I should title 2022 The Year That Was Not after the UK 1960s satirical comedy show, The Week That Was. There David Frost, and others, lampooned political figures of the day. I should ridicule my year, and perhaps write a short guide, How Not to Follow Your Own Advice in 10 Easy Steps, in this blog post.

I’m not going to do that, although I will tell you how hard it is to follow your own advice, and how 2022 was a bit of a damp squib of a year for me.

The 2022 Business Plan

My Business Plan for 2022 was impressive. The output goals were based on my experiences of nearly ten years as a self-published author and on how productive I thought I could be. I now realize they were more than a little too ambitious. To say the least.

These were my goals for 2022:

Write and Publish 3 fiction books:

An Island Heatwave Book 6 in Love on the Island Series

Christmas Lapland Romance stand-alone novel

Book 1 in a new fiction series

Workbooks: Write Your Story, Write in Another Language, Write Every Day
Audiobooks: Write Your Story, Write in Another Language, Write Every Day
1 new non-fiction book: How to Self-publish in 10 Easy Steps
Start a podcast
Write a blog post per week for helenahalme.com and selfpublishingcoach.co.uk
Send weekly newsletters to Helena’s Readers Group and Self Publishing Tips sign-ups

Apart from the weekly newsletters and roughly monthly blog posts, all I managed to write in 2022 was a rough manuscript of An Island Heatwave, a novel which I had already started writing in 2021. I didn’t, however, publish it.

I did publish an audio version of Write Your Story in 10 Easy Steps with Google Play, although my plan had been to self-narrate the book and publish it on Amazon’s Audible platform. (Sadly they do not – yet – accept AI-narrated books). Hence, it’s a steal at only $2.99.

Covid and Lockdowns

The reason I was so optimistic about the prospects for 2022, was that during the previous two years, and the various lockdowns because of the Covid pandemic, I increased my writing speed and productivity. At first, it was difficult. The world, it seemed, was becoming unhinged. Everything was closing down, and people were dying by their thousands, hundreds of thousands and eventually, millions.

As a writer with a vivid imagination, the situation was unimaginable. Many of us authors closed down. Luckily, my paralysis was very brief. My inability to write in the early stages of the first lockdown in 2020 was mainly due to the physical restrictions of suddenly having to work in a small space with my husband. He heads an industry body in the UK and spent most of his lockdowns in Zoom meetings and on podcasts. I’d been used to a silent home office…

Once I started using noise-cancelling headphones, however, my creativity returned, and I was back to writing every day.

Many people went crazy because they had to stay at home all the time, but I’d been working from home for years. Plus, we had our submarine patrol routine, and I was so happy because I was left alone to write as much as I wanted.

Don't get me wrong, I did miss seeing other people, family in particular. I also missed travel and towards the end of the last lockdown (I hope and pray it was the last one!), I would have travelled to the South Pole just to get out of the UK.

In-Person Events Take Time

After two years of lockdowns, in 2022 I threw myself into travel and 'in-person' events. (There wasn't even such an expression before Covid!)

In addition to seeing family and friends, I went to Africa, on a disastrous holiday to Cap Verde (read all about it here). In March there was a convention in San Diego, after which we took a couple of days off to enjoy California afterwards.

The London Book Fair in April was a hugely enjoyable and much-missed literary event. However, I'm now certain I contracted Omicron at the fair. It was a bad infection, which took nearly a month to recover from. In May, my lovely sister came to visit us from Sweden, a trip that has been in the planning for nearly three years.

There were a few more literary events in the summer, although I spent most of it in Finland, in a cottage by a lake, which was heavenly.

When I returned to my normal London life in August, I realised I’d hardly written a word of my manuscript all year. I threw myself into work, only to be interrupted by yet another holiday that had been in the planning for years. My sister and I went to Madeira on a trip to honour our father, who passed away in 2019.

What I had forgotten is how long all these 'in-person' events and travel take. There's all the preparation and the recovery. A case in point is LBF. The fair took nearly a month out of my working life. That was a bit unusual, of course.

Having said all that, I wouldn't have it any other way. Meeting new and old friends, and travelling, feed the soul. For a writer, they are a necessity. Where else would all the plot ideas and characters stem from, if not one's experiences? There is only so much you can mine from your dreams alone. (I am planning to write books set in San Diego, Cap Verde, and Madeira.)

The last quarter of the year, when I’d finally settled down to a proper writing routine, and tried to achieve some of the goals I’d set down for 2022, brought some devastating news. Both my husband and I lost a close family member to cancer. In November we attended two funerals in the same week thousands of kilometres apart.

I’ve Learned Something

The Year That Was Not has, however, taught me something: changes affect my productivity, and getting back to everyday life after the Covid pandemic has been a huge change, as I’m certain it has been for many people around the world..

I also realize that writing an ending is always hard. As the last instalment in the Love on the Island Series, my new book was always going to be a little harder to write, but there have also been other factors at play with the trials and tribulations of writing An Island Heatwave.

One thing is certain, it hasn't been easy.

Last year has also taught me that I need to be less ambitious with my writing and publication goals. Sure, I’d love to publish four or five titles a year, start a new podcast, write two weekly blog posts, and send two lots of newsletters per week, but I just can’t do it all.

Taking Your Own Advice

As I look toward the next twelve months and set out my goals for 2023, I’ll try to take my own advice. I will try to write every day even if it is just 500 words on my current manuscript.

I’ll also try not to be too ambitious.

The reason I became a self-published author in the first place was to have more time for my family. At the time, I knew little of how all-consuming writing, publishing and marketing your own books are.

Still, my family is my priority and I need to remember that, and not feel guilty about dropping everything to look after my granddaughter or spend time with my sister.

I also love accompanying my husband to events and conferences. I’ve made many friends through his job and although my own career is hugely important to me, I also enjoy supporting him as he supports me. (He’s my first reader)

Over to You

For me, 2022 turned out to be a fallow year, but with a sharp learning curve. How has your year been? Have you met your goals, or even surpassed them? Or did you struggle like me?

Use the comment box below and start the conversation!