how my writing goals evolved from 'bestselling author' to 'please just finish one thing' 🎯
remember when you were like 16 and thought you were going to be the next cassandra clare? just me? okay cool cool cool.
i used to have this VISION. i was going to write the next big YA fantasy series that would get optioned for netflix and i'd be interviewed on talk shows wearing perfectly tousled author hair talking about my "writing process" (which was definitely going to involve a lot of aesthetic coffee shops and leather journals).
my goals back then were absolutely unhinged:
write a 7-book series by age 25
get a movie deal
have fans make tiktoks about my characters
retire early on book royalties
maybe date a hot actor who played one of my love interests (this was a serious consideration)
fast forward to now and my current writing goals look like:
finish. literally anything.
write "the end" on something. ANYTHING.
stop opening new documents when i'm 20k words into my current WIP
remember what my protagonist's eye color is supposed to be
figure out what happens in chapter 12 (it's been 8 months)
the evolution was… gradual. and then sudden. like bankruptcy, but for creative ambitions.
it started with the first reality check: writing a book is HARD. not just "ugh this is difficult" hard but "why are there so many words and why do they all have to make sense together" hard. turns out you can't just vibe your way through 80,000 words. WHO KNEW.
then came the second reality check: the publishing industry is a NIGHTMARE. agents want you to have platform before you have a book but you need a book to build platform but you need platform to get an agent to look at your book and it's just capitalism eating its own tail while writers cry in the corner.
but the REAL plot twist was discovering that finishing things is actually… really f*cking difficult? like, starting stories? easy. i can start a story while i'm brushing my teeth. but endings? conclusions? wrapping up loose threads in a satisfying way that doesn't make readers want to throw my book at a wall?
apparently that's a SKILL that requires PRACTICE.
so somewhere between draft 23 of my first novel and the crushing realization that my magic system made no sense, my goals shifted. instead of "change the literary landscape forever," it became "write something my mom would read and not just say 'that's nice honey.'"
and you know what? this evolution isn't failure. it's GROWTH. it's understanding that the real magic isn't in becoming famous—it's in the moment when you type "the end" and mean it. when you've actually told a complete story that makes sense and has characters people might care about.
my current goal is simple: finish one (1) entire novel. not a perfect novel. not a bestselling novel. just a complete story with a beginning, middle, and end that doesn't leave readers confused about what the hell just happened.
and honestly? that feels way more achievable than dating chris hemsworth ever did.
(though if chris is reading this and wants to discuss my worldbuilding over coffee, my DMs are open)
—rin 🎯