Setting The Goals

[smallhobbit]

So, the time has come to set some new goals:

Goal No 1: As suggested by canonisrelative, Carry on writing all the things.  Although I feel I should perhaps stretch myself a bit.  I have 26 badges thanks to fan_flashworks and will obviously continue to work for more.  Back when I was considering last year's wordage I decided against signing up for getyourwordsout and aim for 150,000 words.  I think it was right not to sign up - the stress would have been too high, but aiming for that number seems quite a good idea.  I'm about 5,000 words down on where I should be by now, but I think it's feasible.

Also, when I chose my goals last year I said I couldn't see myself going outside fanfic.  Now I'm starting to think that perhaps I could.  A few months ago there was a request in comment_fic for original fiction "First kiss".  I wrote this:

Tom had felt drawn to Ollie from the first time they’d met; they moved in similar circles, so it had seemed natural that they continued to meet up with each other.  And then tonight, when Ollie had said he was heading back to the Tube, Tom had plucked up his courage to say it was time he left too, so would go with him and Ollie had smiled back.

They walked slowly along, side by side, impervious to people walking passed them.  Tom put his hand on Ollie’s arm and when Ollie stopped, turned towards him to give him a quick kiss.  They were sufficiently close to the Tube that if he had misunderstood Ollie’s interest a short walk and they could go their separate ways.  He needn’t have worried; Ollie returned the kiss and they continued their walk arms round each other, the excuse of getting the Tube no longer needed.

And then last week there was the following prompt "Couple A & B are out on a date and someone says something rude/cruel about gay love to person A, hurting their feelings. Person B defends their love and then comforts person A" and I wrote about Tom and Ollie again:

Tom and Ollie hadn’t known each other for very long, so Ollie was thrilled when Tom had told him he’d booked a table at a certain restaurant.  Ollie walked past the restaurant quite often in the course of his work and had always thought how much he would like to go there; whilst the downstairs room was bright and cheerful with tables for groups, the upstairs room was subtly lit with tables for two and looked incredibly romantic.  Ollie had mentioned his wish in passing on one occasion, little believing that Tom would remember, so when Tom told him they had a reservation he was excited.

They had finished the soup and were waiting for the main course to be served, when the woman at the next table turned to Ollie and said, “I don’t know why you’re at that table.  It’s incredibly hard to get a reservation and you’re stopping a proper couple from being here.”

Ollie looked at her.  “But we are a couple,” he said.

She looked disdainfully at him.  “I meant,” she paused for emphasis, “a man and a woman.”

Ollie looked down at the floor, his enjoyment at being in the restaurant draining away.

Tom glared at the woman.  “Since there are two of us, we are indeed a couple.  We chose to celebrate the love we feel for each other by coming here and enjoying the romantic surroundings, without judging anybody else; something which unfortunately you seem unable to do.  Now, may I suggest you concentrate your attention on your own partner, rather than mine.”

Ollie looked up at Tom and gave him a small smile.  Tom smiled back.  He refilled their wine glasses and then lifted his up saying, “To the person who my thoughts turn to first thing in the morning and last thing at night.”

Which makes me think I might enjoy writing some of my own characters a bit more.  And then there's John Garrett, who appears in a number of my Lewis fics, and is all mine.  Plus Stanley Hopkins, who exists in my BBC Sherlock fics, as my creation.  So perhaps I should be stretching my wings a little more.

Goal No 2: Read more and more widely.  My last post provided 20 books from 9 of my flist, which is wonderful and I am very grateful for all your suggestions.  I have decided every month I shall aim to start a new book and take at least one suggestion from each person.  I do not guarantee to finish, because there may be something that completely doesn't work for me, but I will try.  At the moment I've started "The Master and Margarita" by Mikhail Bulgakov.

Goal No 3: As suggested by moonlightmead Moar theatre.  I particularly like this goal.  I am tempted by the Kenneth Branagh season, but tickets are either £65 or in the gods.