• By Mike Rumble,  http://rumblesrumblings.wordpress.com/

    Well, that’s it. Gone. Adiós. Au revoir! Three hundred and sixty-five days later at the stroke of midnight, 2018 is gone in a puff of smokeand gives way to 2019, a new year with a new beginning.

    The great thing about January 1st is that we get to ask ourselves the question, “How was the year for me?” It allows us to look back at the year now behind us and learn from its successes and failures so that the year ahead of us doesn’t become a repeat performance. I’ve heard some say that 2018 was a great year; I’ve also heard from a few (and I include myself in this group) who said that 2018 was a tough year…a very tough year. But as a dear friend of mine said to me as I was preparing to move from Canada to the United States years ago, “Write your bad memories into a running river and don’t watch them as they float away.” For those who said that 2018 was a tough year, I offer the same advice: write all the bad memories into a running river and then turn your back on it.

    As writers we have to do the same, looking at the year gone by and asking ourselves the very same question from a writing perspective, “How was my year as a writer?” I can only speak for myself and say that it wasn’t a very good year. Situations came along that took my focus from the things that are most important, and most enjoyed by me. Again, this is where a new year is a great thing; rather than dwell on what was, I’m looking at 2019 as the year of a “no repeat performance” of 2018. I encourage you to do the same. 

    For us Taffies, 2019 couldn’t look any better. Our monthly meetings at Milton’s will resume on Wednesday, January 23rd, and on the horizon, we have an absolutely amazing conference to look forward to! Our keynote speakers are locked in, the schedule has been set, the tracks are ready, and in a few weeks, registration will open!

    The one thing that remains constant year after year is our never ending support of each other’s writing endeavors! We will always be behind you, encouraging you to write that query letter, follow up on that submission, and go after that new market that you’ve always wanted to take a swing at. With the start of this new year, you now have a new blank sheet in your journal or a blank white screen up on your computer, so here we ask you the question, “Are you going to fill that blank screen with something? Or just stare at it?” Success is yours for the taking!

    Mike Rumble is a Career Services Specialist and certified resume writer at MyComputerCareer by day, and a freelance writer/stage actor by night. He takes great pride that he’s been told he resembles a younger version of Robin Williams!