New Year, New M—otivations!
5th January 2026
Written by Dannielle Taylor
Hello, yes, it would seem that I am slightly off in my calendar … but shush, my intentions of a New Year’s speech is not your cliché ‘my resolution for this year is [an answer we will never stick to because we’re all so good at ignoring what it is we should be doing with our lives]. Wow, deep. But it’s true, isn’t it? The world is crazy; it moves fast and takes you in directions you’d never expect. Little resolutions like ‘do more exercise’ or ‘stop smoking’ seem so unimportant in comparison to what is going on all around us. But I think we all need to remember something: when the world is taking you on its adventures (even if that adventure seems boring and lacks dragons or rings), you always have to remember to stay true to yourself. And if you’re neglecting yourself in life, then you’re not really living at all. You’re just playing someone else’s game—just existing, not living for you.
Now, when I say this, it is good to remember that we do have priorities to withhold. Friendships, families, work obligations etc—I’m not saying you should be selfish and abandon all those things, I’m saying we all need to find a healthy relationship within all aspects of our lives. If you have lost your passions for who you are, find the time. I promise, the things you enjoy do not feel like effort taken from your day. I know for me, I work every day with either writing, editing, studying (things I enjoy, not an actual course), or doing art projects, and they do not make me feel rundown or tired, simply due to the fact that it is something I love to do. On the outside, it may seem like I’m working too hard, but that time that I should be “resting” is what motivates me to keep going. It's so easy to feel like we are trapped in the rat race, so if these things can make me feel like I have escaped, then I will do them happily.
So with that in mind, I am going to be sensible when I tell you about my goals for this year. This should be a book year for me, and I could do it—my five book series is complete—but I think I’m going to hold off for now. I want to be sensible with my decisions; this series is no throw away for me. I want to make sure I make the right decision, not just accepting what is before me. I want to look back on this series and feel like I had done it justice—I gave it the full life that it deserves. So for that, I’m going to take the time to research all my avenues.
Another thing, it is time for me to take scary steps this year. I need to find an avenue that will carry me into a future moving forward. My goal is to complete my “studies”, which is really just me, every day, studying either the English language, editing techniques, art and I aim to be comfortable enough to learn how to animate. But for that, I need to be enriched with all the art forms I can master. I want to be able to draw characters with ease—my characters—I want to be able to bring my worlds to life like they already existed for us to see. I will continue my “studies” like I have been doing for the past few months, and maybe by the end of this year, I will be able to start showing you results that I am proud of.
Now, it is time for my writing to begin. I have taken a short break (which has felt like yearssss!) to refine my series and edit it over and over until I can finally let it go with confidence. But I have been waiting for this year to begin. Because now that my series is completed, I essentially have 10 years to do whatever writing I want until my heart is content. I have so many stories still to tell, and now it is time for me to let them begin. It is time for new projects to rise from my dusty bookshelf of unwritten stories.
That was a lot, I do apologise, but you knew what you were getting into when you started reading this blog. Overall, big ambitions for just one year—that we all know will go by in a blink—but I like to set my goals high because it makes me work harder. I am determined to return to my progress reports on Instagram now that I have new things I can start to share. So I look forward to sharing this all with you, and I hope you enjoy this maddening journey I am about to embark on … without leaving my house for about 80% of the time.
Happy new year, everyone! Let’s wish that this one will be good to us all.
