Seeing your tweets lately has inspired me a lot. I've found one excuse after the other not to write for the past 3 years. Seeing you do it, little by little, it's great! Keep it up 
About Robert
Robert McKay. Still a 20 something, but not for much longer. Married. Writer. Geek. Vegetarian. Technophile. Bibliophile. Audiophile. Lover of learning. For more about me, check out the about me page.
| Writing Goals, Part 1 |
| Written by Robert McKay |
| Monday, 14 September 2009 08:42 |
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Sometimes I feel like Dori from Finding Nemo with her "Just keep swimming" mantra, but I've found that the only way to actually get a story to novel length is to "Just keep writing". There's no amazing tip that will suddenly allow you to pound out thousands of words a day when before you weren't writing any. It's as simple as putting your butt in a chair and not getting up until you've met your writing goal.
You: I don't have a writing goal.
Me: Get one. Seriously.
You: I don't work well with goals. I feel pressured...blah, blah blah.
I used to tell myself those very same things. All the while I was telling myself those things I got almost nothing done. I would poke at a project for a few days when that elusive inspiration hit me and then i wouldn't do anything with it for months. Setting a writing goal, no matter how meager, helps you keep going.
You: But won't it feel like a job then?
Me: Writing a novel is a job.
You: No, I have a job. Writing is just a hobby.
Me: Do you intend to one day publish your novel and get paid for it?
You: Of course!
Me: Then it's a job! You don't get paid for hobbies.
Now, just because it's a job, that doesn't mean that you're not allowed to love it. Get a writing goal and rejoice every time you hit it. Those small successes will feed your ego and help you keep on going. Sit down any time you have a chance and try to bang out a few words. Make sure that you have a chance every day. Yes, every day, at least in the beginning. You may be able to take days off once you have made writing a habit, but you really shouldn't for quite some time. So, in the beginning your goal should just be to write every day. After you have done that for a little while (about 2 weeks) you should try setting a specific daily or weekly goal.
You: Well, what should my specific writing goal be?
Ah, that's something for next time. In Part 2 we'll talk about what I set for my goal and why, and see if we can help you figure out what your goal should be. Until then, keep putting one word in front of the other. If it helps, chant my Dori-esque mantra. "Just keep writing."
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