Happy New Year!

I hope as you bring in the new year, you share it with family or friends in a glorious way, welcoming the brand new year and the opportunities it presents. I love the new year! It brings hope, excitement, anticipation, changes, the unforeseen challenges and blessings; the planned, and the unplanned and everything in between. For me, it always represents a new beginning; the sunrise of 365 new days and the possibilities that these may bring. 

I hope your thoughts guide you to the opportunities that writing - in all forms - offers. No matter what we write, as writers and authors the new year offers a new season of writing with fresh opportunities. It helps to seize these opportunities and to try something original and maybe even a little daring in our crafting of words.

Not everything we write will be fabulously successful, but the attempt - no matter the result - allows us to grow and explore in ways with the possibility of inspiring our readers. Consider these exercises. 

1. Describe the look of snow painted into a winter scene and compare it to how it makes you feel when you see fresh fallen snow.

2. Depict the joy of young kids having a snowball fight with friends on the freedom of a snow day

3. Recount the coziness and intimacy of sitting by the fire with friends and sharing stories of times gone by. 

4. Use your words to illustrate the senses of being completely surrounded by nature during winter hike in the mountains and reimagine this as a shared experience with a new friend.

I challenge you to even take these one step further and find a way to expand yourself and find a way out of the comfort zone. Consider these opportunities.

1. If you live in a warm climate, to create a character that is engaging for the first time by experiencing a snowy, icy world. 

2. If you are an introvert, maybe you rumenate on the scene of a host welcoming in friends and family for the new year and focus your description on savoring the flavors from cold finger foods and serving icy drinks and snowman party favors. 

3. If you work in an office, consider creating a new character that works out in the snow and ice like a forest ranger or farmer headed out to feed animals in the dark, cold of morning. 

4. Maybe take this time to do research about something that is a bucket list item for you or something you've always wondered about like skiing, ice fishing, a Scandinavian cruise, Vikings, Norse Mythology, and so on. 

Whatever challenge you seek in the new year, push yourself to go the extra step.  Extend yourself, your writing skill and seek to hone your craft. Aim to reach a new reader in a creative way; one that brings you and your readers closer by trying something new together.

Happy New Year! 

MG