June 2020 Challenge - Write Every Day!

Magnus

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Whoa, June is coming up.

This is a thread open to anyone who wants to start, maintain, or reinforce a writing habit. (It can also be about revision, editing, research, or even just the everyday stuff you need to keep up with to support your writing.)

The idea is that repeating something daily will build a habit that becomes stronger over time.

It's entirely up to you how much and in what way you participate. Post your goals if you like, or just check in when you can!

Here are some tips:


  • Set achievable goals – I can't stress enough how important this is. To build a habit, doing something is more important than quantity or quality.
  • Try to do a little every day – even if it's just writing a sentence or two. It reinforces the habit of sitting down to write and makes it easier to get keep it up in the long run.
  • Be adaptive – You'll always be facing new challenges, and what works for someone else doesn't always work for you. What worked for you last week might not work this week. Try different types of goals, different times of the day, and different tricks to reward or motivate yourself. A good habit is what works for you, today.
  • Be patient – It takes a long time to build a strong habit, and progress happens in tiny increments; you won't always notice it day by day, or even week by week.
  • Failure is a part of the process – Failure is a natural part of improving your skills. It lets you figure out what went wrong so you can do better in the future. When you fail to hit your target, your job is figuring out why it happened. That way, you can find ways to get around your roadblocks (and don't be scared of lowering the bar).

Remember: if you share your experiences in the thread, others might be able to help out with tips, tricks, and support! And it's okay to just take a break for a day or two, or have scheduled days off. Find what works for you.

Good luck, and see you June 1st!
 

Layla Nahar

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Hi Magnus! Yeah, I had the same reaction.

Is this year in August the 3rd birthday of Write Something Every Day, or the 4th? (I think it might be the 4th...)

I'm in, of course. Thank you Magnus for the thread, and thank you everyone who participates.

I'm in for my usual 3 - deal with life and KEEP WRITING - (for the newbs) that means 3 actions every day:

1) add some words to my WIP
2) one action of responsibility or self-care
3) The Prosperity category - one action to bring in money or to make my livingspace and possessions more pleasant and better cared for.
 

Cindyt

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I'm in! Thanks, Magnus!

My goals are

1.Write some words
2. Edit
3. Read
4. Not let depression and life keep me below the surface.
 

weird_cat

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I'm in! I have a tendency to write in short bursts and burn out after a while, which is something I'd like to work on.
If it helps anyone, one (weird) thing I've found to help is sticker charts (yes, the same kind they give to little kids!). It can be more motivating to have some acknowledgement of your progress, even if it feels a little childish :)
 

Keithy

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With a bit of luck and a fair wind, I should finish the first draft of Fishy Tail by the end of June.

After that, I will share my time between the first draft of Dustworld and belatedly editing Demon Hunter (Shana & co).

You know, I mostly manage to keep this "something every day" routine going... it's just that I don't feel like I'm getting much done.
 

Magnus

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Goals

Time for something new. I'm going to aim for a weekly goal of hours spent. I'll start with 10 hours this week, spent in uninterrupted sessions of minimum 30 minutes. Let's see how that goes. The novel is the main project, but any WIP counts, as it would be good to complete a short story as well.
 

Woollybear

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I'm in.

1. Finish second draft (20,000 words or so to go)--making the plot and goals consistent throughout.
2. Start third draft (incorporate the workshops comments and reconfigure chapters to work better)
3. non-writing--some home projects including sealing the patio.
 

hjrey

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Hope to manage this as been writing every day for the last few weeks and fingers crossed it continues!

Goals:
1. Finish Act 2 of my WIP and break into Act 3
2. Limit Youtube procrastination and read instead
3. Write at least between 500-1,000 words a day

(Probably will give myself the day off on my birthday though)
 

Keithy

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Well done everyone who did more than zero words!

Weekend word counts:

522 & 572 on Fishy tail. Kaylee smashed her way into a locked restroom and used her water power to take down a CCTV camera. Then she found her way to the cargo bay to let William in.

343 & 268 on dustworld. Etia and Rodney bought some ammunition and posed as bounty hunters seeking themselves to gain information. Then they went to a gambling den, and Etia is doing much better than Rodney.

non-writing

sweeping up crap from around the front garden.

keep swimming... sometimes I feel like I'm treading water, but it's better than the alternative.

(My stories often involve water: Demon Hunter - Shana has nightmares about it; Dustworld - there's not much of it; Fishy Tail - It's Kaylee's home)
 

yoshinocho

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I'm in as well!

Goals:
1. Write a least a page every day.
2. Stick with the project.
 

Taylor Harbin

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1. Finish the book.
2. Rework an older story to send to Mysterion when they open in July.

Today I finished chapter 13. This is gonna be the draftiest draft that ever drafted. Can’t just paste hundreds of pages of transcriptions in here. I’ve actually got to invent scenes for the days when court isn’t in session.
 

Woollybear

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Weird cat—I agree sticker charts are great. I make a to-do list most days and cross off as I go. The physicality of it helps.

Keithy—I feel the same, that too little is getting done. Lies, those are lies! Lots is getting done! CREATION!!! :) Congrats on your weekend word counts.

