Keep Your Publishing Dreams Alive in 2025

Everyone makes resolutions ahead of the coming year. You’ve got your standard weight loss and exercise resolutions that usually fail a week into the new year if you don't integrate them into your daily routine. There's the ever-popular personal pledges to improve some part of our emotional selves; take things in stride, don’t react to triggers, seek out kumbaya moments, and practice kindness to all along with dishing out random acts of kindness. Put yourself out there, volunteer at an animal shelter or soup kitchen. And don’t forget the trendy vow to take up a new hobby; learn to cook, start a new collection, create some art. These are all worthwhile decrees and by all means, partake, but I’m proposing writing resolutions again for 2025, so that WIP you've been pouring your heart and soul into, sees its day in print.

The most important thing you can do to make your dream of becoming a published author come true, is to start. There's no wrong or right way to begin and that's the beauty of writing. One word, one sentence, one paragraph can jumpstart the process and soon you'll have a scene then a chapter. Don't worry about making it perfect. First drafts are notoriously messy. Just include all the book must-haves. Don't be afraid of the big bad book monster and stress over how you will ever complete a novel. I promise, it's not impossible to accomplish. Millions of books are written every year and published.

Kick off your writing-a-book resolution by laying the foundation for a fantastic setting. Mull it over in your mind or create an outline. Get things going with a catchy title. Flesh out a fabulous character and give them some side-kicks. Add a few character flaws. Take that important first step by nailing the opening line. Do your best to make that first sentence and all the ones that follow, so irresistible readers will beg for more. Keep fine-tuning it as you write.

If your goal is to write fiction, come up with a unique idea. If you plan to pen a memoir, start by gathering the poignant experiences of your life. If you want to draft a how-to book, begin with finding a cool niche. Make a splash by writing a short story that may later blossom into a full-length novel or novella.

Do at least one of these things in 2025, more if you're feeling it and your creative juices are flowing. Do it again the next day. Aim for 365 days of writing. If that's unrealistic, cut it down to writing a few days a week. Make a writing resolution that works for you and stick to it.

Great, you've started the process, now you must practice believing in yourself. That’s when the magic begins. Believing in yourself is having confidence in your abilities. It means having a can-do attitude about things that you are capable of doing; this encompasses anything within your skill set. If you believe in yourself, you encourage yourself and you love yourself. It doesn’t mean you will never have doubts, but when you believe in yourself, you move beyond the doubt. Many things are possible if you just believe. That was corny. Okay, one more, “Faith is believing in things when common sense tells you not to.” In other words, when common sense tells you something is impossible or unattainable, if you believe in yourself, that belief kicks in and you overcome the obstacle by taking inspired action.

If you’re new to the writing scene, make it your business to promise your inner writing star that you will make time to write. Setting aside even twenty minutes a day is taking inspired action.

Create a space unique to you that motivates and inspires you to write. Create a vision board or box to help you visualize your dream of becoming a published author. 

These are intangibles, made tangible.

Here's a major writing resolution for ya with a potentially significant impact, seek out writing websites, forums, platforms, groups, and book clubs. It's a great way to meet new people who share your passion. You'd be surprised how many tips you can pick up from others. Put yourself out there on social media by creating your own Facebook, Instagram, and/or website. Get your writing out by posting articles, short stories, or snippets of your WIP on writing platforms like Medium or Substack. Agents, editors, and publishers want to see that you are serious about your craft. This may seem daunting, but I urge you to do it.

Hone your craft by learning about how to structure a story properly. Practice proper punctuation. Alert yourself to alliteration and the like. Scour the Internet for writing tips and grammar rules. Some writers love outlines, others not so much. If an outline appeals to you, use it to help structure your story. Outline every chapter if that helps. Don't like written or detailed outlines? I feel you. Keep a loose one in your head.

Don't forget to read. Read books from authors in the genre you are attempting to write in. Stick to the word count for that genre. Read books in other genres as well. While reading, take note of how the author handles character descriptions and flaws, scenes, plot, dialogue, chapter surprises etc.

If you’re at the my-book-is-done stage. Make sure your story shines. Nail your opening line to grab attention. Make sure all the sentences and scenes that follow are just as compelling. Be certain your first pages are error-free and amazing. Ensure that each chapter makes the reader want to read more.

Check to see whether you are in the correct genre lane. Go to a book store and peruse the shelves. Pay attention to how the books are organized. Figure out where you book might fit in. Confirm that your word count meets the requirement for your genre.

Fix stylistic and grammar mistakes. Find a good proofreader/editor. Seek out beta readers for constructive feedback. Ready your query letter and synopsis. Research agents and publishers for your genre.

If you've sent out query letters to literary agents and you're waiting to exhale so you can cue the confetti or go back to the drawing board, (any response is better than no response) continue to improve your manuscript in the meantime by making it more concise. Get rid of busy words and redundancy. Check that you do not have too much exposition. Scrap anything that doesn't move the story forward. Create a save-for-later file and throw all the excess in there. You may be able too use it down the road for the second in the series or a different story. Work on your author bio or track down beta readers and established writers and authors to ask for blurbs. Lastly, keep watering your writing seeds. Either start writing the next in the series, or write something completely new.  

A few final resolutions for 2025, please make it your business to share your writing knowledge with other writers. Share what you've learned about the publishing industry or the indie author/self-publishing route. Help others avoid the pitfalls you endured and marshal them onto the right writing path. Your wisdom could truly benefit an up-and-coming writer or potential author. If your manuscript is rejected, take it in stride, make some changes if you agree with the feedback, and move on to the next agent. Lastly, please don't compare yourself to other writers or authors. We are all different writers who make progress in our own time and way.