I’m so happy to be here helping to celebrate Mundie Moms first birthday! Hurrah!! *tosses confetti around* What a fantastic year it’s been - thanks MMs for everything!
It’s a well known fact in my family that I’m a huge fan of celebrating pretty much anything and everything. Sell a book? Celebrate! Get a good day writing done? Celebrate! Get any writing done? Celebrate! Get out of bed? Celebrate!
Sometimes I feel like it’s so easy to set goals for ourselves and then achieve the goal and never mark the occasion. Too often we just nod our heads (if even that) and then move the goal posts even farther away. We never congratulate ourselves for sticking to our goals, for achieving milestones and for making it to the end.
And if we never mark our achievements and give ourselves pats on the back then everything just starts to feel like this never-ending slog towards an impossible end. This can eventually lead to the loss the joy of writing (whether you write books, reviews, blogs, essays, journal, etc).
I’m not saying you can boot up a blank word document and stare at it for twenty minutes day after day and call yourself done. There is a point at which we do legitimately have to move goalposts in order to stretch and grow, but I think before we do that we need to celebrate the moment.
Celebrate blogging for a year and building a fantastic community. Revel in the friendships built and the accomplishments. Recognize all the steps along the way and smile, knowing you’re one step farther along the path you’ve chosen.
As for me, I’m celebrating the release of my second book, The Dead-Tossed Waves by spending a long weekend out of town with my fiancĂ© before I head out on tour for a few weeks. How do you like to celebrate your accomplishments? Leave a comment or come say hello in person during my tour (details here: http://carrie-me.blogspot.com/2009/03/dead-tossed-waves-tour-page.html) and let me know!
And Congratulations Mundie Moms on a fabulous year and thanks for letting me be a part of it! - Carrie Ryan