Writing, Jan gywo
I never wrote here about my final decision to do 
getyourwordsout - I ended up signing up at the very last minute (literally 15 minutes before midnight pacific time, iirc) on the last day. I’m aiming for 150,000, the smallest pledge, which I think is achievable even while I have other writing-related projects like editing etc. to do as well. My counts for January are not deeply impressive - about 4000 words - but considering I only committed mid-month and I’m out of the habit of keeping track of words and probably missed a few, it’s not so bad.
I am considering trying a period when I don't read for enjoyment for a few days, to see if I get more or better writing done. This is somewhat akin to telling regular people that they will have to take a break from breathing for a while. I do think that reading is important as a writer, but sometimes you let other people’s styles or topics slip into your own work. That’s less a concern than just the sheer time management angle for me, though - reading is what I do for fun, when I’m bored or waiting for something, or really anytime. It’s like taking a break from TV for a while, or not going out to eat in order to save money - it’s not like watching TV or eating out is horrible, and it’s not like you won’t ever do it again, but each of us only has 24 hours in a day and if you want to get long writing projects done sometimes something else has to make way temporarily. I’d love to hear from anyone else who’s tried something similar.
On the topic of writers and process, I really liked this recent post from the Writers’ Digest blog about structuring your writing akin to marathon training. I like the idea that not all writing sessions need to be the same - some can be sprints while some are long-distance training. It gives you flexibility and it probably strengthens your “writing muscles,” as it were.
I am gearing up to attend a multi-day writers’ conference next week, and give some more pitches to agents and editors, FSM give me strength. This entry was originally posted at http://bonspiel.dreamwidth.org/42290.html.
getyourwordsout - I ended up signing up at the very last minute (literally 15 minutes before midnight pacific time, iirc) on the last day. I’m aiming for 150,000, the smallest pledge, which I think is achievable even while I have other writing-related projects like editing etc. to do as well. My counts for January are not deeply impressive - about 4000 words - but considering I only committed mid-month and I’m out of the habit of keeping track of words and probably missed a few, it’s not so bad.
I am considering trying a period when I don't read for enjoyment for a few days, to see if I get more or better writing done. This is somewhat akin to telling regular people that they will have to take a break from breathing for a while. I do think that reading is important as a writer, but sometimes you let other people’s styles or topics slip into your own work. That’s less a concern than just the sheer time management angle for me, though - reading is what I do for fun, when I’m bored or waiting for something, or really anytime. It’s like taking a break from TV for a while, or not going out to eat in order to save money - it’s not like watching TV or eating out is horrible, and it’s not like you won’t ever do it again, but each of us only has 24 hours in a day and if you want to get long writing projects done sometimes something else has to make way temporarily. I’d love to hear from anyone else who’s tried something similar.
On the topic of writers and process, I really liked this recent post from the Writers’ Digest blog about structuring your writing akin to marathon training. I like the idea that not all writing sessions need to be the same - some can be sprints while some are long-distance training. It gives you flexibility and it probably strengthens your “writing muscles,” as it were.
I am gearing up to attend a multi-day writers’ conference next week, and give some more pitches to agents and editors, FSM give me strength. This entry was originally posted at http://bonspiel.dreamwidth.org/42290.html.