Last year was crazy busy in real life, and a roller coaster for our family. For my writing life, however, it was the Year of Revision. While I did new writing too, of course, I think it’s safe to say I did more revising in 2015 than in any previous year in my writing career. And let me tell you, I learned a lot.
I also had the pleasure of judging and/or mentoring in a couple of contests, and it was great fun. I learned a lot from that, too—seriously, nothing will teach you about getting stakes, voice, and dramatic tension on the page better than critiquing a couple dozen solid first pages & queries—and I got a sneak peek at some really neat stories I hope to see on bookshelves someday.
Looking ahead into 2016 (or the rest of it, at any rate), I’ve got some fun stuff coming up. I’m restarting my current WIP, and am very excited about the character and story insights I’ve had that prompted me to restart. I’m hoping to volunteer for more contests and do more critique giveaways to give back to the awesome writing community. I’m also planning to carve out more time for reading—with work, kids, and writing eating up my day, it’s hard to keep up with my TBR pile (it doesn’t help that there are SO MANY SHINY WONDERFUL BOOKS that I have to keep adding to it).
Best wishes to all of you on your current projects, whatever they may be! May 2016 be a fantastic year for creativity and creative people.
Melissa Caruso 