Work in Progress (02/04/08)
The observant amongst you may have noticed that my Work in Progress widget in the top right corner no longer reads “March Writing Challenge”. That’s sensible enough, since we’re now into April - indeed, I could have posted this yesterday, but I thought there was enough clutter for one day. Two posts in one day is more than I like to throw at you; three would have been overkill.
Anyway, with the advent of April, I’ve called time on my March challenge. Out of a hoped-for 10,000 words, I managed 5,442 - around 1,500 of them were from that 4×4 blog post, although I didn’t include any other posts in the total even though I might’ve hit 10k if I had! I’m not impressed with myself as I know that I’m more than capable of producing 10,000 words in a mere 6 days; I certainly don’t need a full 31… On the other hand, I did write more last month than I have since November; I’ve been writing a lot of poetry lately (even if some of it’s not that great) and it’s all counted.
For April, I’m aiming a little bit lower: a mere 8,000 words, no blog posts included. However, I’ve also added another challenge: to finish writing a particular short story, to edit and revise it, and to submit it for competition. And the deadline for that is April 11th… I’m not sure I’ll manage it, but I’m going to give it a damn good try. If I can get it submitted, I’ll be so pleased with myself that I won’t care when I don’t win!
In addition - and this is possibly over-reaching myself - I’ve signed up for National Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo) where the idea is to write a poem a day during April. So that’s up there too, under Work in Progress. I must be nuts.
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on April 2nd, 2008 at 7:45 pm
I find these ‘numbers’ posts very useful, Claire. I am currently grappling to achieve word count targets myself and it something I’m not used to and no good at.
It is inspiring to see how many words can be achieved in a set period with the help of some grit and dedication.
And if a target is set and then missed - well, there’s still a lot of words written down that weren’t there before.
on April 2nd, 2008 at 10:05 pm
I’m used to setting word count targets from NaNoWriMo, and I’ve got a good spreadsheet to help do so, which works out how many words you’ve done, your averages, how many still to do, how many hours it’s taking, and how long it’s going to take you. Although NaNoWriMo is of course about writing not just counting, the spreadsheet does help with the targets.
I’m not using a spreadsheet at the moment; I’m just writing as much as I feel like each day - but I do have a rough amount in my head. And I know I can write 2,500 words in a day (with a full day’s work, too!) if I put my mind to it. I’m just too lazy most of the time.
Oh, and I’ll forgive you for calling me Claire as long as it’s Bebo Author (clairec23) you’re thinking of. Alright, Kevin?
on April 2nd, 2008 at 10:50 pm
I didn’t call you Claire
(poker face)
….
(not working)
yes, it was claire23… really it was.
Sorry
As an apology, my next post will be called ‘Bad with Names’ and will explain the extent of my problem a little.
on April 3rd, 2008 at 12:56 am
It’s very important to set those word count goals; I think the key to all good writing is to be prolific. Not just in the sense of volume of words, but volume of edited words. From this you develop every aspect of your writing.
Setting the target is importnat, working towards it critical- all else is academic. If you put every spare moment you’ve got into the writing, you’ve done all you can, even if that target is not reached.
Good luck with it, and keep us posted, it’s inspiring to see someone working their hardest = )
on April 3rd, 2008 at 10:01 pm
Don’t be so quick to judge yourself nuts! I signed up for NaNoWriMo a week late in 2006 and something sparked in me. By the end of the month I had 60,000 words and finished the novel a couple months later. Said novel is currently with my agent in Boston. You just never know what putting yourself to the test will accomplish!! Good luck and don’t give up!