Writing 500 words/day
Dec. 18th, 2018 04:44 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
g_uavaSince December 2017, I've (mostly) fulfilled a daily quota of 500 words or 1 page a day for days when I've decided to work on my fanfics. Writing is seldom as straightforward an act as I'd like it to be - just sit down, bang out my 500 words and move on to non-writing activities for the rest of the day.
Here's how my writing days often go:
Wake up, try to plan the next 500 words
This'd involve rolling around on my bed, either while surfing some random site on my phone or just thinking. I get impatient sometimes and try to write entire paragraphs in my head. The words flow better for me when I deliberately focus on imagining the characters' actions and interactions, instead of fixating on choosing which words to use right now.
Open Evernote app and write 100 words
I type the next bit, then check the word count. I check how much of the fic is written more often than I like; it can motivate me to know how close I am to getting done for the day but has the opposite effect when I realize I'm still far from the next ~100 mark.
Before starting a new story in a blank note, I get ready to at least put down 100 words in one sitting. Otherwise, I doubt my ability to sustain the momentum for finishing that piece.
Write ~250 words
On most days, the first half of the quota feels the hardest to write. Once I get this half out of the way, I get the confidence to finish the entire quota for the day. Even if I finish the first half early in the morning, and only leave the rest to be written late at night.
Write ~387 words
This is when I'd check the total word count again and find that I'm a few words short of the next ~100 mark. Closing this gap and reaching the next multiple of 100, one sentence at a time, builds momentum and the joy of creation.
Write ~510+ words
Though my daily quota is 500, I like to conclude the writing routine by writing a little bit more to give myself a headstart for the next session.
Sometimes I subconsciously treat myself as the enemy that keeps me from getting what I want to be written, that is due to my insecurities, lack of ideas and skill etc. Giving myself a boost/cheat code is a neat way of ending the day with the self-compassion essential to making myself happy through writing.
Here's how my writing days often go:
Wake up, try to plan the next 500 words
This'd involve rolling around on my bed, either while surfing some random site on my phone or just thinking. I get impatient sometimes and try to write entire paragraphs in my head. The words flow better for me when I deliberately focus on imagining the characters' actions and interactions, instead of fixating on choosing which words to use right now.
Open Evernote app and write 100 words
I type the next bit, then check the word count. I check how much of the fic is written more often than I like; it can motivate me to know how close I am to getting done for the day but has the opposite effect when I realize I'm still far from the next ~100 mark.
Before starting a new story in a blank note, I get ready to at least put down 100 words in one sitting. Otherwise, I doubt my ability to sustain the momentum for finishing that piece.
Write ~250 words
On most days, the first half of the quota feels the hardest to write. Once I get this half out of the way, I get the confidence to finish the entire quota for the day. Even if I finish the first half early in the morning, and only leave the rest to be written late at night.
Write ~387 words
This is when I'd check the total word count again and find that I'm a few words short of the next ~100 mark. Closing this gap and reaching the next multiple of 100, one sentence at a time, builds momentum and the joy of creation.
Write ~510+ words
Though my daily quota is 500, I like to conclude the writing routine by writing a little bit more to give myself a headstart for the next session.
Sometimes I subconsciously treat myself as the enemy that keeps me from getting what I want to be written, that is due to my insecurities, lack of ideas and skill etc. Giving myself a boost/cheat code is a neat way of ending the day with the self-compassion essential to making myself happy through writing.
