January has come to an end, and so it is probably the very last moment to do a 2025 recap post while it is still remotely relevant. So, without further delay, here it is, my year in writing along with my ambitions for the year to come.
Reading:
Maybe not the obvious place to start when looking at my writing, but every writer is (or should be, at least, in my opinion) a reader. So, here are my reading stats for 2025.
I read a total of 21 books during the year with another 6 I gave up on after reading at least a 100 pages. Add the odd 2-3 books I probably forgot about and that’s an even 30 books. 2.5 books a month.
Those are not terrible numbers, I guess, but I do really want to push them a bit higher this year.
However, while fantasy and science fiction are still my primary genres, I did succeed in reading more widely this year, covering 10 different genres.
And while I don’t have exact numbers, I did manage to read/listen to at least 3 short stories a week throughout a good chunk of the year. That’s definitely 100+ short stories pushed through the gray goo between the ears.
When it comes to improving your writing, I think it’s really important to keep your reading habits in mind as well. Actually, I think reading critically is as important to improving your writing skills as actually practicing writing (though none of them can stand on their own).
This is why I want to read more this year. Plus, sometimes reading inspires me to write as well, a story I’m reading combining with something else in my mind and sparking the idea for a completely different story.
Also, reading critically can be an exercise in itself, discerning what makes a story work well (or not so well). So, yeah, more of this for me.
Productivity:
I wrote roughly 48.000 words on stories in 2025 compared to 78.000 the year before, 28.000 in 2023, and 70.000 in 2022. I’m not worried about the dip from 2024 to 2025 or really the dip in 2023. Some years I focus more on creating a lot of stories, and some years I focus more on the quality of my writing. Focusing on quality usually means I write slower and do more writing exercises (where I do not count words). So that’s fine.
What do worry me, though, is the generally low numbers.
48.000 words might seem fine to some people. And if I wrote top quality prose and had the sort of contracts thrown my way that meant I could make a decent income publishing a book every other year or three, it would be fine. But I don’t, and I had really hoped to be more productive than this.
Even worse, 108 out of the 365 days of the year, I did no writing at all. No outlining, no editing, no writing exercise, and no writing on any stories.
I have always told myself that, if nothing else, I was a pretty consistent writer; I wrote most days. Sure, I might miss some weekends, and the holidays were usually off, but obviously, that amount to quite a lot of days in the end. Add in some sick days, and that is 108 missed opportunities for improving my craft.
So, I need to find a way to be more productive in 2026.
Quality and publications:
Upping my productivity might not be as simple as that, though, because I also need to focus on improving the quality of my writing.
I had, once again, hoped this would be the year I finally broke into one of the big markets like Clarkesworld or Uncanny, but alas, I didn’t. In fact, I didn’t get anything published in 2025.
Publication isn’t everything, and I don’t think my writing is suddenly worse just because I didn’t get anything published. To some extent, it is a numbers game where luck and taste plays a role.
Plus, I did actually get a couple of acceptance letters towards the end of the year, with those stories slated to come out here in 2026 (more on that in a future post). And when I do sit down to look at the stories I write now compared to the ones I wrote a year or two ago, I think there is a clear difference. Generally, my writing is improving in every way. And it’s not just my ego speaking here; every long-time beta reader I have seem to feel the same.
Still, when I compare my own stories to most of the ones published in the big magazines, it’s also clear they are still missing something.
So, what now:
Now, I just need to find a way to write the kind of stories that get accepted by the big magazines. So, yeah, I need to read more, read analytically, write more, and write better. Sigh…
Well, there are only so many hours during the day, and with family and the day job to take care of, I don’t really have any options for reprioritizations. So that pretty much leaves spending the time I do have more optimally.
I hate for this to sound like a chapter of a self-help book, but I think I need to focus on building discipline and becoming more focused when reading and writing.
I won’t magically find much more time for writing, but I can at least spend the time I have better. Too often, if I reach a boring passage of the story I’m reading or if I’m just tired, I will start procrastinating before returning to the story. If I can force myself to focus, I should be able to read more.
That will also help my reading when it comes to actively trying to learn from stories by focusing on what they do well/not so well.
It’s kind of stupid, but I have taken to writing down a reminder for myself every Monday, saying that I need to focus when reading, and so far, it has helped quite a lot in at least making me aware when my mind starts to drift.
Also, I am taking notes on every story I read (and listen to and even the few movies I get around to watching). It comes naturally when it’s short stories I want to write reviews for here on my blog or stories I critique in my writing group. But even with stories I otherwise just read for fun, I note my thoughts down to force myself to analyze the story.
And at some point, I also want to set aside some time to really desiccate a couple of short stories and novels I love, figure out what made them work so well for me, and then try to emulate that.
Hopefully, all of this will help up the quality of my writing.
Ah yes, the writing. There is definitely something to be gained there.
To begin with, I’m doing the same thing as mentioned above with my writing. I make a note for myself every Monday, reminding me not to procrastinate, to stay focused. It’s still early days, but for my last couple of stories, it seems to be working, both when it comes to quality and the speed at which I’m writing.
And then there are all those days with no writing getting done. The number will never be zero, but I’m trying to sneak a bit of time during the weekends at least. If those 108 days without writing can get down to 50 for 2026, then that would definitely be worth something.
Finally, I’m trying to force in a bit of writing during the days where my main focus is on outlining, editing, or writing exercises to see if it can up my productivity a bit.
So, yeah, my writing is progressing, but my numbers from 2025 and the years prior indicate that it could progress faster. So that is my main goal for 2026, to become a better writer, faster.
Toby Backman 