Novel stands at almost 74,000 words as of today. That means I only got 3,000 words written this week, instead of the 5,000 I wanted, and the 10,000 I needed to write to catch up with losing last week to the flu.
So what happened? Looking back, all I can see is excuses: I’ve only got 30 minutes to write, and that’s not enough time to do anything good (never mind that this is the first draft, so the good or bad doesn’t matter so much now as simply getting it done); or I can’t write today, I’ve got to make dinner before my wife comes home (even though my wife is awesome, and would totally understand if dinner were a little late because I took time to write); or I’ve got too much else going on to write (bills, chores, etc).
I think part of my problem is that I don’t have a set-aside writing time. Currently it’s catch-as-catch-can, with me snatching time away from other activities (like making dinner) to get some writing done.
I also still have trouble letting go of my inner editor. This makes even the time I do take to write less productive than it could be, with me second- and triple-guessing each word, each line, before I write it.
So, new strategy for next week: get up thirty minutes earlier, and dedicate that time to writing. Then pull a half-hour from my lunch break and use that, as well. That’ll give me an hour of writing time, which should be about a thousand words, which will keep me from falling further behind (if not exactly back on track to meet my writing goal for the month).
Also: spike my inner editor’s morning coffee, so when I’m gearing up to write he’s passed out on the couch, dreaming in red ink.
