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I didn’t reach my February writing goal
last month and it sort of bugs me. So far, I’m not doing too well this month
either. I guess that means I need to modify my goal to 250 words per day rather
than 500. When I get so focused on writing posts and comments, I tend not to take
time to let go and just write. Writing to publish a post every day is a
different feeling, a different sort of goal or deadline. I need to spend more
time putting words on paper but then I start feeling guilty about delaying doing
the dishes or laundry or whatever. It is often during a free write at home or
in a moment when I’m writing along with my students that ideas come and
sentences leak out and flow. For me, volume is important. I need to get a lot
on the page so I can cross most of it off and find the heart of what I want to say. My daily word count is more of a formative dipstick than anything else. I’ve noticed that the higher my daily word count, the more satisfied
I am with my writing.
Morning Diane,
ReplyDeleteI tried the 750 words a day challenge and that was too much for me. I found myself more focused on getting to the word count. It wasn't getting my flow going.
I think for me, the photo/text challenge works better but I still can't get back to a daily routine. That's what I want back.
Good luck with yours,
Bonnie
I have never counted my words. It is interesting what makes each of us tick as a writer. Almost all of my rehearsal (early writing) takes place in my head not on paper so I guess I don't have a way to count it anyway.
ReplyDeleteI like how you say you need to write a lot so you can then cross much of it out. You whittle down on paper, I whittle down in my head.
I do agree with you about deadline writing...it is a different beast from daily journal musings.
I'm really admiring that you set a challenge for yourself. I wish that I would have students that would push my limits. I coach and teach primary literacy and we are just doing writing in conjunction within the Leveled Literacy Program. I will have some university students that will be pushing me soon. This is a good challenge for me, I hope that I can keep on.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite line, "ideas come and sentences leak out and flow." When that is happening to me, I feel like a writer. Sometimes it's a push to get the words down.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was doing the 750 word challenge, I found myself writing some pretty bad stuff :) But when I went back to read it, there were some gems too. In fact, the gems often followed lines and lines of junk so I guess that flow and volume are important.
ReplyDeleteI can relate - I need to dedicate more time to myself as a writer. I think it will be one of my big focuses over the next school year. I have never done a daily goal as far as a word count goes and I have never followed through with Laurie Halse Anderson's Write Fifteen Minutes a Day, but always get excited about the idea. Maybe I will be trying out either a word count or a time count goal soon. It seems like word count would be the way to go when the objective is volume.
ReplyDeleteYou know, you're writing so much here at the March Challenge, Diana. And there are so many varieties of writing here to parse through - I feel that I grow so much as a writer during these challenges just because of that...even though my writer's notebook gets a bit neglected. There are only so many hours in a day, kiddo!
ReplyDeleteYou have ventured to different writing territories. I am still exploring my life as a slice writer. I am wondering how your "750 words daily" and "Publish a slice daily" coexist and support each other. I understand that they compete for time but I imagine there are benefits too.
ReplyDeleteThose writing challenges frustrate the heck out of me...I just don't seem to function that way, yet I need to set a goal of some kind. Thanks for sharing your frustration--it lets me know I am not alone!
ReplyDeleteI never really thought of trying to count the number of words. That might be a good strategy for some of my students to help them really improve volume and then be able to cross out to get to the heart of what they are saying!
ReplyDeleteKatie
Interesting. My writing is almost always too long, so I've never been interested in word counts. I just want to get my thoughts and feelings out -- if anything, I need to try to be more concise! Thanks for sharing this personal piece of your writing life!
ReplyDeleteI found this interesting. I have begun to notice something similar about myself. When I begin to write, it is a bunch of nothing with a little something tucked inside. I really have enjoyed unveiling the little nugget that is the real story as I peel back the layers of the unnecessary words. I hadn't really thought about the fact that this might be necessary for my process though until now, I need to say a lot to get to the heart of what I want to say. Thanks for helping me figure that out!
ReplyDeleteI can't even count how many of the "Word Count Challenges" I have signed up for. And I never last more than a few weeks. At the same time, I know that when I am writing more, the writing comes more easily, and I write better. Two of my most important mentors, Don Graves and Don Murray, lived by the motto, "Never a day without a line…" That's the place I want to get to in my life…
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