In terms of life and writing, 2016 had a lot of ups and downs for me. It’s hard to remember some of those ups when the downs are swinging at you, but they’re there and worth remembering. So here goes my 2016 In Review.
THINGS THAT WENT WRITE RIGHT IN 2016
- I had two short stories published in anthologies (“Q-Be” in Untethered: A Magic iPhone Anthology and “Mirror Me” in Magic Unveiled)
- I got to autograph books at the 2016 Locus Awards
- Amaskan’s Blood got an amazing new cover. Amaskan’s War had a cover reveal with an equally amazing new cover.
- I was a panelist, guest, and/or moderator at 6 conventions
- I vended as myself or with Books & Chains at 5 conventions
- I was a guest at 10 additional events (book signings, workshops, etc.)
- I was interviewed 3 times and was a guest on 1 podcast
- I watched Class-M Exile be acted out on the stage
- I wrote five short stories and several drafts of a novel
- I submitted 6 short stories to paying markets
- I’ve been invited to be a panelist at an out-of-state convention in 2018
- I was invited to do a reading with Nisi Shawl, G. G. Silverman, and Janine A. Southard in January 2017. More on that soon!
- I’ve been named a panelist at two conventions in 2017 (so far)
- I’ll be a vendor with Books & Chains at five conventions in 2017 (so far)
TOP 10 READ POSTS OF 2016
- Book Cover Throwback: The Giver
- Y is for Yoshitaka Amano
- Facts about Ravens
- Monday Night Gaming Reviews Champions of Midgard
- Book Cover Throwback: Grinch
- Depression Lies, But It Is Real
- Scrivener Saturday: A Case for Scapple
- Flashback Friday: A New Year
- Flashforward Friday: Vulcan Mind-Meld
- Separating Authors from Their Works
WEBSITE DATA BITS:
- I had 36,765 unique visitors to my site this year, which is down from last year (though my social media is up)
- January 2016 saw the largest number of visitors. The lowest was May 2016.
- Most visitors used Google’s search engine to get here.
- Most people used Facebook as their social media means of getting to this site (56%). After that, 40% of visitors were from Twitter, 3% from Google+, and 1% from misc. social media platforms.
- Most people left here and went directly to Amazon.com. The #2 jump was going to BoardGameGeek.
- Most people found this site by searching for these terms:
- Raven
- Clones
- Raven Oak
- Yoshitaka Amano
- Norwescon 39
OTHER DATA BITS:
- The Conspiracy, my official mailing list, saw a 500% increase in membership
- Facebook likes saw a 200% increase
- Twitter follows saw a 340% increase
- Total number of words written this year went way, way down, at 124,206 words. (I promise to do better in 2017. This year was brutal for a lot of reasons.)
- Total number of books read: 28 (also way too low)
- Total number of books released: 0
- Total number of books delayed: 2
- Total number of short stories sold: 2
- Number of times moved: 1 (well, two if you count we moved once more within 3 months of this)
- Total number of hairs turned grey from the stresses of this year: way too many to count, which is why I dye my hair 😉
- Number of friends lost to depression: 1, which is 1 too many
Many people died in 2016–many who suffered from mental illnesses and struggled on a day-to-day basis. I struggled this year myself, and while I endeavor to do better in 2017, I know that I do so with the support of friends and readers.
I hope your 2016 was a good one, but if it wasn’t, find your friends. Hug them. Laugh with them. And remember that this, too, shall pass.
Happy New Year folks.
