, decent paying freelance gigs.

  • Julie Achterhoff

    1. I wish that my four books would get read by many more readers. For this to happen I think I need to change the way I think about the whole marketing/branding process.

    2. I wish that I would take the story I've had milling around in my head for weeks and at least begin to start writing it down.

    3. I wish that I will be able to learn the self-publishing process for myself, as I have lost my resources from my last two books.

  • Skipper Hammond

    What protective people we are--we're asked to name three wishes and almost everyone, including Kamy, named goals, things we can do something about. Not the magical wishes elves make come true. Like the rest of you, I dare not risk disappointment, so here are my three goals:

    1. Find a beta reader who can give a good critique of my novel, which is about as finished as I can make it, and complete a rewrite.

    2. Get up the nerve to launch a blog. (For ten years I was editor of a country weekly and had no fear of writing and publishing, yet I can't put a simple recipe or book review out there in cyberspace.)

    3. Stop organizing lists and materials and actually send a first batch of query letters.

  • suzi banks baum

    Dear Kamy,

     

    Brave willing woman that you are, I am so thrilled to read you here today. I love how much of yourself that you put so tenderly and authentically here in to Shewrites. I am sorry I did not get to meet you in NYC during the BEA, but I do feel that I catch a hint of you in the pages of this site. This post however, brings you fully present. Thank you for this.

    My 3 wishes for the year are this:

     

    1. I desire (my word for 'wish') to complete my book proposal this summer and have it be filled to the brim with excellent writing and a marketing vision that is fueled by my creative genius and authenicity.

    2. I desire to continue to flesh out my website and my presence in the writing world by being published somewhere, anywhere that boosts my visibility to women readers and supports me claiming my full voice as an author, artist, Mom.

    3. I desire to find the perfect venue for my first book and to engage with inspired professionals who can assist me in creating a sustainable plan for my 'brand'.

    4. In all these desires, I desire most of all to live my life full out and thus to create more and more material from which to write.

     

    There. That is 4. One to grow on, right?

    All my love and Happy Birthday Kamy, 

    Suzi