2021

So here's the first blog of the New Year. I wish you and yours all the health and prosperity in the world, may your words flow freely outwards and the pennies flow freely inwards.

But as it is not yet breakfast time in Bonnie Scotland and I have already burned myself,  fallen over the dog,  got an electric shock and lost my specs, I suspect (based on that emprical evidence ) that 2021 will be just as much poo as 2020.

So that optimism got as far as one paragraph.

While the above sentiment makes sense and dopamine for the facebook scrollers. It means nothing to us crime writers. The second para should read  'My wish for you is that this year, you write the most thrilling story possible, kill everybody who annoys you, may your editors be kind and your sales figures be high. Happy New Year.'

Oh dear, I'm afraid my brain went for a rhyming scheme there!

May your 2021 be spent on the sunny side of the pyramid.

I've recently read two studies, one new and one old. The new study shows that happiness is inversely proportional  to the amount of free time spent online. Now, does that mean that happy people ( those with dogs) have less free time to be online as they are already pursuing more pleasureable interests ( out with dog).  Do happy people read a book to relax then nip online to spy on their friends? 

Or do people think that online in the best place to be, and believe that everybody else is having a fab time out there in internet land, so they close their laptop with a very depressing click.  These people maybe indentified as having a fat dog.

The older study is about dopamine and click bait. It's the anticipation of what you are about to see that sparks the dopamine production. What you actually see is usually much less exciting than you expected, so the end result is always a bit miserable, depressing and  blahhhh.

So with those minor musings, I am wondering what resolutions  the MIE bloggers are doing this year. Or, as our hypnotherapist says,  'make small changes towards the goal from January 1st,'  as starting and stopping a  behaviour is doomed to fail. Never go on a diet, as it's easy to come off a diet, just encourage yourself to eat healthy!

Our writers group always state what they want to have achieved by next year, it might help to keep the procrastinators on course with a new book,  it encourages those with distractions to keep focussed.

My thoughts are to work less in the day job ( it's not been a easy 2020!). Write more. Blog sensibly ( this will not last!). Pay some attention to my website. Avoid clickbait. Swim four lengths of butterfly. Paint more. Find out what the fancy buttons on the camera actually do.

What are you all thinking for 2021?  

Caro Ramsay