On the one hand I can’t believe it will take me two months to revise this manuscript into second-draft, because I wrote it in four. I thought I could breeze through a revision pass in a few weeks. But no. It takes me a few days just to go through a single chapter. Hopefully next time through will be quicker.

I expect there will be at least a half dozen edits and revisions ahead. Oh well.

Magnus, I so appreciate these threads.

Taylor—congrats on the Chapter 13 progress. Drafty, heh, I like that.

Yoshinocho—Hi!

Layla and Cindy: Hi again!

I worked on chapter 26 this weekend and trimmed off 500 words (from 4100 down to 3600). It was an easier chapter to wrangle than some of the earlier ones—this one relies heavily on tropes (tried and true), and has a clear goal, and a clear obstacle, and it also foreshadows something important for the climax—I was happy with the draft when I wrote it in February and overall it holds up. It also ties off a major story goal, saving the little boy who kicked off the main protagonist’s journey. So actually, chapter 26 accomplished a lot.

Also, I'm still writing out an index card for each chapter. There are 34 chapters altogether and when I have the index cards for all of them (each one specifies the chapter goals/conflict, and writerly problems I need to straighten out) I’ll be able to brainstorm big picture structural stuff for the third draft.

Chapter 27, onward.
 
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Layla Nahar

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congrats on that work, bear (the index cards sound very satisfying)
ptero, at least it’s a start. Congrats on those sentences :)


Day 1.


WIP - added words
R/SC - walk in the woods
BP/$$ - 6 hours of job, dreaded phone call
 

yoshinocho

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Day 1.

Wrote a page or two.
Finished major presentation for language program.
Took a long walk.

Tomorrow, now that I don't have serious obligations hanging over my head--hope to double down on work!
 

Cindyt

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Word Count 2463

Research - Cherokee name for May (The Planting Moon)

Layla - WTG on adding words!

Woolly - :hi: Congrats for the trim and the easier wrangle!
 

Pterofan

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Day 1 turned out better than I thought it would. I did indeed write before bed, and turned those couple of lines into a page and a quarter. That's at least a solid 500 words. Woo-hoo! Can't wait to see what I do tonight.

I'm having fun with my vampire character. He started out generic, but as soon as I named him "Helmut" his backstory began to fill in. He was a German soldier in WWII. His unit was in Hungary when they came across one of those moldy old castles in a deep, dark wood. Three guesses what happened when the sun went down. After he got turned he lost interest in mortal politics, walked away from the war and had himself shipped to Greenland. From there he made his way to Canada and eventually to the States. At least, that's the story he tells everybody. The rest of his unit did similar self-shipping, and have established themselves as a white supremacist movement in Texas. That's right, it's Nazi vampires! Which means my "Tom Selleck" character will be the one to deal with them, because if you're going to fight Nazis, it's best to call in Indiana Jones.
 

Woollybear

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Layla: The woods sound lovely. Good job on the things!

Yoshinocho: Congrats on the presentation prep and the words.

Pterofan: "...as soon as I named him "Helmut" his backstory began to fill in" LOLOLOL and I am here for the nazi vampires!!!

CindyT: your word count is back in the quadruple digits! WTG!

Me: Got through chapter 27 and word count went from 2160 down to 2040. I couldn't remember what this chapter was about after I finished editing chapter 26, because 26 advanced the plot so heavily, and there was nothing obvious for 'other protagonist' to do next... turns out 27 is more sequel than scene, lots of emotional settling and reframing and reconceptualizing. A real think-y philosophical chapter, what is reality, what is family, and so on. It works, baby. I'm so happy.

Bit puzzled that both 26 and 27 have been relatively painless to revise. Everything from ch 11 through 23 was hard work. Maybe at this point in the rough draft I'd found my sea legs.

Onward to 28!
 

Taylor Harbin

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Two and a half pages written, but since it's courtroom dialogue, that doesn't count for very many words. Oh well.
 

Layla Nahar

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yoshi, congratulations on those words :)
w00t Cindy, excellent work with that 2K!
That’s fantasic Ptero, congrats on the flow
bear, great work on that editing :)
Congrats on those pages, Taylor


Day 2


WIP - added words.
R/SC - dishes (early am chore before work) housemate phone interview
BP/$$ - job 11.5 hrs
 

Keithy

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Pterofan - I like your vampire nazi!
Cindy - another mountain of words. Hat doffings sent your way.
Layla & Taylor - lots of good words there I sure.

My efforts over the last two days:

Fishy Tail: 795 & 1201 words. Kaylee and William have got into the villain's lab and found some fishy hybrids. They're scared of Kaylee.

Dustworld: 434 and 444 words. Etia and Rodney went to a gambling den. They were doing quite well until the tax collectors turned up to collect gambling taxes. Etia ended up in prison.

non-writing

Tidying up the garden just in case I ever get to plant some flowers this year.

keep swimming or gardening! :)
 

Cindyt

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Day 2

Word Count 1678

Layla - Added words FTW!
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Keithy - Excellent word count as always!

Woolly - Congrats on painless chapters! I just addy some thinky to a chapter, and mine works as well.
 
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Pterofan

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Day 2 - roughly half a page

I have air conditioning!!!!!! The techs installed the new unit this morning. Maybe this will motivate me to be more productive; I have a year and a half to pay it off before the interest kicks in.