At the end of the year, it’s easy to look back on former resolutions and feel sad about those goals you didn’t quite accomplish. But author T. Michael Martin is here to tell you that it’s okay if you didn’t have the most amazing year of accomplishments ever. Sometimes those disappointments and setbacks are leading you on the road to your ultimate writerly goals:

Let’s be honest: setbacks suck, and it’s okay to feel disappointed. But writing is also a really hard career without a set path. There’s no reason you should feel like your novel has to be published by the time you’re 30 or that you have to have an agent before the end of the year or that this is the year you need to support yourself by writing books full-time. Being a writer means always having to deal with bumps in the road and insecurities and setbacks. Everyone is dealing with this–you’re not alone. Even if you see fellow writers who seem to have it all, I’m guessing they’re dealing with their own stresses and disappointments behind the scenes.

Case in point: author Jo Knowles and her post about her goals and dreams for 2012. In case you don’t know Knowles, she has several awesome and (what I consider) successful YA/MG books out. In her post, she talks frankly about financial disappointments and missed promotional opportunities. I was really relieved to see that she continues to face challenges in her writing career as well. She also mentions a lot of great things that happened this year–a necessary reminder to not forget the good things that happen, too.

So tonight, I hope you can accept any disappointments you may have experienced over the last year and remember all the good things that happened. And don’t worry–whatever path you’re on, whatever challenges you may face, there are a lot of other writers who are right there beside you.