End of December: 13 Goals Accomplished

It's December 30th... the year is almost over. And I accomplished one more of my writing goals, just in time. Finishing the rough draft of my novel that I was working on (Code Name: Greenies) was a different goal, and I completed that earlier in the year. I knew I'd take a break from it and then come back, so seeing if I could complete the second draft of it was a separate goal. End of December, and I got it.

With a slight caveat.

First off, I just wanted to highlight how I put this list together in the beginning of the year with the intention of not being able to complete all 16 goals. I wanted to try, but this was not a "bucket list." Listing everything that I HAD TO DO. It was like... a "basket list." Listing everything that would be great to do. I definitely wanted to get some things done, and I knew I could get a handful done. I honestly thought I'd be lucky to get 8 of them, and I would've been pleased with anything above 5. The fact that I got 13, I'm so proud of. I think having the list made me work harder.

Now, a little background about the story. Greenies. That was my title name. Without going into too much detail, it's a story centering around 9 different characters who all come in contact with the same new element, and from it, they all develop powers. Some of them know each other, specifically 4 of them. These 4 live in Brooklyn. The other 5 have no ties to anyone else. 2 that are in Boston, 2 that are in Philadelphia, and 1 in good ol' New Hampshire. (My home state. Had to do it.) They are all coming to terms with what has happened to them.

Ah, but that picture says "Greenies: A New Element." The title is wordier than you mentioned.

I know. I'll explain why. The story mainly centers on one character at a time, and then bounces to a new one, a new one, etc. Because of this, it isn't done in a perfectly linear way. I wrote the whole story, aiming for 100,000 words, as that's a number they tell new writers to keep manuscripts under. My last manuscript that I wrote, I did the same thing. I aimed for 100,000 words, and I think I hit around 113,000. This is no news for me. I always go over word restrictions on the rough draft. Usually with short stories that I am aiming for 5,000, I hit 5,500. 10,000 word restriction, I usually approach 11,000. Then, I go through a second-pass through and find A TON that I can eliminate, wordy explanations that can be minimized, repetitive language that needs to be STRUCK FROM THE DOCUMENT WITH THE SWIFTNESS.

Yeah, so I'm used to it. That 113,000-word manuscript before, I got it down under 99,000 words. So, I was aiming for under 100,000 with this one, but I KNEW I'd go over. I was prepared for it. I knew I'd have to edit it down on the second pass-through. But when I completed it... I went over by a bit too much.

It was about 210,000 words. So, yeah, my first thought was, if it was two novels, I still went over. My second thought was, WHAT DO I DO?! But then I went back to the first thought. It's two novels.

9 characters, that's a lot. I probably took on too much. I realized, I essentially DID write two novels, and I just clumped them together. So, I had to find the portion of the story in which it could be separated into two. I had to find the stories that went together. I went through a couple of possibilities, some more complicated than others, and then it became clear where the split was. There were also some parts of the overall story that didn't necessarily exist under any one character, and one of them, halfway through it, that was the split. The end of one story and the beginning of another story existed there.

So, after I located the split, I did a word count for each separate story. The first half, 115,000 words. OK. Over. But not so bad. I can work with that. The second half, 95,000 words. (These are approximations, of course.) Great! So, that second half is already under the word restriction, but it will still need some editing done to it. At least I have wiggle room. The first half, I had to cut more than 15,000 words out.

So, I read through the whole thing, took my notes, and then got to it. I worked through the first half, chipping away from each character's section... one of the people from Boston, the one from New Hampshire, the four from Brooklyn, back to back to back to back... and voila! I got it down. Under 99,900 words. Also, I fixed up A LOT of issues, and I am so proud of how it turned out. Also, the way I worked on it, it sort of wasn't just a second draft, I had to go through it a couple times so at this point it's essentially a third draft... and I'm calling it a final draft right now. Unless I need to make ay future changes. But that one is done. Greenies: A New Element.

So, yeah, in the new year, I'll have to move to the second half and make the edits for that. But that's OK, that is another manuscript. I finished one. Yes, the idea originally was for this to be one novel, and I wanted to finish that. But it's two. I finished the first one. And I am going to count that as completing my goal. Finishing up the second half will be a goal for 2026. In the meantime, I did what I always do when I complete a goal. A little tradition that I wound up starting this year. First step, I treated myself to one of my favorite treats. It's from Trader Joe's.

They're so good, I think I could eat them every day. But I don't let myself. I celebrate with these, each time I accomplish a goal, whether on this list or just some other goal I am proud to have accomplished. Yes, I'll probably have a drink or two later tonight as well to further celebrate. But something about the pretty little packaging of these chocolates, oh, how I want it. But it's only for special occasions.

I'm glad I managed to get one more goal down in 2025, but in reality, it wouldn't have mattered if I finished it later in January. The point is for me to accomplish things I want to accomplish at any point. I try harder since I am wanting to get them done in that specific year. Anything to motivate myself to work harder. It can only result in positive things.

On to 2026. I'll need to make a new list with new goals. In the meantime, I'll enjoy this one. Happy New Year!