I was going to write and submit a short story for this paranormal romance competition, but I didn't. This is one of the things I want to work on in my life--setting writing goals and making them.
I've always been attached to keeping schedules and stuff on paper--I absolutely loved my Franklin Covery planner. Now I use my cell phone, which usually works, but it's just a cell phone--it's little, it doesn't give me the satisfaction of flipping pages and writing appointments and goals, and it doesn't give me the rush of being able to cross stuff off as I get it done. Am I being too paperbound? It's hard to tell. I feel like if I have this perfectly useful gadget, I should use it. But I really, really want a paper planner, too.
Maybe I'll see what Fred Meyer has for cheap next time I'm in there.
Jeremy and Dawn use an online scheduler, which is very handy for them, apparently--especially in terms of scheduling out time each day for writing. I feel like an hourly planner would be much more useful to me.
Hmmm...maybe I'll take a walk to FM today on my lunch... ;-)
A collection of random thoughts, writing, stuff I like, and the occasional well-deserved rant.
Sarah! I feel your pain about missing deadlines with writing. I'm super wonderful at procrastination too. So I wrote this...I call it The Plan, amazingly enough. :) Feel free to tweak; I've got it on my laptop and also on my bulletin board. Not as good as a calendar to schedule things, but still good for motivation.
ReplyDeleteThe Plan
The fundamentals of The Plan are simple and easy to follow:
Everyday I will write at least 1000 words in the novel that I am currently working on. Obviously I am allowed to write more, but the minimum is exactly 1000. I am not allowed to write two stories at the same time, since this may cause confusion and/or procrastination on my part. The idea is to focus. The only way I can get out of writing on a certain day is if I am physically unable to write. Examples of this include (but are not limited to) sickness, hospitalization, vacation away from home, work, or meetings. I am not allowed to backtrack on a book; there will be time later for fixing things and rearrangement. I cannot write the same word over and over to reach my 1000 words. When, to my satisfaction, the bulk of the novel is complete, I have then earned one day of rest from the fiction that I have created. This is optional, of course, and it can also be extended to up to a month. But after the rest period, if I choose to take it, then I may go back and include, cut, and otherwise edit the work. Once the novel is totally complete, and this means that all editing has been finished and no more can be added to or taken from the manuscript, I must NOT putter around with the work for one entire week. This is not optional. The book needs to rest and I need a break from it as well. Within this time, I may work on another novel and begin The Plan again. After the week is up I must read the entire piece from start to finish and look for continuity, character development, grammar and spelling, and all the other things that I could possibly be turned down for by a literary agent.
Ultimately this is a contract with myself to use the gift that I have been given. Choosing to not use it is entirely unheard of, but with my lack of motivation, this plan is necessary. This is also required to prove to myself that I am capable and talented and I can achieve anything I set my mind to. This contract is binding, and while I will only be letting myself down if I do not fulfill it, I am my own worst enemy and I wouldn’t like to have myself after me my whole life.