I remember the moment I decided to be an author. After attending an online writing conference, I was inspired. I knew deep down that this was more than a fad—that somehow, I was stepping into what I was made to do. That was the beginning of this crazy yet incredibly fulfilling journey of writing that I’m still a little new to.

There was one issue, however: I didn’t understand realistic goal setting.

I naturally assumed that if I wanted to be a writer, the first thing I was supposed to do was write a novel. Just two months into writing seriously, I decided to give National Novel Writing Month a shot— I tackled the daunting challenge of writing 50,000 words in a month (all of those words in just one project). 

I finished with my 50,000 words, plus a messy partially ended story with more plot holes and inconsistencies than I could count. 

That really got me down. 

I was so overwhelmed, frustrated, and totally burnt out.

Where did I go wrong? Although I couldn’t see it then, now I can pinpoint exactly what happened: I didn’t know how to set realistic goals. 

My intentions were good, my long term goals were also good, but my way of getting there certainly wasn’t. 

I want to help you avoid some of these mistakes that I made as an over-confident baby writer, so here are my tips on setting realistic goals as a writer!

Know where you want to be 10 years from now

Like in the game of chess, you need to envision the endgame before you move your first piece. You play with the end in mind, and every move you make is pushing yourself closer to the goal: getting your opponent’s king in checkmate. 

It’s the same way with writing— you have to be looking ahead at what is to come, so that you can be effective and deliberate with everything you do. 

For example, ten years from now, I want to be a published author who is making enough royalties from my books (and potentially other book related products) to pay for my basic needs/wants. I would also love to mentor young writers—I have such a heart for teaching!

With that in mind, I’m working on taking small steps to get there—consistently setting aside time to write, utilizing my resources so that I can learn the writing craft, gaining experience by writing books, articles, short stories, etc.. 

I can effectively plan my course of action since I know where I want to be going. 

So, your first thing to do is decide where you want to be long term. Then, you can work from the end up!

After that, look at what you see for yourself five years from now. All of this planning and dreaming will help you in the long run!

Know where you want to be 1 year from now

Here we’re narrowing it down to smaller goals. These are the ones that are directly influenced by the decisions we make now. Whereas there’s more room for changes and mistakes to happen over the course of ten and five years, one year goals—and getting there—is something we’re more in control of. 

A year from now, I plan on having at least one novel written and I want to be able to share my blog posts with more people. I’m keeping my goals here a little more loose— I’m open to whatever the Holy Spirit wants to do with my writing. 

Maybe God will ask me to write a nonfiction book after I finish my current novel, or step away from book writing for a season and focus on my blog. Or perhaps I’ll enter a season of my life where I need to set aside focused writing for a time and just get to know Him. 

I want to make it abundantly clear that my goals and plans may change completely, and I’m okay with that. The important thing right now is that I’m working toward something. If I’m standing still, it’ll do no good for God to just point me in the right direction. 

Because I’d just turn and look.

But if I’m walking down a wrong path, God can show me which turns to take and where He wants me to go—I just have to start.

So just start with something and be okay with the fact that things may not go exactly as planned. There’s nothing wrong with that.

While it’s definitely important to have some goals so that you can proactively work toward them, it’s also important to leave open space for the Holy Spirit to work. As my friend Laura Boone once said, “God is such a good co-writer, isn’t he?” 

Think about how you can proactively work toward those goals 

This is where you stop and think about where you are in your writing right now. Are you working toward your goals? Are you being proactive? Are you using excuses to procrastinate or are you putting in the effort to see the labor of your hard work come into existence? As the author Bethany Klassen said when I interviewed her, “Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.”

This is so true! It’s important to remember that we need to put in the hard work of reaching our goals if we want to stop being just dreamers and instead make those dreams reality.

Challenge yourself to look at your goals— both long term and short— and then start making steps in those directions today.

If your plan is to learn to self-publish, start researching! If you’re dreaming of writing that novel that’s been floating around in your head, then bite the bullet and set aside time each day to make it happen. If you’ve been meaning to launch your blog, by all means just go for it and see what God will do! (That’s what I did).

The biggest factor at play in whether or not you’ll reach your dreams is your level of commitment to seeing them become reality.

Get people involved in your journey

It’s really important to let the people around you know what your writing means to you. I had a long + in-depth discussion with my parents about a year ago, where we talked about my short term and long term goals as a writer. Then, I told them how I thought they could help me get there. And they are.

Your parents and even siblings can help you reach your goals, and the chances are that they want to! 

Could it be that they just don’t know what writing means to you? Work on planning a time where you can talk with this person/people and tell them how you think they can help you work toward your dreams. 

This might look like asking for a block of time each day (or certain days) of uninterrupted time that you can dedicate to your writing related goals. Maybe you could ask if they’ll read some of your writing to give you feedback + show support, or talk about your writing with you on a regular basis.

I’m sure that there are people in your life who want to help you, they just might not know how. 

Remember your ultimate goal

We can have our ten, five, and one year goals, but what about our ultimate goal? The reason we even write in the first place? 

This is the absolute most important thing to keep on the forefront of your mind as you pursue writing. Whatever your goals may look like, whatever you dream of doing with your writing, it’ll all be meaningless if you don’t know why you write. 

Do you know why I write? My number one desire can be summed up by John 7:18: “He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who is seeking the glory of the One who sent Him, He is true, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.”

At the end of the day, I write to show people the truth of who God is. So many people misunderstand God and His will for our lives. They don’t know the fierceness of His love. They don’t understand that God uses the most unlikely of people, does the most unexpected things, and transforms lives radically, like He did for me. 

If you write for your own glory, it’ll all be meaningless. If you only want to make a name for yourself, it’ll all be empty. When you do things for God, however, He’ll fill your life with that passion and fulfillment that all people are craving. 

Don’t forget why you write. 

Definitely don’t forget Who you write for. 

On those hard days when you just don’t know how to push through as a writer, remember this: God has equipped you for every good work (Hebrews 13:21). If He has called you to be a writer, then this is a good work that He has already equipped you for. 

So… get out there and work toward your writing goals! I am cheering you on. <3

Your freebie!

Now you know the importance of setting different goals and taking steps to getting there— but how? 

I designed a worksheet to help you effectively set realistic goals for the New Year! Click here to get your free 2024 writing planner now. 

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I’d love to hear from you! What are some of your writerly goals for 2024? (And do you happen to thrive on planners as much as I do?). Do you have any writer friends who might be blessed by this post? Feel free to share this with them!