I’m completely amazed at how many post I’ve read regarding 2017 being a hard year. I get the political landscape is somewhat divided right now and that it can be difficult for some to focus- especially creatives- on their work. But over time I think one needs to learn to find a way to tune out the Static and White NOISE.

Goals are important, and meeting goals are equally important. I had to learnt that the hard way this last year. I cut out a lot of non-sense from life. Negative people on social media, TV Shows that engulfed my time, and even stopped buying single issue comics in mid- November. (Aghhh- That was hard).

All that to say: I’m ready for 2018. 2017 was a productive year writing wise for me- I got a lot of projects done and was able to focus more on completing specific task. 2018 however I plan on being a productive year for publishing. At least that’s the goal.

I have a full length post-apocalyptic novel coming out- a Novella- and a few short stories. No hard dates have been set yet- But the plan is early Summer and another one in the Fall.

The writing gig is tough, and success is far from guaranteed. But you keep churning away because it’s the only thing some of us are any good at.

So, going into 2018 I have a few goals. I obviously plan to continue my obsession with using twitter, (Maybe I’ll get 10,000 tweets this year instead of 7,500) I plan to write the sequel to my post-apocalyptic book, attend Realm Makers in St Louis, and possibly refine my plans for taking over the world.

Regardless- I’m ready. 2017 was great, and I enjoyed it, and got a lot done.

So here they are: The top ten things I did in 2017 (No Particular Order) 

1- Attended Realm Makers in Reno Nevada.

2- Celebrated 13 years of marriage to my incredible wife.

3- Bought and flipped a new house that we plan to live in for the next 30 years.

4- Wrote the 1st draft to two novels, a novella, and a few half a dozen short stories.

5- Started a Mastermind group with some of the best writers I know.

6- Stayed out of most political and culture discussions (a Big 2017 Goal for me)

7- Took my oldest son to see his first Star Wars film on the Big Screen.

8- Joined a Critique group with two fabulous Realmies.

9- Paid off 90% of our debt

10- Read the entire New Testament.

What about you? What did you accomplish this past year?

Today I’m excited to have my live interview with YA author Nadine Brandes. Nadine writes for Enclave Publishing and is about to release the third and final book in her “Out of Time Series: A Time to Rise.”

So I have spent a lot less time on Social Media as of late. Not because I’m depressed or anything- just trying to spend more time reading, writing, and not worried about being present.

Regardless one thing is certain- I’ve become insanely jealous of my wife.

She has an unusual super power. Despite working full time, raising two toddlers, (well three if you count me) she manages to knock out at least two novels a week. Seriously – It takes me an average of fifteen days to sift through a 400-page book. But hey- She reads fast and I don’t. But that doesn’t stop me from plugging away on my TBR pile.

So at the moment I’m wrapping up Tosca Lee’s Progeny.

After that- I’m diving deep into a re-read of “The Out of Time series.”

I already have my advanced reader copy of book 3 and am Stoked about the end of this series. Nadine is a great writer friend and I’m excited to see how she wraps this series up.

I’ll be posting regular updates as I read through it on my blog and other social media channels as I can.

Anyway- What books are on your fall reading list…?