I’m always interested in journals that discuss the writing process, and when it’s a writer I know and respect, I’m hooked. Prolific author and storyteller Dean Wesley Smith has been blogging for a couple years now, and I love reading his journal. I’ve been to two workshops led by either him or his wife, Kris Rusch, and he seems to be as fascinated with the writing process as I am.

(Kris also keeps a great journal as well, and she’s been writing about writing lately too. And when Dean and Kris talk, I tend to listen — they’ve been writing fiction full-time for a few decades now.)

Recently, in preparation for the new year, Dean has been writing about setting goals. Some of the stuff he covers in his entries are geared more toward new writers or people who wanna be writers, but I’m finding a lot of it relevant. I highly recommend his journal, and Dean’s goal entries (three of ’em so far) are a great place to start:

• Goals. How to Even Think About Them
• Goals. Making Them Real
• A Personal Example of How to Set Goals

I can really relate to that last entry, when Dean is talking about tackling huge jobs. Seems like lately, I’ve got a lot of long-term projects on my plate, whether it’s writing a novel, trying to lose weight, or trying to pay off credit-card debt. All three of these things are very slow processes that stretch out for years, really, and it’s hard to see the end. Nothing like having THREE elephants to eat (read his entries and you’ll know what I’m talking about).

Meanwhile, I finally finished up pesky chapter 12 on my magic novel this morning, and I’m quite happy with how it turned out (even if my word count is going DOWN instead of up – it’s a temporary thing). I’m still having a lot of fun with this book, and finding lots more places to add bits and pieces to set up my characters for the ending, and hopefully for books 2 and 3. Whoo!

The word-o-meter sez: