Another year in the books. Despite the ongoing pandemic and a lot of added stressors placed on myself and my fellow educators over the past two years, I definitely had a more productive writing year compared to 2020.

I had a story published in Coffin Bell Journal in 2021, released the kindle boxset of the Morus Chronicles, and finished a new novel titled Magic of the Five. Yay! Productivity!

Here are some of my favorites from 2021.

Favorite books I read: Atomic Habits by James Clear, Love People Use Things by Joshua Fields Millburn & Ryan Nicodemus, and The Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie

Podcast of the greatest value: The Minimalists

Songs released this year that I love: Never Gonna Learn – Asking Alexandria, Spectrum – Andrew Belle, Dagen For – Volbeat, Into the Dark – Jesse Denver, Ritchie Sacramento – Mogwai

My favorite TV/Movies/Streaming of 2021: The Witcher Season 2, The Wheel of Time, All Creatures Great and Small

I hope you are finding time for your interests and still getting enough sleep. I’m finding that the more I add to my plate, the more discontent I feel. Getting rid of things and addons has made 2021 a better year. We donated a ton of items to our local Goodwill. I minimized my digital clutter and spent significantly less time on social media. And we payed down as much debt as we could. I’ve been actively removing the things that don’t add value to my life and focusing on the people I love and my creative endeavors. Maybe that’s why 2021 felt more productive.

I wish you health and happiness in the new year. Here we go, 2022!