My New Year Determinations.

The other night we ushered in a new year and a new decade. For me it was more than just turning the page on the calendar, as it brought to an end my five-year tenure on the ACFW Operating Board as its secretary. As the cliche goes, it's been a great ride. But all rides must eventually come to an end. Even good ones.

I will miss the fellowship I've had with my fellow board members on the board email loop, as it was more than a place for business discussions. We prayed for each other, laughed with each other, and encouraged each other in our lives apart from ACFW. But, I will not miss the time I had to invest in my responsibilities on the board, because ending my term means that I now have more time to write.

It is my prayer that I will do that and not wile away those extra minutes by too much web surfing or FaceBook/Twitter reading. It's so easy to get caught up in those activities and faster than you can say "FaceBook," the morning or afternoon is gone. God has given me back this time, and I desire to serve Him well.

Instead of making resolutions, I am making determinations.

First, I am determined to blog more in 2010. Until this past year, I had blogged at least once a week, but life got in the way. My hope is to bring it back to a weekly activity, if not more.

I am determined to make every morning count by treating my writing as the day job it is. At my desk and ready to go no later than nine (hopefully earlier) and staying with it until lunch.

I am determined that after a break for food, errands, exercise, chores, etc. I will come back to the computer for a couple more hours in the afternoon. It may not be to write my own story, but to crit for others.

Of course there will be days when I will be involved in ministry or other activities away from my computer. But, for the majority of time, I am determined to keep this my schedule.

The first draft of my 1933 historical is about 80 percent done, and I am determined to get it wrapped up in the next few weeks. Then while my crit partners are reviewing my chapters, I'll go to my other project that is set in Little Hope, Wisconsin. It is about 2/3 done and the first draft needs completion by April. I am determined to make this happen.

I am loving both stories, and I am writing more seat-of-the-pants than I ever have with the historical. The plot outline is there, but my characters are showing me the story's direction within those parameters and I'm taking their lead. This is making for a much more layered and captivating story than the synopsis I started with.

So on this first Saturday of the new year, I am right where I need to be. Determined and writing!

How about you? What are your New Year's determinations?