2026 writing goal

New year, same novel

Last year, I set intentions, not goals. Going into this year, I have a single goal:

Practice every day.

It’s like learning the piano. If you practice every day, few of those sessions will feel transcendent, but they all add up to being able to play.

Progress tracker made by Free Period Press. Their image, obviously — if it were mine it would be on a very messy dining room table. I got this at at Rooted in Rockford!

A few months back, I picked up this analog progress tracker made by Free Period Press. I’ve been saving it for January 1. My plan is simply to log the time I spend in my writing practice each day in 2026. By “in my writing practice” I mean:

• Working on the novel

• Reading for the novel

• Researching for the novel

• Journaling about the novel

• Writing short stories

• Writing essays

Ideally I can find an hour each day, but if it’s less, I’ll show up and I’ll log it and we’ll call it better than nothing.

Writing, lately

I tried the interior mapping technique I mentioned in my last letter, and it didn’t work for my project. Moving on.

I spent the month of December reworking my first chapter based on a very good note from my agent, and I am MUCH happier with it.

Reading, lately

The last novel I read was Liars by Sarah Manguso. Now I’m doing a very slow read of Women Who Run with the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estés.

I need a good novel! What are we reading?

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My last event of this book pub year was at personal velocity ☆, which is a GEM of a reading series run by Katie Bennett — I highly recommend checking it out if you are in Philadelphia. Jiordan Castle read from her essay in What My Father And I Don’t Talk About and Lauren Holguin read from two gorgeous works in progress. The Head and The Hand is such a great bookstore. Warm vibes all around.

I don’t remember if this photo came from Katie’s phone or Jiordan’s phone, but photo credit to one of these fine ladies

And Leave made the Chicago Review of Books Best Debuts of 2025 list! I didn’t expect to make any year-end lists with a book that came out in February, so very grateful to be included. (Speaking of year-end lists, I was a reviewer for the 100 Notable Small Press Books of 2025 list published on Lit Hub and no one will be surprised that I recommended Erica Stern’s Frontier. Read it!)

Finally, I recently had the absolute pleasure of talking to Ben Tanzer for his podcast, This Podcast Will Change Your Life. Ben is a joy and his podcast is a gift and this was another lovely way to end my book pub year.

What trying to write a novel this year has felt like.

I don’t have a good plan for achieving my 2026 writing goal, other than wake up really early and do the damn thing. Keep going, keep going, keep going. Trust that putting care and attention into a private art project is a good use of one’s life, no matter the outcome. (I do believe this.)

Do you have a goal, intention, or resolution for the new year? I would love to hear it so I can cheer you on.

Love,
Shayne