Last year was filled with seemingly nothing but upheaval. I bounced, jerked forward, heaved, pitched backward, and packed my way from May to September. Packing, selling our home, not selling our home, reselling our home, cataract surgery times two, problems with both, other health issues, and then new home issues helped October and November provide their own problems. Needless to say very little writing got done. I am not complaining. I couldn't me more thankful for our new home, and I am brimming over with gratitude for all those who made the year endurable and at times pleasurable. Those who helped pack, move, unpack or just lent encouraging words will always be remembered with great fondness. But I'm veering off topic.
January is a perfect time to reboot habits and get back into a "normal" routine. The house is a little over half unpacked--we'll not speak about the research library. I can now cook, do laundry, take a shower, and sleep in a bed--what more do I need? I almost have my office put back together. I plan on finishing that tomorrow. So my new beginning starts right now.
Tomorrow I will key words onto a blank page. Since goals are the only way to achieve anything I'll take a baby step. I will write for a half hour at a minimum each day this week. On Sunday I'lll set new goals.
But what works best? Now should I write time-wise, word-wise, or page-wise. What works for you? Do you mix it up? How do you stay on goal?
With wishes for everyone to have a properous prolific writing new year!
11 comments:
Happy New Year! I hope this is a calm year for you and yours and your health continues to get better.
I try to write to a word goal. It's what seems to work for me. I start small and then work my way up. It's satisfying when I surpass my word goal for the day.
I love goals. I love lists. I make them and then I lose them or ignore them. I'm a "crisis mode" operator most of the time. It works for me.
Theresa a word goal seems the best idea for me starting out from such a deficit of writing. I know it would thrill me to actually meet a goal after all this time. Surpassing it, well that would be cloud time. Does that feeling spur on more success at meeting goals?
Pat, sadly I'm much like you. I write detailed goals. Stick with them a few days and then slowly slide down the hill of good intentions. I'm hoping to stick with goals longer this time hoping to get into the habit of writing. Actually from past experience it is simply making yourself BITHOK more than anything (sigh)
Joan, wishing you a healthy and happy 2014!
Word or page count goals help me. I've discovered that writing every day, whenever possible, makes things easier. And I'll admit that I don't do it every day. I don't necessarily have a word count per day, more like per week. If I don't write one day, I know I need to make up for that throughout the rest of the week.
Writing something for the fun of it--something other than cowboys and babies--proved to keep me motivated and more productive. Once this book is turned in and the next written by 2/24, I'm going to do it again.
Just made my first goal. A half hour of writing with a total of 988 words. What a relief that I can still do this!
Yay, Joan!!
Those first 10 minutes are usually the hardest, at least for me. The only times they aren't is when a sentence or scene snippet has been running through my mind (so I don't forget it!), but I'm not able to get to the computer or write it down at that moment.
How exhilarating that you did it!!
Exhilarating is a good word for it. After so long a time and plagued by self doubt always, it is good to accomplish a goal no matter simple.
Oh, I hear ya on the 'self-doubt.' My revisions warped into half of a rewrite. I have no idea if it makes any sense at all, and my self-doubt has quadrupled.
Pat, I found a quote for you. :)
"I work best after the deadline has passed, when I'm in a panic." - Tony Kushner
You need a t-shirt with this on it. Then wear it to conference. I'm sure it would be a conversation starter. You. Are. Not. Alone.
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