Hello, Beautiful 2015

Sunset Over Mt Taranaki, the end of 2014

Hello, Beautiful 2015

Welcome to 2015, dear reader, even if we are already 15 days in.  The end of the year was certainly a hectic few months for myself, from planning and hosting a surprise birthday party for Nana, to our annual Christmas Lights extravaganza, (view the footage here Wallace Christmas Lights), buying a piece of land with an 100 year old cottage bordering the wonderful Tongariro National Park, and planning a sudden trip to Turkey in April (yes, we were lucky enough to receive attendance passes to the Anzac Day Services at Gallipoli - unbelievably excited, worth more than any lotto ticket!). 

But with the dawn of a new year, thoughts turn to accomplishments past, resolutions fulfilled (or not!), and plans for the year ahead.  As this little blog is intended to be a prod, a motivator, an accountability measure, I must be honest and voice my intention for the rest of this new year.  Write 500 words a day. In the great scheme of a day’s events, this will not be arduous.  When I think an episode of ‘Masterchef Australia’ (current TV addiction) is an hour long.  Replace one for the other. This daily target can include mundane journal entries, to do lists, letters to friends.  But mainly, words in my manuscript.  The point is to pick up the pencil, every day, and write.  The written words can be crap. They can be deep and meaningful.  They can be grocery lists. But the point is, they are words. 

The second plan in progress for 2015:  Establish a writing group, where a bunch of like-minded individuals meet up in a central location, once a month on a Sunday, and write. I believe that if we are all in a room, writing, with no distractions, then great progress can be made.  And if coffee and cake can be included, all the better.

I finished 2014 with the completion of the MOOC 8 week FutureLearn course at the Open University.  It was exhilarating, stretching, interesting, and pounded home points I’ve learned as well as new ideas.  I’ve also started this year with a great bang, attending a 3-day course at Auckland Uni with tutor Sara Watson.  I loved every minute.  Sitting in a classroom with a wide diversity of fellow aspiring authors, writing exercises on demand, sometimes reading out loud, hearing others’ work, and again, the basics reiterated -  Practice, Practice, Practice. 

Hello Beautiful 2015, what a great year we are going to have.