I did not initially set out to write a year in review, but that’s what it became. I considered waiting to publish this as part of the official 2021 T. D.’s To Do’s but felt the need to publish it now rather than later (for my mental benefit more than anything else). Much of what I have written here will be expanded on in part 2, as will new information such as…and I forgot what specifically I had in mind – percentages, outlining and tracking methods? As 2020 comes to a close, may your roars of power shake the ground beneath your feet (or something like that).

As I’ve been decluttering this site (bet you didn’t even notice), and in preparation for my annual 30 Days, 30 Outlines (which starts December 1 this year) and T. D.’s To Do’s, I decided I really ought to write a post. You know – there’s something impolite and unprofessional about writing one post per year; this makes two! It’s possible this is about to turn into a “Year in Review” even though that belongs in my T. D.’s To Do’s 2021, but we’re both going to find out what it turns into down below because I have no idea at this moment.

Honesty: that “elephant in the room” Covid. It’s been more invasive in conversation this year than even politics, which is saying something. But it affected me just as much as anyone else, so I’ve got to mention it. Covid covid covid, coronavirus. See, it cancelled multiple camps I was going to volunteer with, halted my substitute teaching opportunities mid-March (I substitute teach on occasion both because it’s fun and because it’s useful research, but mostly because it’s fun), closed down church services for a time and slowed them down since, halted expensive home repairs, pushed me indoors, and best of all it technically gave me time to write.

Technically.

Like everyone else, I had to figure out my “New Normal” (is that going to be the word of the year?). I don’t write well when I’m adjusting to drastic change; I might read a lot – and I did, and that’s great – but I can’t get myself to writing. During those types of transition, it’s more of a stress than a joy, and a stress that can easily be avoided. So I got off track my T. D.’s To Do’s 2020. These last months as I personally regrouped (…with myself…), I’ve managed to somewhat redeem this year’s writing.

I’m nearing completion of When the World Grows Dark. By my calculations I only have two-ish chapters left (ish because it’s more than two, but I already started the likely third-to-last chapter). I hope to have this done before the new year, and I think that’s reasonable even with 30 Days, 30 Outlines starting in three days (maybe two by the time I actually get this posted). If not, I probably “got” overwhelmed by other things.

I have quite thoroughly de-cluttered much of my writing. What has not been de-cluttered will be. That’s a goal I thought would be accomplished in January, and while I definitely organized a lot that month, my de-cluttering has been far more vast than I initially planned. During early Covid months when I was still figuring out how to fit writing in, I digitized most of my notebooks, scraps of notes, or anything else from my hand. There might be a couple or few minor additions to include, but that can wait for another writing rainy day. Regardless, the writing de-clutterization process was like that metaphorical weight being lifted off my shoulders.

Because this is turning into a 2020 Year in Review, I’ll address my Bluestone series as well. This was the main reason for organizing my writing. Over time it had become such a massive beast that it was becoming not only unwieldy for me (hard to control), but confusing as well (how it was a story at all, what I wanted to accomplish, what kind of story I even want to tell). I know it may sound weird, but this entire year (yes – year) I spent stewing and simmering over it, thinking and mentally planning, tossing ideas around, turning plans inside out to see if they work better, and wondering if it was time to take pen to paper or put fingers to keyboard. I’m feeling ready to lay out my vision for the Bluestone series, and that will be the main focus of 30 Days, 30 Outlines. Now that my writing is mostly sorted and organized, I’m ready to experiment, explore, evaluate and/or incorporate every opportunity this story puts in my path. I feel ready to actually create a great story in parts and as a whole.

[At this point I have decided to 100% go ahead and launch into full-out T. D.’s Year in Review 2020]

One benefit of reading lots of books this year is that doing so helped me recognize a handful of minor additions that will make The Author (from The Lands of Imagine) much richer as a story. I’ve made notes to myself because right now my focus is on completing When the World Grows Dark, but I still believe The Author is about ready to see the light of day.

MG Loss Book has not seen progress this year.

Narrative poems lost their appeal during Covid because I could not focus long enough to get in a groove. I tried to write some, even did write one, but the results were cringe-worthy.

What I did not expect was to make huge progress on The Healer Town. This is a short story about a boy raised in a town of medical Healers. In the depths of Covid I had one great writing period where I sort of told the world to back off and leave me alone. As a result, I completed a huge chunk of this story.

Other short stories took a hiatus. The Organizer of Files continues to intrigue me and only needs a legitimate rewrite, but when I’m less stressed. One Sick Brother: “I should be able to knock this out during spring break” – Ha! to spring break. I didn’t have one. I didn’t write this, either.

Chapter per Week and Poets Anonymous/Pseudonymous – I will be playing around with one of these this next year but have not decided which. I was leaning toward Poets Anonymous but also decided I want to aim for legitimate payments for poems (market rates); that will only be possible if substitute teaching is a legitimate option or if people help to fund it (and I have not proactively sought funding).

As I look T. D.’s To Do’s 2020 over, I accomplished more than I realized, but much of my progress looks different than I had planned. If I can finish strong (30 Days, 30 Outlines and completion of When the World Grows Dark), I think I can call 2020 a successful year for my writing career and good riddance to it!