2025 Wrap-Up

It feels like only a few weeks have gone by since I posted my writing goals for 2025. Yet, here we are at the precipice of 2026.

Before we go charging into the new year, however, I first have to wrap up the current one.

Things didn't always go according to plan when it came to my writing. In a lot of ways, that might have been for the best.

Past end-of-year posts have been broken up into segments, assessing each goal set back in January. This time around, I think a reflective, rambling thought dump fits the vibe a little better.

My main objective in terms of fiction was continuing the redirection of A Tided Love, my seaside second-chance romance WIP. Past Avril knew well enough to know that completing the first draft by the end of the year was going to be unrealistic between everything that needed to get rewritten and replotted for the nth time, but she was also optimistic in saying she was aiming for the 75% mark because "life can be unpredictable."

At the time of drafting this post, I've finished writing the current draft of Act I, putting me closer to the 25% mark. Not a huge dent, nowhere near that 75%, but it's still good. I feel good about what I have written so far. It feels stronger than previous iterations of the story.

It's important to recognize that a lot of my progress was "soft writing." Things like brainstorming and embracing the stillness so I could hear my intuition a little better. The outline I spent weeks trying to perfect has gone out the window, which initially felt like a setback until I gave myself permission to trust my Pantser side again.

There's also the matter of balancing my writing with work at the escape room, navigating a chronic illness, participating in a medical research study regarding that chronic illness that had me making the trek to the other side of the state twice a week, and the fact that my preference for writing my first drafts by hand is a slower process.

As writers, we often get so caught up in word counts that we overlook other forms of progress. Not all progress is that concrete.

Speaking of quantity vs quality, let's talk about reading!

One of my main goals going into 2025 was to read for quality over quantity. To focus more on reading for enjoyment than reading for accomplishment, if that makes sense. And things on that front started out solid. I've read significantly more this year than in the past (and learned to be okay with DNFing books along the way, too).

My biggest problem is that I'm a mood reader with a mile-long TBR (that keeps getting longer and longer), and I have a habit of reading multiple books at once. At the time of writing this post, I have In the Waves of Tristwick in eBook form, Slow Burn Summer as an audiobook, and The Lost Bookshop and The Scandalous Confessions of Lydia Bennet, Witch as physical reads. Not to get too ahead of myself in this post, but one of the things I'll be working on in 2026 is sticking to two reads at most: one physical book and one audiobook.

Things were fairly low-key for the blog, outside of finally checking off a few maintenance tasks I'd been putting off. Just like I did in 2024, I shifted to a biweekly upload schedule for the summer to accommodate seasonal hours at the escape room, but only for July and August this time around. Even though I mentioned that I wasn't planning to take that step back when I was setting my goals in January, I'm glad I did, and I think it might be something I implement going forward—especially with something new being added to my writer's plate in the form of a new project and having been promoted to keyholder status at work.

My writing isn't the only area I've seen personal growth in: towards the end of 2024, I was formally diagnosed with ADHD after years of tamped-down suspicion. In 2025, I wanted to focus on learning to work with ADHD rather than against it. It's been a lot of trial and error, especially in terms of figuring out meds and doses and such. As of right now, I think I'm starting to get into a decent groove but don't feel completely settled in. The thing they don't tell you is how long it can take to sort things out. A diagnosis isn't a magic wand that solves everything with a flick of the wrist. It's just a starting point.

Social media still kind of overwhelms me a tad. BUT I did connect with some new writerly internet friends this year, and I am so grateful for them. I do feel like I've come out of my shell a little more, which I'm hoping continues into the new year.

2025's wrap-up post might lack the structure of previous years', but that's actually incredibly appropriate. A lot of my progress, both writing and personal, has been learning to be okay with throwing plans out the window and embracing whatever the moment has to offer.

Truth be told, this was my most successful year in a while. Many of those achievements aren't apparent upon first glance, but they are worthy of celebration all the same.

I'll see you on the other side of midnight, reader! Until then, allow me to wish you a Happy New Year.