And Now We Put 2024 to Bed

Or the grave, depending on how your year went.

Photo by Richard Stovall on Unsplash

It’s that time again, where I reflect on the past year and how far I’ve come (or fallen). I’ve been very happy with life on Substack, honestly. It’s challenged me as an author and helped me to appreciate community. I honestly wouldn’t be where I am now if it weren’t for my friends on Substack.

If I were to sum up the past year in a single word, it would be “growth”. Growth as a woman, wife, and writer, especially in how these aren’t all separate titles for separate compartments of my life. Rather, they are all mixed together, seasoned thoroughly with my Catholic faith.

2024 in Review

In my last year-end wrap up post, I laid out some goals for my writing for 2024. But did I keep them?

1. Complete The Cost of Memory. ❎

   This was my contribution to the Chronicler’s Blackwater Project. I did not finish it. I would revisit it, come up empty as to what happened next, and then walk away. Eventually, I gave up entirely.

2. Post my first planned serial in February. ✅

   Under the Roses debuted mid-February and it was well-received. So well received, in fact, that I decided to expand it into a full-length novel. But I wasn’t able to give it full focus because of other writing projects and the WIP was eventually shelved. I hope to get back to it one day.

3. Complete the rough draft of the WIP I started in 2023. ❎

   Unfortunately, this was another bust. I was really struggling with the direction of the novel. I began calling it my “chaos draft” because the characters and plot kept warping and changing. Eventually, the very idea of having to go back and edit that mess was too much to bear, and I abandoned the draft. Maybe one day, I’ll rework the idea and give it another go.

4. A full year of posts was my last resolution. ✅

   While there was not a story or newsletter in June (I was on vacation). I did post throughout the year on a regular schedule. I am very proud of this, especially because of the very, very rough August and September I endured this year.

So, 2/2 is pretty good. I’ll take that as a win. I’ve certainly learned more about myself as a writer and what this Substack can be. I’ve tried to lean hard into the idea of letting God guide my creativity, rather than me trying to shove my creativity into a mold I built myself.

One thing I did envision from the outset was that this Substack would be a sort of playground, where I got to write in different subgenres of speculative fiction. That’s definitely stayed true!

Goals for 2025

1. Publish two serials. I already have the Sardis serial with beta readers right now. I’m shooting for a February publication date, like for Under the Roses. To give myself time, a second serial will most likely be published in the fall of 2025.

2. Take part in more collabs and contests on Substack. This is the fun side of Substack, and one that builds community. I’m here for the people, not the stats!

3. Work towards a short story collection. The exact nature of the collection, I’m not sure, but keep an eye out on this one.

4. Submit short stories to magazines.

I have no plans for a novel. I really feel I need to focus on my shorter fiction right now. It’s so odd. I once saw myself as strictly a novel writer and I couldn’t write a short story to save my life. Now, it seems things have flipped in reverse. I would love to go back to writing novels, but I don’t think it’s quite time yet.

What about you, dear reader? How did 2024 treat you? What are you looking forward to in 2025 and do you have any resolutions or goals?