I turned thirty in March. As of right now, at the start of May, I have written two-and-a-half novels. When I think of what I want to achieve in the next ten years, those novels play a key part.

I’ve said before that, in the past, lists of what I wanted to do with my life quickly became lists of all the books I want to write. That hasn’t changed. Most of the goals I have are career based.

Here are the few that aren’t:

• Learn to Drive
• Learn Piano
• Have a Baby

That last one’s pretty big. The first one is dependant on whether my dyspraxic self is actually safe to drive, and the middle one doesn’t really matter, in the grand scheme of things, but it’s still something I aspire to.

Career Goals

These are pretty lofty, but I reckon they’re achievable with a ton of hard work.

Books I want to have published:

• My Trilogy
• At least Two Other Novels
• A Poetry Pamphlet
• A Poetry Collection
• A Short Story Collection

Other Writing Related Goals:

• To have been on Book Tour
• To have launched a book at the Belfast Book Festival
• To have won some kind of literary award

I also want to have read over 1,000 books in total. Currently, I’m at 409 and reading on average 50-60 a year, so that’s pretty much on track.

Am I mad? Probably.

Do I care? No. I intend to live my dreams anyway.

What are your goals, dear reader?