Pay Attention to your successes!

 As part of Julie Hedlund’s 12 Days of Christmas for Writers, I had the opportunity to reflect on my successes in 2018.  As I worked on this exercise it struck me that I had put out into the universe what I wanted—to be a published author and an entrepreneur (with the eventual goal of being my own boss), financial security to write, to inspire kids and youth, to share my knowledge and be mentored—and it answered!
I thought I was failing when in reality I just haven’t been paying attention to my successes:

1. I applied for a literary arts grant for my current work in progress (a contemporary YA novel with a touch of mystery). And although I wasn’t selected, my book was flagged as highly recommended for support (which means I may still get funding down the road but who cares my project was recommended!!!!!).
2. I launched an Inventors Club at my local library and not only was the program successful but I have been hired to run the program by the very people that inspired the club in the first place! In 2019, I’ll be running the club at 4 libraries plus will have an opportunity to run an adult workshop here and there.
3.  Debut Picture Book Study group,  which  I started with my critique partner in March 2014, has grown to over 800 members. Since its inception, we have averaged one study about every 6 weeks followed by a live interview with the author.  I have learned a ton from this group!
4. Small tweaks are everything. I put my stories in a place I could see them every day, which has led to spending more time on my work (advice I learned from one of the live author interviews).
5. I created and taught a multimedia journalism course to a group of grade 8 students in which some of them got published! Plus, I wrote a grant to get the necessary technology for the course. I got to present my findings at an annual tech conference this past October.
6. I continued to offer a lunchtime Write Club for students but renamed it to Storytellers Club in order to allow for all types of story creators.
7. My proposal The Interactive Library was selected for the Library Association of Alberta’s big time conference in Jasper (happening in April 2019).
8. I made a connection with one of my professors. She has been instrumental in reminding me of my potential, but also moving forward is happy to act as a mentor.
9. Ran #PBHOT62 (a summer reading challenge for picture books writers) for a second year. While this challenge hasn’t taken off, it has been so much fun doing it myself plus I made a new writer friend in the process! I have learned a lot of my online friends (even non-writers) have enjoyed my #PBHOT62 posts.
10. Got a Rate Your Story 2019 membership as a birthday present but also as a commitment to my writing.  I promptly sent off my bonus Dec. 2018 submission.
11. I read a lot (picture books, YA and MG, and a handful of memoirs).
12. I became a partial business owner of Big Bend Collectibles, which I helped launch this past May.
13. I submitted the first page of my YA novel to a live action slush panel in which an author I highly admire was on (Arthur Slade), and the panel enjoyed my first page!
14. I submitted a story to Chicken Soup for the Soul, as well as, three proposals for paying blog gig with my local city (will hear back in 2019).
15. I submitted a handful of poems to Poetry in Transit. My work wasn’t picked but writing those poems reignited my passion for poetry.
16. I applied to be part of the WriteOnCon 2019  blog team and was accepted. My posts so far have been very well received!
17.  I held my critique partner's debut picture book MAXIMILLIAN VILLAINOUS in my hands and got to read it to my story time kiddos. Margaret did all the hard work but so cool to be part of her journey!
18. I wanted kiddos at my school to have access to creative professionals but had ZERO budget. So through grants and research, I brought in 3 authors, 1 author/illustrator, and 2 poets in the span of one year! The kiddos benefited big time.
    
19. I applied for a writing mentorship through my local writers guild. I didn’t receive a spot so I researched other mentorship opportunities and discovered several options (working on my applications now).
    
20. I MADE A CHANGE AND IT WAS SO HARD BUT I DID IT ANYWAYS!!!!!  I cried for weeks. I felt like a horrible and selfish person for leaving my school library job and accepting a communications position. BUT this job will allow for me grow as a storyteller and learn new skills (such as creating video stories), be mentored, finish my degree by May 2019 (instead of in 2021) while providing financial stability.
    

WOWZA!!!! Thanks Julie for encouraging me to share my SUCCESSES. I would love to hear about your successes in the comments below or leave me a link to your blog.

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