Friday, January 28, 2011

An Encouraging Writing Tip

"Close the door. Write with no one looking over your shoulder. Don't try to figure out what other people want to hear from you; figure out what you have to say. It's the one and only thing you have to offer." - Barbara Kingsolver

Every Friday, I get a writing tip emailed to me from Holly Lisle. This week she talks about writing a little everyday. She said, in part:

I'm doing between 250 and 500 words a day, five days a week. I do it every day without fail, even if I don't feel like writing when I start, just because it's only 250 words to success.

It's nearly stress-free. It fits in around homeschooling the kid, creating courses, spending time in the Think Sideways writing community, and having a life.

She reminded me that even a little bit goes a long way. She also invited me (and everyone on her list *G*) to join in with encouraging others on her writing diary. It's no pressure, no worry, no unrealistic goals.

I think I'm going to do it. I can do 250 - 500 words a day. They may be crappy words, but they'll be words, and as time goes by they'll be better words. Writing is a real struggle for me right now, and it never used to be, so I'm having to learn how to do it all over again. I used to could turn out a 20,000 word novella in a couple of weeks. Novel in a month? No problem. Now, I can't even seem to finish the shortest of short stories no matter how much time I give myself.

I'm hoping that being part of a larger writing community with a daily check-in might both encourage me and make me accountable.

Here goes nothing!

========================




You Are Sweet Potato Fries



You are open-minded and very inventive. You like to play around with new ideas.

You are excited by knowledge, and you like to put what you learn to the test.

You are a natural creator, and you love to make things. You are definitely a mad scientist.

Some of your ideas may be total flops, but you will produce valuable, original works one day.



That's mostly right...

=====================

7 comments:

Maria Zannini said...

I don't think I do well with check-ins--unless someone's poking me with a pitchfork. LOL

What helps me most is outlining. Once I have a direction, I'm better at accomplishing my goals.

Angelina Rain said...

Writing a little a day is a great idea. It keeps those typing fingers and that creative brain in shape. When I used to write five years ago, I was getting to be so good at it that everything flowed out of me like magic. I could be in the middle of writing ten stories and not get confused to which is which. Then I took a five year long break and started writing again last year. It was hard. It took me a whole year to write a 40,000 word novella. Now with my current WIP, I try to write every day. Some days are good and I whip out 3,000 words, other days stink and I only write two sentences, but I no longer sit and stare at a word document and try to press the “on” button of my brain.

Brandy said...

I think whatever helps you write is a good thing! I hope it works for you.
Blessings for a good day!

Tori Lennox said...

Until I started my "key in all the stuff I have handwritten on legal pads" project I tried to write 100 words a day. I figured anything above that was gravy :)

Ceri Hebert said...

You go girl!!! If you can do 50K in a month you can do 250 a day!!

Dru said...

Kudos to you for getting back into the writing groove.

You Are Fast Food Fries

You are easygoing and happy-go-lucky. You try to avoid complaining.

You're up for having a good time anywhere, and you definitely aren't a snob.

You are more honest and modest than most people. You don't pretend to be someone you aren't.

You aren't preachy or judgmental. We all have our vices... you just think we should enjoy them more


This is accurate.

I hope you had a good day.

Melissa McClone said...

Oh, I think this sounds great. Each of us is motivated differently. Pretty much takes a loaded gun to the head (i.e. contractual deadline) but I'm extreme. Good luck!