Today’s word count: 2957 words
NANTUCKET total word count to date: 36,512
HARPER total word count to date: 1433
I’ve decided to up the ante a bit; I guess this is what happens once one gets comfortable with a writing goal and starts sitting down and, well, writing.
I’ve decided to increase my writing goal to 2000 words a day. And I’ve come up with a solution to the multiple writing projects dilemma. At least a thousand of those words will be on NANTUCKET. After I meet that daily goal, I’m letting myself be free to write the remainder of the 2000 words on whatever else I want.
Tonight, that turned out to be the start of a new project I’m calling HARPER. It’s a teen novel – not one of the other three projects I discussed in a previous post, but one I’ve had in my mind for a while now.
I’m writing this one a little differently, too. With NANTUCKET I set out a few scenes at a time, and then apply myself to writing them. With HARPER I’m just going to go wherever it wants to take me.
Catch-up
When it comes right down to it, what I feel most these days is a sense of playing catch-up. There were so many years during which my writing consisted of long emails to my friends and the occasional non-fictional article. I have a lot to catch-up on – ideas that want very much to be written out. I’ll only be able to do that, give them the airtime they want, if I write more than I have been writing.
1000 words a day got me to this point. 2000 words a day will, I hope, get me to the next point: a finished novel and several others on the way.
And I can’t deny now that not only do I feel good when I’m sitting down writing fiction – it’s fun. It’s addictive. And it’s what I want to do.
Keeping my fingers crossed that this continues to work, that I’ll continue to meet my daily goal.
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Good luck with the new goal!
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Sounds like you found what works for you. I’m glad! While I can’t read more than one book at a time, I can work on more than one writing project at a time. I’m ashamed to say I’m been a slacker on both of my writing projects right now – writing a short story for a contest and adapting Mark’s and my novel, GRACELAND into screenplay format. I’ve had to spend way too much time on the GRACELAND Website…or so I tell myself. LOL I’ll get with the program soon. You’re doing great!
Well, you are really on a role. It sounds like a good smooth role, too. 2000 words a day seems like a lot but when I consider that my average blog post is about 500 and I often write several at a time, it doesn’t seem so hard. I’m staying with the 30 minutes a day of writing for things other than the blog. It’s going good. Glad to see you are doing so well.
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I think you’re doing a fabulous job! I can’t wait to see where you go from here.
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Aim high, soar high. Wish you luck.
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Have I told you lately how inspirational you are to me? I love the fact that you share your writing experiences – the ups and the downs. I especially love the fact that you are a goal-oriented, driven person who is disciplined enough to make her dreams a reality. I hope by combining the education I learn this summer, and the reinforcement (and encouragement) from your blog posts, I will hone my own writing craft that will translate into a daily writing routine in the fall.
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Thank you, everyone. I never dreamed that putting my writing goal out here like this would be so motivating. And now after only a little over week (has it been that short a time?), writing feels like a daily part of my life. I really recommend doing this if you’re having a difficult time starting, that’s for sure.
Molly, it’s funny, but I’m not really a goal oriented person. But after so many years of not getting anywhere with my writing because I couldn’t seem to make myself sit down and write, it felt like this was the route to take. When I was in high school, I wrote all the time for enjoyment, and I seem to be getting that feeling back, moment by moment. And thank you so much for your kind words. I’ll be cheering you on in the fall when you start your writing routine. And I’m looking forward to hearing about your courses!