When I started this blog, I didn't really have any ideas about why I was doing it, or what I hoped to accomplish by writing it. It was kind of a carryover from the Livejournal/Myspace days. Now that I've been writing a little more regularly and reading other blogs, I've realized that I need to have a more clear purpose and idea of what I'm doing here. Random writings are good, but even randomness can be a bit structured. With that in mind, here are my goals for Amber Can Read in 2014:
1. Publish on Tuesdays and Thursdays: The few times I've participated in "Blog Everyday" challenges or tried to write daily because of a series, I felt really burned out. I know that my content probably suffered as well. I think it was Jon Acuff who said that it's better to commit to a lighter publishing schedule and actually stick to it than to overpromise and underdeliver by promising to post daily then breaking that promise as soon as life happened and writing a blog was the last thing on your mind. Some weeks I feel like I have enough material to write a novel, and other weeks, it's a struggle just to think of a title, so twice a week is a good balanced schedule for me.
2. Review one book a month: Sometimes I receive free books from various websites and other bloggers in exchange for a review. I think I'm all caught up on these, but since it's so easy for me to get behind schedule, I want to commit to reviewing at least one book a month. If I don't have any freebies to review, then I'll review something interesting (or not-so-interesting) that I've recently read.
3. More product reviews: This is a selfish one for me. I get more points on BzzAgent for blog reviews, and the points can be used towards restaurant and store gift cards. Hopefully the reviews will help others also!
4. No more 30 During 30 Updates: Honestly, I bored myself writing those sometimes. Some things are just better left to personal journals! I may even do away with the list entirely. I want to accomplish those goals, but I think that many of them need longer time frames for completion, and some of them don't need to end once I turn 31.
5. Another posting series: In November, I did a series based on the book 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life. I received good feedback on those postings, plus it helped me to slow down and really read the book rather than just skimming through it. I think I have another book in mind for this, but I want to skim through it first to make sure it will help others and that there are tangible things to write about. If it's a good one, then I plan to start that series on Tuesday the 14th.
6. Focus on one word: I guess this has become kind of a trendy thing in the last couple of years. Instead of having a lot of resolutions, you're supposed to focus on one word throughout the year and make changes in your life based on that. I'll write more about what I plan to do with this next week, but for now, here's my word:
Here's to a wonderful 2014 for all of us!
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