Thursday, December 30, 2010

Good goals and bad beans

We're in our RV, traveling back from a Christmastime visit with our son in San Francisco. The California coast is lovely, but Lord, did we have rain. Driving the freeways proved scary in the Pasadena area, but all in all was not bad. I had the good fortune to visit with fellow writer and book reviewer Jack Shakely in California yesterday, and we spent almost four hours talking about the Internet Review of Books and lots of other subjects. Jack is a fine writer and, I discovered, an equally good conversationalist.

Last night after we parked the RV, it rocked in the wind as a front blew through and brought cold air with it. We're in Tonopah, Arizona, tonight. The local truck stop served up an awful "Mexican combo" that included unappetizing rice and refried beans, Keebler crackers that smelled like an industrial chemical, and chips without salsa. They were out of salsa. But the tacos were passable, and the Miller Light was cold and good.

Now we're both at our computers, with blankets wrapped around our shoulders. I've been working on my review of the Kindle version of Mark Twain's Autobiography tonight, but the venue isn't ideal. My writing goals for 2011 are all set, spurred in part by other bloggers' posts. Publishing a new novel is high on the list, as is learning how to create and market a Kindle version.

Do you set specific goals for the new year? Most effective for me has been setting measurable goals. Last year I decided to lose 35 pounds but lost only 25. That's okay, though. It gives me a new goal.

2 comments:

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

I set goals rather than resolutions. More apt to hit a goal! And my writing goal for 2011 is to complete, polish, and have my publisher accept the sequel to CassaStar.

Patricia Stoltey said...

Losing 25 pounds is excellent, Bob. And that's exactly what I need to do. I'm working on it, but it seems to be happening an ounce at a time.

But my big goal is just to establish a daily writing habit with the modest target of 500 words per day.