2024 Writer’s Diary & Planner
Small Steps to Big Dreams
Digital version coming soon!
Get inspired. Figure out what works for you. Write more.
This planner contains a simple system designed to support any writer: it’s for first-time dabblers and award-winners, for fiction and non-fiction writers. The focus is on you, on what you really want to write and helping you get there.
It’s a regular diary with all the normal stuff like week-to-view pages, spare pages for notes, annual and monthly calendars, plus a soft-touch cover, 90gsm paper and a ribbon marker. It’s not any old diary though; it was made by writers, for writers, and it has all sorts of tools to help you make this your best writing year yet.
You start by dreaming big and figuring out what you really want, then setting goals based on your vision. Then your planner helps you to break the goals down and work out the small steps you need to get there, continually reviewing your progress and working out what you need along the way.
It helps keep writing at the front of your mind through the year, setting small targets and regularly reviewing them and coming back to think about the habits and routines that actually work for you.
Nobody wakes up in the morning and finds they’ve accidentally written a book. Commit yourself to a great writing year, work hard, and see those dreams come to life.
UK postage only
2024 diary pre-orders open now for delivery around 11th December 2023.
Buying as a gift?
All diaries are hand-wrapped in tissue paper.
If you want to send one direct to someone else as a gift, you just need to make sure I have the correct delivery name/address and leave a gift message that I will write on a postcard. Use this form to send me your gift recipient’s details, or email me on hello@urbanwritersretreat.co.uk
A guide to the planning process and tools for writers
Take a moment to reflect
Look back and review your writing year.
The biggest part of this is celebrating everything you’ve achieved and appreciating all of the progress you’ve made, however big or small. Look at what you’ve enjoyed and what’s helped so that you can get more of that next year, then identify areas of frustration so that you can tweak what you do next year.
Dream big
I want you to set the right goals for you, so we start with imagining the (almost) impossible, those big bright dreams that light you up.
From there, you can start to noodle on what will bring you joy or take you a step closer to the big dream this year.
Set solid goals
The next step is to take a manageable number of priorities for the year from your brainstorm, and turn them into clear goals.
My method for goal setting gives you a clear why to inspire you, and gets you thinking about the path to get there.
It’s very easy to make plans, but it’s how you act on a day-to-day level that affects whether or not you get there so take a look at your mindset and routine, and work out what needs to change in the future.
Make it all feel manageable
Next, we break those big goals down into manageable, realistic chunks that stop them feeling overwhelming. This is a great place to revisit as you make progress, so you can view the whole year and tweak to make sure your goals are working for you, not stressing you out.
Get yourself good habits
It’s very easy to make plans, but it’s how you act on a day-to-day level that affects whether or not you get there.
Journalling on how you can set up your mindset and routine for success sets you up the right way for the year ahead.
This page also holds space to capture new sparks of ideas.
Project and reading trackers
Keep an easily-accessible record of where you are with each of your projects, and on the books you read this year (with space for comments).
Flexible submissions tracker
Whether you’re submitting to agents, journals or magazines, use this to keep records so you always know where your work has gone out to.
Watch your writing grow
If watching the progress mount up is your bag, there’s a flexible tracker tool.
You count using whatever metric works for you, whether that’s word count, lines written, pages edited, plot points mapped or even chapters read, so it works whatever stage of writing you’re at.
Regular check-ins
Every month take a few minutes to review your writing life and check in with your goals, celebrating the successes and making tweaks to your routine before breaking the next month’s goals into bite-sized chunks.
Little steps, again and again
Every week there’s a quick, super-simple intention-setting exercise so those writing goals are always in front of you, and you’re clear on the next small steps to take.
Quarterly review and refresh process
A few times a year you’ll do a more in-depth review, looking at how you can adjust your life to support your writing better, and re-committing to your goals.
End-of-year celebration
Round off this year and set yourself up for a great start to the next one with acknowledging and letting yourself feel good about everything you’ve achieved and progress you’ve made.
UK postage only
Pre-order your 2024 diary for delivery around 11th December 2023
Buying as a gift?
All diaries are hand-wrapped in tissue paper.
If you want to send one direct to someone else as a gift, you just need to make sure I have the correct delivery name/address and leave a gift message that I will write on a postcard. Use this form to send me your gift recipient’s details, or email me on hello@urbanwritersretreat.co.uk
Some countries’ customs laws mean that goods being brought into the country will be taxed. Unfortunately this is not something I have any control over, and it is taxed at the point of import (i.e. in your country). Please make sure you check your country’s regulations so that you don’t end up with a nasty shock if your diary is liable for import duty!