December 31, 2022At the end of the year, many of us take to our blogs, or maybe a more personal diary, and put into writing our thoughts regarding the year passing. It's been my habit to do so even when my retrospective doesn't have many books to talk about, not like I had back in 2009 - 2012. Those were productive years. Even as I was able to complete a lot of books, I knew that level of completion was unsustainable. A lot of factors go into what a person can achieve (or not) in a day.
What did I accomplish in 2022? As always, not what I'd hoped and dreamed with my writing, but I aced a few other biggies. I RETIRED!!! Yes, a long-coveted dream finally became reality. I got my first part-time job when I was sixteen, and I worked a job fifty-two weeks a year, every year of my life until May 22, 2022. God alone knows how many people my tax dollars have supported over the years, but I'm sure it's a huge number.
Writing a yearly retrospective is to my way of thinking a good thing. Looking back helps me focus on going forward. I need to examine where I've been to set the plan for where I'm going. Do I change course or do I continue with a few, if any, tweaks? Having been retired for seven months, I think a couple of tweaks may be in order to aid my vision to mesh with my reality.
THE BIG THINGS
So what were the Big Things of 2022? I think a lot of us went into the year with Covid battle fatigue. We certainly did as we needed to be diligent because of RC's health concerns. Writing actually went on the back burner as my retirement date edged closer. Readying things for a new person to come in behind me at the day job took most of my focus - and energy.
With that said, I was able to work on Riding Against the Wind, which was finally published in September. After that, I set myself to finishing an old, and I do mean old, Rayne Forrest story which ended up being titled, After the Sea Sprite Ball. That story was released in November.
In a huge departure, for me, I published a small collection of poems at the end of 2022. Just the Rain: A Collection of Poems will be on Kindle Unlimited indefinitely. I can't in good conscience ask a reader to purchase what is basically a twenty-page work I did for my own satisfaction. Why poems? We live and we grow.
Seducing Light, an older work that is near and dear to my heart got a new cover, as did September Morning. It's necessary to update covers from time to time to keep the promotion looking fresh. And speaking of promotion, I set a goal to promote all twelve books in the Men of Marionville collection in the Facebook groups. I did that in my original list of groups, and then Facebook kept sending me group suggestions. I joined new groups and started promotion in them. Then Facebook sent even more suggestions and the whole thing got out of hand. I say "out of hand" with tongue-in-cheek. I think the promo is going well even though it eats up a lot of time. Unfortunately, I discovered a bit of an underside to a few things in some of the groups. I discussed it here.
This was the year I made the move toward getting my own vendor accounts. Currently, I use an online service that I like very much. It's easy to use and it gets the books into a lot of places, for a fee, of course. But I'm reminded of the old All Romance eBooks site. Back in the day, I made a lot of money at ARE so I shuddered to think how much was embezzled from me. The old adage is true. Having all your eggs in one basket is foolish. So I'm working on it behind the scenes. Readers won't notice any difference when they purchase a book. Many, many, many authors have separate vendor accounts because it provides a safety net.
I've continued Holly Tree Manor (The Hideaway). This is a more personal view of rural living and my life. I put together a series on Preparedness, and while it's not totally comprehensive, I think I've presented some tips for anyone who wants to be more prepared. It's not Doomsday prepping at all, but it is pantry building and being aware that we have to provide for ourselves. To be frank, if you didn't learn we all need a little preparation for crisis management during the Covid pandemic, then it's not a series for you.
One of the big fails of 2022 is my dot com website, http://www.kckendricks.com. I've been struggling with it since Yahoo shuttered its old SiteBuilder software. So I have the website, which I pay for, but I just can't wrap my head around how that software works. I ended up linking to all the book pages here. That works, but it IS NOT WHAT I WANT and so I ponder the feasibility of continuing to pay for it.
WHAT IS AHEAD?
A new year offers three hundred sixty-five days with at least three hundred sixty-five new opportunities. If there is one thing I've learned, it's that you can't plan or organize all of them. The key is to recognize the opportunity when it presents itself and act.
I'm still learning how this "retirement" phase of my life actually works. I want to write, but I want to enjoy this wonderful plot of land my grandparents gave me. I will continue to seek balance whenever possible. I may be able to plan and plot a story, to develop and write a character bio, but when the dawn brings the perfect day to work in my garden or day trip with my spouse, I need to take full advantage of it.
I've set a goal of one new story a quarter. I don't want to make that a New Year's resolution because we all know how they work out. No, this is my goal. This is what I'd like to accomplish. I hope you'll stick with me to see how it works out.
Peace to you and yours in this New Year,
KC/Rayne
The 2021 Retrospective
The 2020 Retrospective
KC Kendricks, Rayne Forrest, contemporary gay romance, sci-fi romance, series romance, Kindle romance, m/m romance, a writer's life, career goals, rural living, organization, contemplation, 2023 resolution, New Year's,
