Stay in the Game

One year ago, I published Finding Joy in the West: A Quest to Ride My Bike in All Fifty States. Getting to launch my first book in the Keys elevated the excitement tenfold. Since then, I’ve had my sights set on a repeat with Finding Joy in the East in 2027.

In the fourth quarter of 2025, to stay in the game, I picked up my writing game. My word for the year, finish, kept me focused. I made the last 100 days count. At the start of this year, I set a goal to have the manuscript ready for an editor by the end of the first quarter (March), or midyear, June at the latest.

Now, at the end of the first quarter of 2026, I could send my manuscript to an editor. But I’m not going to. Somewhere along the way, I started finding joy in editing. In draft two, I cut fifty pages and added fifteen. On this third pass, I’m focusing on each scene, the purpose of every chapter, and the spine that holds it all together: my quest to ride my bike in all fifty states.

After six months of making book two a priority—and clocking 600 writing hours—I may not hit my March goal. However, if I trust (trust is my word for 2026) myself and the system, it will be in much better shape for an editor by June.

Sometimes we reach our goals, and sometimes we miss them. But where would we be if we didn’t stay in the game? How are you doing on your goals this year? Do you need to extend the timeline? Maybe progress counts more than the date.

In March Madness terms, don’t quit. Stay in the game.

Thanks for being a part of this journey!

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Joy M. Walker