Happy Labor Day!
Longtime readers of this blog know that the first two months of school and the last two months of school are my busiest times. So, when one of my critique partners said she was setting a daily word count goal to finish the draft she's working on and asked for motivational nudges, I said I should do something similar. We decided to nudge each other. Then she invited her FB friends to join in. So far, there are three of us who made our goals every day last week.
My goal is small and specific. I just started something new, and Q's challenge just happened to coincide with my first day of writing it. When I start something new, I write in a notebook. This may seem archaic, but it works for me. I think differently with a notebook than I do with a computer, so first drafts, picture books, and poems are usually conceived therein. My goal is to write at least two pages per day, Monday through Saturday, and those pages have to be Nightingale pages. It's a goal I can meet, even when my day is filled with teaching and my afternoons and evenings with soccer. It's something I can do while I'm revising TBW or submitting PBs to editors. One of the days last week, I wrote a brand new picture book and still made my writing goal. Most days, I exceeded my goal. Even with all of the interruptions that this time of year brings, I feel like I'm making great progress on Nightingale.
I can do this. (Thanks, Q!)
Longtime readers of this blog know that the first two months of school and the last two months of school are my busiest times. So, when one of my critique partners said she was setting a daily word count goal to finish the draft she's working on and asked for motivational nudges, I said I should do something similar. We decided to nudge each other. Then she invited her FB friends to join in. So far, there are three of us who made our goals every day last week.
My goal is small and specific. I just started something new, and Q's challenge just happened to coincide with my first day of writing it. When I start something new, I write in a notebook. This may seem archaic, but it works for me. I think differently with a notebook than I do with a computer, so first drafts, picture books, and poems are usually conceived therein. My goal is to write at least two pages per day, Monday through Saturday, and those pages have to be Nightingale pages. It's a goal I can meet, even when my day is filled with teaching and my afternoons and evenings with soccer. It's something I can do while I'm revising TBW or submitting PBs to editors. One of the days last week, I wrote a brand new picture book and still made my writing goal. Most days, I exceeded my goal. Even with all of the interruptions that this time of year brings, I feel like I'm making great progress on Nightingale.
I can do this. (Thanks, Q!)
Thanks for embarking on this challenge with me! It's so nice to be accountable to someone. :)
ReplyDeleteIf anyone here wants to join in, just set a tough but attainable daily goal and see how many days you can meet that goal from now until the end of October. My daily goal is 750 words, though I'm doing so well with that I might increase it; the other participant's is 1,000. It all depends on what you can do, which is the beauty of the challenge! The three of us write six days/week.
It is nice. :o)
DeleteYes, you can, Myrna! You can do this.
ReplyDeleteI set weekly goals when I'm working on something new, though my word count goal is usually a modest 250 or 500. And sometimes I go for time spent, not words written. If I write at least an hour a day, I feel I've accomplished something.
Sometimes I go for time spent, too, especially with revisions.
DeleteI'm impressed with what you think you can get done. I need to set some type of goal too.
ReplyDeleteIt always helps me to set goals. I have to be careful to keep them reasonable, though. Consistently not reaching my goal is discouraging.
DeleteThis is a great idea! I am actually doing this with a friend for exercising. We e-mail each other our results (good and bad) and I think it really helps.
ReplyDeleteI have a new writing project I am excited about so maybe I will become a silent partner here with you guys! LOL!
I should do this with exercising.
DeleteWhat a great idea. Good luck with your writing goals! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jennifer!
DeleteNotebook writing. I do that too. Maybe not for the whole thing any more, but still I do sometimes just need that physical connect of pen to paper to write or jot down ideas.
ReplyDeleteI don't usually write out the whole novels on paper, either. Poems and PBs always happen on paper.
DeleteGood luck with your writing goal. I know what you mean about thinking differently with a notebook than with a computer. I hope your first grader is doing well:)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jessie! She isn't loving having to get up every morning, but she is loving first grade. Hopefully yours is loving it as well. :o)
DeleteI am way impressed that you hand write everything first. Sometimes I type so fast that I just end up typing a whole lot of stuff that I have to delete or change completely later. It's been fun having the writing challenge.
ReplyDeleteYes, it's been fun and motivating.
DeleteGreat challenge. Enjoy it!
ReplyDelete=)
PS. I used to have to write my poems in a notebook. Oddly, I finally made the transition to keyboard, and now I prefer it.