Home
>
Writing
>
The Dreaded Daily Word Count

The Dreaded Daily Word Count

Open any book on 'how to write,' and somewhere you will find a discussion of how many words you should write every day. Forget the struggle to get ourselves to the paper or the computer every day, now we have to produce a certain number of words?

Me? I don't write every day (Quick! Call the Writer Police!), I don't do 2000 words, and you don't have to either. So what's the pace you should aim for and how do you figure that out? I'll show you.

Rather than order yourself to write a certain number of words a day, join the Design Your Own Word Count program. Here's how to find your daily word count in 3 easy steps:

1) Give yourself an easy word count limit, say 10 words. Ready? Go. And.....stop. Hurray! Congratulations, you've met your goal. You're free to go do the laundry or have some ice cream. Your choice.

Seriously, note how you'd feel fairly ridiculous if you stopped there. Remember that feeling and keep writing. Check in whenever you find yourself pausing and see if you still feel that way (i.e. lame, lazy, if you're laughing--picture yourself telling a writer friend, "I wrote 27 words today, isn't that awesome?" Picture the look on their face). Now, keep writing.

2) As long as you feel interested and excited in what you're doing each time you check in, keep going. Even if you're nervous and a little scared, keep going. Those feelings will propel you past superficial writing about how much you're looking forward to that bowl of Ben & Jerry's.

3) When do you stop? When you first notice you're controlling word and image choice. When you notice your thoughts turning negative. When you feel yourself sliding downhill into The Tar Pit of Despair. Dig in your heels and turn your eyes back to the sun (your page or computer screen). Look what you've accomplished!

It's important that you end the session still feeling positive and excited about what you're writing. Hemingway always stopped at a place where he could leave himself something to start with the next day, something to look forward to. Do the same. Jot down where you want to pick up the next time and stop.

Work your way up to the count that feels right, through practicing the above exercise. The amount of time you spend lost in your enthusiasm (sometimes even the nervousness) for what you're writing will get longer and longer the more you stick with it.

We all really LOVE writing. It's not the act itself, it's the fear that everything we produce will stink and everyone will find out. Pssst, let me tell you a secret: everybody writes garbage. I'm including the greats too. Except maybe Shakespeare. Some publisher should dig up some of this bad writing from the best writers of our time and publish it. It would make us all feel better.

Here's another tip - STOP TRYING TO IMPRESS THE PEOPLE IN YOUR HEAD. Whoever they are. Who cares what they think? This is about discovering what interesting things you have to say, what visions are in your mind's eye. Maybe they don't come out as polished as you'd like, but they are still important. You're not going to write a Pulitzer Prize winning novel right out of the gate. Give yourself a break. Just get it on paper. You can fix it later in the editing process. If you've got a blank page, you've got nothing. Can't give a haircut or new hairstyle to a person who is completely bald, right?

I'm giving you a free pass to write garbage. In fact, that's your first assignment. See what truly awful stuff you can write. I dare you.

As for writing every day: Promise yourself you'll write 3 or 4 days a week and stick to it. If you end up not writing for a week or even two months, and the next time you do you really enjoy it--and end up writing for two weeks straight before taking a break--I'd consider that a SUCCESSFUL writing practice.

I believe what keeps you writing is that electric loss of self--when you're inside the experience, flowing with your thoughts and vision--even if that feeling only lasts for 10 minutes.

IT'S THE PROCESS NOT THE PRODUCT. Stop when you're still feeling good. Leave yourself wanting more.

By the way, the word count for this article is 796. Not 2000 but who cares? What matters is: I wrote today. Did you? More importantly: did you have fun? Good for you. Write it on a Post-it note and slap it on your computer screen. Make sure you use lots of exclamation points. You deserve it.

Christine Stewart is an artist-in-residence with Creative Alliance in Baltimore. She has an M.A. and M.F.A. in creative writing and poetry, is the recipient of a Ruth Lilly Fellowship, a Pushcart Prize nominee, and has been published in Poetry, Ploughshares, and other literary magazines. She mentors and leads private workshops for adults and teens, and has taught writing in the extension programs at Los Angeles Valley College and Pasadena City College in California. Check out her website at: http://www.therealwriter.com

elite cleaning services Mundelein ..

In The News:

Scammers are flooding inboxes with fake tracking alerts that mimic real carriers, exploiting the holiday rush to steal logins and personal data.

The Fox News AI Newsletter brings you the latest news on AI technology advancements and the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.

Texas family reunites with missing 11-year-old cat Grayson after 103 days using Petco Love Lost's AI photo matching technology and community help.

Tired of AI customer service loops? These insider tricks help you escape "frustration AI" and get real human help when you need it most for urgent issues.

Unlock richer audio from your streaming apps with simple tweaks to volume normalization, equalizer settings, and quality preferences for cleaner sound.

Scammers are sending fake Facebook settlement payout emails that mimic legitimate notices from the privacy settlement administrator to deceive users.

Holiday shopping scams surge as fake refund emails target distracted consumers during Black Friday and holiday seasons, costing Americans billions annually.

The AI-powered IRMO M1 exoskeleton features four modes, including turbo, eco, training and rest for hiking, running, cycling and sports with eight-hour battery life.

OpenAI announced upgrades for its ChatGPT Images platform on Tuesday, saying the program can now make more precise edits and produce images more quickly.

Chrome for Android now turns web articles into AI-powered podcast conversations. Get hands-free browsing with Google Gemini's natural audio summaries.

LastPass faces $1.6 million fine from U.K. regulators after 2022 data breach exposed 1.6 million users. Password manager failed proper security controls.

Petco disclosed a data breach exposing customer Social Security numbers, financial account details, and driver's license information due to a software error.

Baseball teams can now analyze complete swing mechanics in normal training environments using Theia's markerless AI system that processes standard high-speed footage.

Smart home hacking fears overblown? Expert reveals real cybersecurity risks and simple protection tips to keep your connected devices safe from hackers.

MIT develops needle-free glucose monitor using light technology. Revolutionary device could replace painful finger pricks for diabetes management.

The ClickFix campaign disguises malware as legitimate Windows updates, using steganography to hide shellcode in PNG files and bypass security detection systems.

Researchers from Osaka Metropolitan University designed a 21-foot dome that combines aquaculture and hydroponics to create a self-sustaining urban food system.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

ChatGPT data breach exposes personal info of users through partner Mixpanel. OpenAI confirms names, emails compromised in security incident.

Android rolls out Emergency Live Video for 911 calls, letting dispatchers see real-time scenes during emergencies. Great for holiday travel safety.

Malicious Chrome and Edge extensions collected browsing history, keystrokes and personal data from millions of users before Google and Microsoft removed them.

Google's new Call Reason feature lets Android users mark calls as urgent before dialing, displaying an urgent label to recipients using Phone by Google app.

Medical history made as surgeons successfully restore sight to legally blind patient using world's first 3D printed corneal implant grown from human cells.

Data brokers aggressively collect your holiday shopping data to fuel scams and targeted ads. Learn how to delete your digital profile before 2025 starts.

Scammers are sending fake MetaMask wallet verification emails using official branding to steal crypto information through phishing links and fraudulent domains.

The Dreaded Daily Word Count

Writing