You wrote a lot this year. Now, we’re heading into the final stretch, and you have more to write. First, though, you should recap what you’ve done, to remind yourself of your productivity. You wrote the pilot for an original TV series; through that, you reconnected with some of your mentors, and got some attention in Hollywood. Not much but some. You’re proud of that pilot and the pitch deck. You hope it gets made.
You also wrote a feature film. You’re proud of it and you’re working on a novel based on the same story. You haven’t had any luck with callbacks based on the script, although some management companies were interested, for a minute. That’s the way it goes. You have to keep moving on to the next thing. You’re finding your voice again. You know the things you want to write and you think you have time to write them. A nonfiction book project for your daughter. Two or three novels at least. Maybe more.
You write many different ways. You write longhand in notebooks. You write on typewriters and on your phone. You write on the laptop you bought just for writing. You’re not interested in the real writers write every day discourse, but you do think there’s something to writing as a habit, and this diary, this public diary, has helped you get back into that habit; you use different apps, and different styles, but you keep writing. Consistent. Since you were seven years old and told your mom you wanted to be a writer. You’ve never turned away from that dream. Your adventure has been by turns rewarding, ridiculous, rejuvenating, frustrating, and joyful.
Maybe it’s best to state your goals. Your intentions for the universe. You’re not sure you believe in such things, but it can’t hurt, can it? You want to finish a draft of your novel and send it off this year in time for a spring contract. You have the connections; you will be able to find an agent and an editor if you write the book. You know this. Yet you also know you have to do the work. Well, what are you waiting for? The world is waiting on you but it won’t wait forever. Time’s finite. Your energy, too. But you still have time and energy and love and ambition. Don’t waste it. Finish the manuscript.