The “Write” Priority

Today’s word count: 2,266 words

NANTUCKET total word count: 67,407 words

*************************************

Please excuse the pun. I couldn’t help myself.

Today is Day 3 of my latest writing goal, which is to make my writing a priority. While my daily word count goal of 2,000 words has been a huge personal success, in that it’s gotten me back into writing and I seem to now have a healthy supply of bum glue, some days (nights, really) I found it really stressful working to meet that goal.

Here’s an example of what used to be a typical day for me.

During the day: email, Twitter, work on my current paying deadline, do family stuff with kids and husband, play or watch a video with my youngest, eat, email, Twitter, read other blogs, email, Twitter, write blog post (maybe), work some more on my current paying deadline.

I always wrote in the evenings, after my six-year-old was in bed. The problem was, there was usually more email/Twitter/deadline work/blogging to do once I had some true peace and quiet. By the time I turned on my writing program, chances were good it would be past midnight, sometimes well past midnight, and what I wanted to do wasn’t write, but drop into bed and sleep.

Not to mention, it was tough writing scarier scenes, since my office is on the ground floor, there’s a window to my right and we have yet to find window coverings we like, so I’m basically staring out into the pitch black night where anything might be lurking every time I happen to look up (which, when I’m writing, is actually quite often).

With my new writing goal of making my writing a priority, I’ve made a commitment to writing before I work on my latest deadline or do any blogging. In other words, my writing comes first. I found I couldn’t resist checking email and Twitter first though, so email and Twitter time doesn’t count (rather unfortunate, actually – two days out of the three so far, my email and Twitter time ate up most of the morning and then of course I had to have lunch (and go on a book-buying binge on one of the days) and before I knew it, it was the afternoon and I hadn’t started writing yet.)

But after email and Twitter time, I write my 2,000 words for the day.

My findings so far:

1. It takes me a little longer to meet my daily writing goal, because there are more interruptions around here during the day, especially in the form of my six-year-old whose current passion is telling “knock knock” jokes he doesn’t really fully understand. Over and over. To which you must respond.

2. My writing sounds better to me. I think this is because I’m not typing my words out while in a half-asleep daze, and not really because my writing is actually better, but who knows.

3. When I finish typing that last word, I feel really good. Like I’ve accomplished something. In the past, when I finished typing that last word, it was all I could do to quickly write up my writing goals blog post and then stumble off to bed. I rather like this feeling good business.

4. I am a little behind on my regular work deadlines.

All in all, I like the better-sounding writing and the feeling good, so the extra bit of time it takes me to pound out those 2,000 words is, I think, well-worth it. Being a little behind on my work deadlines isn’t such a great thing, but I still think it’s worth it, and anyway, I’m practically always a little behind on my work deadlines, since I’m very good at procrastination.

So please keep your fingers crossed for me that I can keep this new writing goal going for 30 days, after which I am confident it will become “just what I do”.

When do you do your best writing? In the early morning, before there are any other demands on you? During the day? Late at night?

Related posts:

1. I Didn’t Write Today
2. On Writing: When Do You Write?
3. On Writing: Slowing Down
4. Writing vs. Working
5. Jumping Back Into Writing, and Priorities

Tagged as: book thoughts, writing goals