This is it, Writer-buddy.
The big one.
We’ve reached the end of 2023, a year that, in the traditional fashion of years, has taken both 400 years to pass and also 30 seconds.
This year at Writers’ HQ, we have hosted over 100 webinars and online writing retreats, run 39 Flash Face Off writing challenges, done more free stuff than we can count and given away a whopping £5,000 worth of courses and mentoring via our bursary, thanks to your amazing donations.
But more importantly:
You guys! YOU GUYSSS!
You lot have sent us over 1500 flashes and hundreds of you have been featured on our Wall of Fame, getting published, shortlisted, longlisted and winning literary shiz all over the shop. A bunch of you have published amazing novels, and our community is full of so many thousands of incredible, caring, kind, writerly and hilarious humans.
We’d like to say a MONUMENTAL THANK YOU to all of you—YES YOU—for being so freakin’ awesome and writing such badass stories and supporting each other so much and allowing us to have the literal, actual truthful best job in the whole entire world.
There’s been a lot of change and upheaval this year, not just at Writers’ HQ but e v e r y w h e r e. We’re well and truly post-pandemic* and nothing has really sprung back to the way things were. Most mornings, we all wake up thinking, ‘Oh god, what now?’ but we’ve made it as far as here. We are making it to wherever we’re heading. And we’re doing it together. With zeal and passion and aplomb and gifs and a huge amount of forgiveness and an extraordinary amount of generosity and care and love and all those wonderful things.
And so!
2024 approaches. Oh god, what now?
Let’s not make any wild and unachievable resolutions to write five novels or bash out thousands of words every day.
Let’s just tread gently. Cautiously. Let’s find the ease in ourselves. Look out for each other. Say goodbye to the old year, bless the new one, and keep writing, one word after another.
Turn oh god what now into oh my god what cool things can we do?
We’ll get there. Together ✊
All the love
Sarah and Team WHQ
*ok, we know covid is still very much A Thing; we just mean we’re past those first couple of wildly disruptive years
For the last time this year—all together now!—let us know you’ve read this far by sending us your best New Year gif on Twitter, and let us give you a big New Yeary high five.
Gold Star Writers’ HQ members get access to in-depth story deconstructions to show you how the best stories work, as well as regular goal setting workshops to make sure you achieve your goals. Give yourself a lovely little writerly gift – get your membership here >>
