It’s that time of year again! I love this period in between Christmas and New Year when nobody knows what day it is and I don’t have to do anything at all. What I do usually decide to do is take a little time for reflection and introspection, and part of that is thinking about what I’ve achieved this year and what I’d like to do in 2022. So let’s go!

Publications and Events In 2021

In summary, this year I released my memoir and a Kindle version of my collected works from 2005 – 2020. I wrote five guest blog posts or articles and was a guest on seven podcasts, one YouTube video, one local radio show and in one written interview (most of this being related to my memoir). Eight of my poems were published in six literary journals, with three more forthcoming in 2022. Here’s the breakdown month-by-month:

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

  • Video: Todd Sullivan YouTube Channel “HOW TO WRITE MICRO-MEMOIRS Sam Rose, Ars Poetica: A Girl Called Poetry Writer Interview NONFICTION”
  • Poetry: Won second place in STEMag writing competition – piece to be published
  • Webinar: Taught first Cancer Scribblers Webinar

October

  • PhD: Passed second year of PhD and progressed to year three
  • Radio: BBC Radio NorthamptonInterview on Kerrie Cosh show about bowel cancer and Lynch Syndrome diagnosis. Available on BBC Sounds and on Soundcloud.
  • Poetry: Dreich / The Joy of Living – Poem accepted and forthcoming

November

  • Research: Presented at Teesside University conference “Taking Place: Identities formed in an adverse space”

December

  • Poetry: Skink Beat Review – Poem accepted and forthcoming

 

Goals In 2021

So, it’s been pretty busy! I usually set some goals for the upcoming year, and here they were back at the start of 2021:

  • Progress to the third year of my PhD – Done!
  • Publish my memoir (due to be released on 7th February) and reach as many people as possible with my story – Done!
  • Start a podcast (due to be launched on 2nd January) and get some listeners/subscribers – Done! We reached 1,000 downloads this month.
  • Give some webinars/online workshops – Done! Not as many as I thought I would, but a couple.
  • Continue to write and be published – Done!
  • Go to Center Parcs again – Done!
  • Book another trip to Florida (to take in 2022, hopefully!) – Done!
  • Stay healthy – Done (with the usual caveat “as far as I know”)
  • Enjoy the year  – Done, as much as possible given the year we’ve all had

 

Goals For 2022

Here’s what I would like to do in 2022:

  • Progress to the fourth year of my PhD
  • Complete WECAN (The Workgroup of European Cancer Patient Advocacy Networks) Patients in Publications Open Access Course
  • Gain a “train the trainer” or adult teaching/training qualification
  • Continue to write and be published
  • Go to Florida
  • Make time for reflection, relaxation and introspection
  • Stay healthy

 

So, not as many goals this year but I aim to mainly be concentrating on my PhD, which will hopefully mean I’ll still be writing lots and trying to get published, and the PhD is the most important thing at the moment. Alongside that, I know I did a lot this year and not all of these things were unmissable opportunities. So I aim to be a little more discerning this year when choosing what to spend my time on. I’ll let things come to me rather than going looking for them, in terms of media appearances, and when they do come along, I’ll make sure they are things I really want to do and that will benefit me. So I’m definitely still open to opportunities for podcasts, writing articles, interviews and more – I just might not say yes to absolutely everything, depending on what it is and what else I have going on. Plus, I want to make time for introspection, which I’m hoping will help me to write more, too. Maybe I’ll even find myself a new “happy place” like the ones I’ve had before.

So, that’s all my stuff for this year and next year. I think it’s great if any of us managed to achieve anything at all these past two years – it’s enough to just be surviving and doing our best in this crazy world. Wishing everyone a peaceful and fulfilling 2022!