Lately I’ve been making wise decisions. I haven’t been gaming, I’ve limited myself to one episode of TV a night and I’ve been cutting back on social media. All of this is to become laser focused on my writing.

When I set out a few years ago and paid for my first online writing course with the Australian Writers’ Centre, I figured the what was the worst that could happen? I could only get better, right? Well, I took one course, then another and then found myself investing more into my writing than ever before.

That lovely bloke a few years back was a decent writer, but he was doing everything but write. It’s only been the past two years where I’ve really begun to submit to publishers, agents and competitions. In fact, let me sum up my past few years.

• Joined in with my pitch for #PitMad and managed to get an agent to request my first 50 pages. She was encouraging and told me to continue submitting to others! This was my first major win since actually finishing the manuscript!
• Submitted to over a dozen competitions in the past year alone. #FuriousFiction with the AWC above has been my favourite thus far.
• Had a face-to-face chat where an editor (Zoe Walton of Penguin Random House) told me my writing was great and we came to the conclusion my story is more geared toward Adults than YA.
• Submitted a novella to Tor (only 236 in the queue, submitted last August). The novella itself is about a young prince who falls in love with the prince from a neighbouring kingdom and then returns from exile to reclaim his birthright. A bit out of my comfort zone (Romance? Gay Romance? Love Scenes?!) but at the end I fell in love with the story and I hope they do too.
• Took Neil Gaiman’s Masterclass which was superb and I highly recommend it.
• Wrote a retelling of the Three Little Pigs as if it were a crime article. It is a few posts back for your enjoyment.
• Reached almost 1k followers on Twitter. I clearly favour it despite my love for my Instagram (which is entirely full of dog photos and following all the celeb pups).
• Submitted to the KYD first Spec Fic competition. I got rejected, but I just wish I knew why.
• Submitted to the Grieve Anthology competition through the Hunter’s Writers’ Centre. Should find out in August if my extremely sad short story “The Beach” (Formerly “Summer’s Lament”) will find a second life.
• Drove a four hour round trip to have a thirty minute chat with the incredibly talented Valerie Khoo. She answered all my questions and more, which means as soon as I’m done this project I’ll be diving back into my manuscript where I will live until someone decides to publish it. #WorthIt
• Also, seeing Garth Nix and V.E. Schwab tomorrow in Sydney which will be amazing. Super excited to see two talented writers in conversation. Also, books!
• Designed my own business card for now and it doesn’t look like garbage. Pretty happy with it to be honest!
• Joined a second writers’ group which is online only, but I’d say I found my people. They are critical and kind, honest and funny and most of all devoted to the craft. If any of them read this, know that I’m already eternally grateful for being welcomed in.

Those are just a few things. This doesn’t mention the three writers’ festivals I want to go to, the competitions I’m looking to enter and how much I’ve begun to completely surround myself with reading and writing.

At times, it may feel like I’m drowning in words… but in the eternal words of the great philosopher named Dory, “Just keep swimming! Just keep swimming! Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming!”