Last year I decided not to have any resolutions because I knew 2023 was going to be more exhausting and difficult than I ever had experienced because my first child was born on December 23, 2022. I didn’t want to set myself up for failure having no idea what to expect.
And I wasn’t wrong. Caring for an infant and also publishing my debut book in the same year was very hard, one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. I will never forget one month in after delivering my son, having to go through my proof pages while pumping, with my infant son next to me, none of us the least bit happy. Even as I’m writing this blog, I get about one sentence completed and then I have to get up and chase my now one-year-old son around so he doesn’t get himself into trouble.
But 2023 was very fulfilling for me in so many different ways. I finally have a day job that I love, my book baby has been out in the world for six months, and I have an adorable, giggly son. I also managed to eke out reading 86 books along the way, many of them 2023 debut books like my own.
2024 is also set to be an exciting year. My second book, a young adult superhero book called Superficial, releases September 24, 2024. I honestly can’t wait for people to read this book. It’s so different than my first book, and I’m anxious to hear what my family and friends think. I haven’t had as many of them read this beforehand so it will be a surprise for them!
I’m setting a few writing resolutions for myself this year, ones that will help my mental health. The first one is that I NEED to stay off Goodreads and Amazon. Reading reviews has not been helpful. I know not everyone is going to like my writing, and that’s totally fine, but I don’t need to see what they say about it. There are also people that ‘review bomb’ books (rating it one star), even before the book is out, just because the book and/or author is LGBTQ+ and/or BIPOC and this happened at least twice to my debut LGBTQ+ book, Does Love Always Win? Goodreads doesn’t do anything to police this, and since that is the case, I don’t want to support a platform that isn’t doing anything to protect their authors.
The second writing resolution I’m making for myself is to write what I enjoy. This year I had been writing what I thought I should write, and it just wasn’t fun. Then I finally started writing a story that I’ve been wanting to write, something different, adult, and dark. Now I am finally having fun again, and that’s what really matters. If I’m having fun writing, it will show and be more likely to resonate with readers.
For a personal resolution, I want to keep up more with family and friends. This year it was hard to do with all that had been going on with a baby and my book, but I want to do better this coming year. As I was writing this blog post, I got some sad news about a beloved family member, and I’m just glad I had gotten to speak to her on her birthday. I wish I could have seen her recently, but sadly things don’t always work out the way we want them. You just never know what could happen, so I want to do a better job at keeping up with people that matter.
Thank you all for your support of my writing and hope you have a Happy New Year.
Diane Billas 