Setting Ambitious Author Goals for the New Year: Rebranding, Publishing, and Embracing the Texas Book Scene
- Jacquelyn Childs
- 6 days ago
- 2 min read
Starting a new year offers a fresh chance to set clear, exciting goals as an author. This year, my focus is on three key areas: rebranding my personal author profile, finally publishing my third and final novel in the Circle of Light series, and engaging with the Texas book community on a whole new level. Here’s how a quick approach to each goal with steps and examples.
New Year, New You: Rebranding
Your author website is often the first impression readers get. Rebranding means updating your bio, photos, and online presence to reflect your current style and voice. I'm kicking off this rebrand with:
New logos, color palette, and more consistent themes.
Writing a fresh bio that highlights recent achievements and unique voice.
Updating photos to coincide with new palette and theme.
Ensuring consistency across all platforms to build recognition.
For example, as I restructure my site and social media pages, I will be utilizing the same logos and color palette, featuring those colors consistently in images and backgrounds to build a cohesive image of me as an author.
Publishing My New Book
This has obviously been a long time coming! My original publication date for the final in the Circle of Light series was April 8, 2025 and I've had to push that back a full year. The good news is, IT'S COMPLETE! Here's next steps:
Finalizing the manuscript with thorough editing.
Building out the novel and cover in a complete document ready for publication.
Plan a launch strategy, including potential launch at local bookstore, giveaways, and other events.
April is literally right around the corner so I know I will need to lock in a launch location ASAP and knock out the rest of the planning by the end of February so that I might focus on promotion and giveaways in March.
Connecting with the Texas Book Scene
This is a whole new goal for me, something I haven't really thought much about in my bookish life up to date. Texas has a rich literary culture with many festivals, bookstores, and writing groups. However, I feel with the size of the state and number of people who live here, the bookish life is... somewhat lacking to be honest. I think there is a lot of opportunity to increase love of books in the states. Let's bring BookTok to Texas in full force! I'll be doing a lot more local things such as:
Attending local book fairs and author events such as the Texas Book Festival.
Highlighting and reviewing independent bookstores.
Joining Texas-based reading and writing groups.
Collaborating with other Texas authors for joint promotions.
Moving Forward with Clear Focus
Setting goals around rebranding, publishing, and community engagement creates a strong foundation for growth. Let's keep plans flexible but focused, and celebrate small wins along the way.
What are your bookish goals this year?
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