[Warning: this is going to be a long post!]

Well, here we are in the last days of 2021 — and in the middle of the Twelve Days of Christmas. (I think people get confused about when the twelve days fall, but I promise, it’s not before Christmas — it’s after! Traditionally, the twelve days are the time between the birth of Jesus and the arrival of the wise men.) I find it can be a bittersweet time where part of me wants the holidays to continue (we waited so long for them, after all!) and part of me wants to rest, and part of me’s ready for the new year to start.

To honor all that, I decided to take a look at the past year and tally up some lessons — and some gifts — that have come from trying out this whole “author/blog” thing. 🙂 In no particular order (except maybe the first one):

In these twelve days of Christmas, I am grateful for . . .

1. Kind People on the Internet 🙂

Right off the bat, I have to acknowledge that at this time last year, “Elle Hartford” as a website/author “brand”/social media presence was only a twinkle in the back of my mind. I launched the website last January, and Instagram, Facebook, and all the rest followed. So I will always be incredibly grateful for the folks who have found and followed such new, unproven accounts!

2. DIY MFA

During the spring and summer, I took a course on social media and marketing from DIY MFA. (They’re an awesome resource and I do recommend checking them out if you’re interested in writing and publishing!) While the classes and handouts were invaluable, I think the real benefit of taking the course was just showing to myself that I was willing to invest in this new career.

3. Lists!

I’ve always been a religious list- and planner-user, but this year I’ve taken that to new levels. And in fact, I’m taking it to another level next year, what with actually having a “goal board” on my wall to keep track of everything I want to — and need to — do! Sometimes the actual list doesn’t really help, but writing things down so that they’re out of my head definitely does.

4. Self-Appointed Deadlines

This is a second half to “lists,” and it’s both a blessing and a curse. A blessing because it keeps me organized and helps me prioritize, a curse because it’s too easy to set too many and take them all way too seriously. More than once this year, I’ve had to erase a task from my schedule that I’d set for myself — writing a short story for a magazine, creating social media content, etc. But setting and hitting deadlines is also a way to generate positive “feedback” in otherwise solitary work, so I’ll keep at it!

5. Books

I’ve found some really wonderful resources on writing and publishing in the past year. Successful Self-Publishing by Joanna Penn and the Indie Publishing Handbook by Heather Day Gilbert are both small, inexpensive books that have been very instructional — particularly because they cover aspects of marketing, which is an author’s responsibility these days whether they publish traditionally or not.

6. And More Books

This year I really dove into the cozy mystery genre with more purpose than ever before, reading “comp” titles (books similar to my own for purposes of querying and marketing) and reading books to learn. This has been great — it’s one of the biggest pieces of advice for writers you’ll find anywhere, and it’s enjoyable, honestly — but also . . . sometimes it sucks. Sometimes you find a book that’s been edited poorly or plotted a bit thinly or just, in general, doesn’t feel like it was written with the care that you — the student — put into your books. But this book got an agent, you think, and mine’s just been rejected by four more this week. That’s the reality of publishing: there’s always better and worse books, and sometimes it seems like they get picked for representation at random. It can make it difficult to enjoy reading in the same way as before.

On the flip side, though, when I find myself thinking those resentful thoughts while reading — or despairing thoughts, too, because the book in my hands seems so much better than mine! — that’s when I know that I need a break from the querying/marketing/editing process.

7. And on That Note: Rest

I believe in balance — balancing work and life, for example. A big one this year has been balancing work and rest, especially since I do have ongoing commitments (like this blog, or a newsletter, or posting on social media). It’s hard, when you’re essentially self-employed, to know what is the right amount of rest or how much work you “should” be doing. I’ve seen a lot of people set work hours for themselves, and I have done that too — however, my other jobs (working for a museum, doing social media work) are also variable, and life doesn’t respond well to set hours. 🙂 I generally err on the side of “too little rest” and feeling guilty when I do have downtime. That’s why this year, this December, I’ve tried really hard to slow down — just to see how that feels, and if my work benefits. (Spoiler: it definitely does!)

8. Community: Instagram

I’m someone who hasn’t posted on my personal Facebook or twitter in years, so it feels trite to say that I really like the author community on Instagram. “It’s not real,” the traditionalist in me wants to say. Au contraire! The people I’ve met on Instagram have sent me Christmas cards and signed books, bookmarks and surprise gifts. They’ve fallen in love with my characters and cheered on my choices. And I’ve done the same for them! 🙂 This community has brought light and fun into an endeavor that might otherwise be overwhelmed with confusion, exhaustion, and rejection letters.

9. More Community: Conferences

This year I went to Sleuthfest, Killer Nashville, and Crime Bake — all conferences for mystery writers. I’d been to academic conferences before, big and small, so I had a lot of ideas about what I should do: hand out business cards, talk to people in the bar, learn ALL the things. And I did do those things. But I think a lot of the benefit from going to those conferences was passive, too: seeing other people have the same conversations I do, being inspired by other authors’ swag, and just being present in this new-to-me field. There are a lot of things that I did in the past year that were shots in the dark, but going to conferences hit the mark, in my opinion.

10. So Much Community! Online Cozy Groups

The Cozy Mystery Book Club. The Cozy Mystery Library, and their Cozy Fairs. I’ve talked about these groups on this blog before, and the truth is, I love them! 🙂 I write more than just cozies — and I always will. But still, this genre has a special place in my heart because of the people who make such creative, generous contributions to their fellow readers.

11. Okay, One More Community: Sisters in Crime

Back at the start of the year, I joined both Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime. Both are great, national groups with local chapters — but to be honest, at first, Sisters in Crime was just an afterthought. Ha! SinC has been a truly positive influence in my year, not least because my first short story was published in one of their anthologies. 😀

12. Short Stories

This time two years ago, I didn’t think I could write short stories. To be honest, at this time two years ago, I didn’t think I could write mysteries, either. All my writing projects — and there were many — were long, epic fantasies and contemporary coming-of-age stories that hid in the bowels of my computer and in ancient, dog-eared notebooks. But now, because of short stories, I can officially own the title “author.”

Perhaps this twelfth point shouldn’t be that I’m grateful for the short story as a literary endeavor, but that I’m grateful for trying new things. This entire year has been an exercise in trying new things — and next year will be, too. And that’s terrifying.

But it’s also been incredibly enriching. And freeing. And educational. And exciting. In short, everything I could have hoped it’d be, and a lot of other things too.

And so — looking back on 2021 — I can legitimately say that the past year, in fact the past two, have been hard. But also, I am very grateful.

And excited about what’s to come! 🙂