We’re returning to posts for our relfection and accountability for the month! Come join us!
We’re just past the middle point of the year (July 2nd, if you were wondering). It’s also right about that halfway mark through summer break for those of us with kids who get out mid June and go back to school mid August. It feels like that moment at the top of a rollercoaster, when your stomach knows it’s going to drop, even if everything is perfectly still.
Of course, nothing about summer at home with kids is “still.” It’s a lot of motion and moving parts, and now that my older two are firmly in the teen and tween stage, a lot of friends coming and going and accompanying us to the pool (I took 6 kids to the pool today, you guys). But I digress.
I’ve been looking over a lot of the goals I set for myself at the beginning of the year, and what progress has been made. I did, of course, finish my manuscript. Editing will start in earnest this month. I hit my deadlines right on the mark, and I’m super proud of that.
I also have made consistent, steady progress in other ways. I will hit 1,000 yoga classes at my home studio this week (prior to my birthday, as planned), I’ve baked something new every month, I’ve made a concerted effort to get together with friends regularly, and finally checked out some new community events that have been so joyful. I’ve hiked every month, even if those hikes were small.
Then there are other goals that have fallen by the wayside entirely — setting aside a dedicated day for pitching freelance writing, staying on top of my taxes so it’s not a mad end-of-year scramble, installing the macrame plant hanger I made many months ago. I explored running and was reminded that, no, it is still not really my thing — and then tabled my ambitions for a half marathon this year.
As I think about this halfway mark, though, I’m not quite so concerned with what has been checked off versus what hasn’t. I’m more interested in looking at what needs adjustment. What feels like it’s working? What timelines require intentional shifts? What can be struck from the list or maybe added? What doesn’t matter as much as I thought it did?
I used to be a real goal stickler, and in some ways I still am. But now I am so much more willing to adjust my expectations, to let go rather than force my way to the finish line, to follow and trust my instincts.
I’d love to hear where you are at this midway point in the year and summer. Do you revisit goals as you look at the second half of the year? Do you have any check in rituals? What is important to you right now? Let’s discuss here, and when we meet again on July 9th for our next meeting.
what's important to me right now: being present during summer travels, resolving studio space when i get back, and spending as much of the rest of this year as it takes finishing this wall hanging.
gemma do you have a bookkeeper? could you outsource the taxes to a cpa? i also need to look into this!
Honestly, my CPA does almost all of it, I just though I would be more organized throughout the year so it wouldn't have to be looming on my to-do list at the start of 2026.
I love that you're letting your work take the time it takes, and consciously blocking out time to enjoy your travels, rather than worrying over what's coming next. I'm definitely trying to do the same with enjoying summer before school starts back up and work becomes more intense again.
Dude, Gemma, I believe the term is "killing it." You get extra credit for every additional kid you take somewhere beyond your own and if there's something lethal like water where you're taking it? Double points. Well done also on keeping track of and up on your yoga, writing, friendship goals- I mean, shit, I hope you're feeling yourself right now. And doing it kind of peacefully? Damn. Noice.
I submitted 13 queries last week, which is a lot for me. Already got 1 rejection from the bunch! So that puts me at: 92 queries, 4 requests for full MS, 2 rejections on those. I started submitting in 11/2023.
I've had a bad week in the OR and am again having a crisis of whether I should continue being a PA or can afford to quit and do something else/make money off my writing. The rejections are especially tough this far in and in light of this. It's impossible to wonder if it's just that I'm not what I need to be to be a published author. AND I understand the industry enough to know it's a shit show. Still.
So my goals: do the major edits on the queer middle grade book I've committed to (if I can get the book into a place I'm proud of, I'll feel more satisfied about the whole project, I think), get back into the rom-com I've started to rewrite, and query maybe 5 more this next week on the big finished book. But the kids are done with camp for a while, so...fuck.
I used to hate goals, because I didn't care enough to show up for myself. I didn't like the illusion of control nor the inevitable broken promises to myself year after year. Now of course I feel the opposite - I feel powerful when I am setting and working on my goals. The power is what I'm after, especially when so much of my previous life was lived passively. Goal-setting has helped me reclaim power in my life, even if I don't reach the goal itself. None of this is new, but it is to me.
Still running, reading, writing, being as present as possible with my son, engaging in witchy/spiritual work, and DANCING. What a summer 💕
what's important to me right now: being present during summer travels, resolving studio space when i get back, and spending as much of the rest of this year as it takes finishing this wall hanging.
gemma do you have a bookkeeper? could you outsource the taxes to a cpa? i also need to look into this!
Honestly, my CPA does almost all of it, I just though I would be more organized throughout the year so it wouldn't have to be looming on my to-do list at the start of 2026.
I love that you're letting your work take the time it takes, and consciously blocking out time to enjoy your travels, rather than worrying over what's coming next. I'm definitely trying to do the same with enjoying summer before school starts back up and work becomes more intense again.
Dude, Gemma, I believe the term is "killing it." You get extra credit for every additional kid you take somewhere beyond your own and if there's something lethal like water where you're taking it? Double points. Well done also on keeping track of and up on your yoga, writing, friendship goals- I mean, shit, I hope you're feeling yourself right now. And doing it kind of peacefully? Damn. Noice.
I submitted 13 queries last week, which is a lot for me. Already got 1 rejection from the bunch! So that puts me at: 92 queries, 4 requests for full MS, 2 rejections on those. I started submitting in 11/2023.
I've had a bad week in the OR and am again having a crisis of whether I should continue being a PA or can afford to quit and do something else/make money off my writing. The rejections are especially tough this far in and in light of this. It's impossible to wonder if it's just that I'm not what I need to be to be a published author. AND I understand the industry enough to know it's a shit show. Still.
So my goals: do the major edits on the queer middle grade book I've committed to (if I can get the book into a place I'm proud of, I'll feel more satisfied about the whole project, I think), get back into the rom-com I've started to rewrite, and query maybe 5 more this next week on the big finished book. But the kids are done with camp for a while, so...fuck.
I used to hate goals, because I didn't care enough to show up for myself. I didn't like the illusion of control nor the inevitable broken promises to myself year after year. Now of course I feel the opposite - I feel powerful when I am setting and working on my goals. The power is what I'm after, especially when so much of my previous life was lived passively. Goal-setting has helped me reclaim power in my life, even if I don't reach the goal itself. None of this is new, but it is to me.
Still running, reading, writing, being as present as possible with my son, engaging in witchy/spiritual work, and DANCING. What a summer 💕
I almost want you to start your book with a glimpse into what it can be like AFTER. Like now.