2014 Goals... and Cats

Goals are a good thing. They keep you focused. And accountable. Maybe that's why I don't set many goals. Because then, if I eff up, I won't feel guilty. No. No - goals are a good thing. Especially when it comes to blogging.

I set goals for 2013. Let's see how I did:

1. Blog redesign - Yup. I did this in February. My new design made my blog look so much more professional. I've had to deal with some quirks, but all-in-all, it was a fantastic decision.

2. Daily weekday posts - I've missed two weekday posts this year - one in January on the day my family was flying home from our Disney vacation, and one just last week on Christmas day. Not too bad.

3. Author interviews - I still haven't done too many of these. I think in 2013 I did three.

4. Book tours - Holy mama, have I embraced blog tours. I do four or five a month (I have seven scheduled for January!) now.

5. More giveaways - Oh yeah. Blog tours help with that, but I did a bunch of my own this year, as well as participated in several giveaway hops.

6. Adopt a meme and stick with it - Top Ten Tuesday was my meme of choice, and I've only missed a few Tuesdays the entire year.

7. Develop a Facebook page - Check. I actually started that in December 2011. And, I now have almost 700 fans. <3

8. Cross-post reviews on Goodreads and Amazon - I'm doing much, much better with this one. I struggled still with a good workflow in the first half of the year, but I think I have it down now. Nearly all my reviews are posted on GR, Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

9. Get organized - All my posts go live at midnight. I Tweet and Facebook them every morning before 9 a.m. I now keep a daily planner to keep track of my commitments. Call me Ms. Organization.

10. Get to know my fellow bloggers - I still don't comment on as many other blog posts, Tweets and Facebook messages as I would like. Sometimes (hell, most times) there just aren't enough hours in the day. But I do engage in this more often than I did last year. And yes. I did make it to BEA. And it was EPIC.

So, what about goals for 2014? 

1. More of the same - The goals I set for myself for 2013 were good goals. I want to keep doing what I'm doing. I'll keep up with the daily weekday posts (weekends are reserved for my family, though), do more author interviews, stick with Top Ten Tuesday - these are all good things.

2. Add ads - Sorry guys. I know this is probably not the best news for you, but it'll really help this girl out. As my habit grows, I need to find a way to fund it. Many blogs have ads on them. I would guess mine will be one of them soon. I'm still investigating the best way to do it without it being too obtrusive for you, though.

3. Attend more events - I attended some pretty awesome events in 2013. I met some amazing authors. It's one of my most favorite things to do. In January and February 2014 alone, I already have plans to see Maria V. Snyder, Brigid Kemmerer and Jeaniene Frost. And yes - I am going back to BEA. I'm so excited, I could pee my pants.

4. Help organize a blog event - I participated in several blog events this year - New Adult Readathon, Netgalley November and 25 Days of Book Boyfriends to name a few. I'd love to get in on organizing some of these cool events. They're a super fun way to engage the blogging community.

5. Chillax - I must admit - blogging became a bit of an obsession for me in 2013. As mentioned, I missed only two weekday posts. I posted over 290 posts - that's more than one per weekday. I was focused on hitting that 1,000 follower mark, And, I've done that now. So, I'd really like to just take some time to remind myself why I started blogging in the first place. To talk about books with people who get me. To meet cool people. To have fun. I don't want this to be a job - I have one of those already. Plus, I'm a wife and a mom. Blogging and reading is my spare time activity. Not that you don't deserve consistency. But, if I miss a day here or there - no big.

So, there you have it. Goals ARE a good thing. What are yours?