Welcome, 2016!

It’s that time of year. 2016 has arrived. (Actually, it arrived a few days ago, but who’s counting?) I feel like a bear that’s just emerging from a long hibernation. Or, would you believe a butterfly breaking out of its chrysalis? No, I don’t blame you. I don’t buy that one, either.

Maybe I’m Rip Can Wrinkle, a little worse for wear, stumbling down the Catskills to find that everyone is setting goals, making resolutions, envisioning the year to come. It’s what we do. Make your plan, jump on the 2016 Bandwagon.

I will spare you the usual…uh, you know…Organize my closets. De-clutter the basement. Reform my bad dog. Regain my youth. I like what author Oscar Wilde had to say about that: “To regain my youth I would do anything in the world except, take exercise, get up early, or become respectable.”

That blows a lot of resolutions right there. So, I’m just going to focus on reading and writing and such, to wit:

READING

1. I read plenty, so no need to change that. However, I’m not good about keeping up with my lists of books read and books to be read. Therefore, this year I’m signing up for the Goodreads Challenge to track my reading and force me to rate and/or review more books.
2. Read and/or review more Pulitzer winners. Since the award began in 1917, there have been 87 winners. If you’d like to join me in this quest, here is the list of Pulitzer winners and finalists in literature. I have read 28 of them, roughly 30%. I hereby resolve to read 6 winners or finalists in 2016.

WRITING

1. Finish and publish 31 Ghost Novels to Read Before You Die. This is an anthology of reviews for some of my favorite ghost novels. After reading Nina Amir’s article “Blog a Book Faster than You Can Write a Book,” I thought easy peasy—got that covered. Well, it’s taken me hours and hours of re-reading the selected novels to check my first impressions and more hours of re-writing and re-formatting. So, no, for me, blogging a book is not much faster than writing one (although I have been accused of being too much a perfectionist). But at last it is almost finished. Yay!
2. Write a complete re-draft of my young adult novel featuring fourteen-year-old Nat and her faithful service dog Poseidon. I received compelling and insightful feedback from an editor, and I’m excited to return to this novel after a long break.

ENGAGEMENT

1. Though I engage with Tweeps on Twitter, I am inefficient when it comes to connecting to readers. In fact, I sort of suck at it. In 2016 I’m going to try to reach out to loyal subscribers—especially those quiet folks who don’t leave comments (I always respond to comments), but who patiently absorb all the mush I manage to generate. I’d really like to know what you as readers like and dislike and what you’re interested in seeing more of. After all, I’m here to serve you.
2. I will probably also participate in Blogging from A to Z again in 2016. I had a lot of fun last year and visited some blogs I never would have seen otherwise. This year I will probably do Fictional Ghosts as my theme. Big surprise, I know.

So, now my 2016 is roughly planned. All I have to do is, well, actually do it. Tell me, what have you resolved to accomplish in 2016?