Well today I got an email from ROW80. Back in January I
joined up and started trying to reach my goals. That lasted about a month and a half before it petered
out and then I completely skipped Round Two. I don’t know whether it was
because I was burnt out from writing my novel, fed up with writing in general
or just pure laziness on my part. I realised though, when I received that email
today that I should really get back on that. I have been writing recently but
not enough as I used to. Again I’m wondering whether it’s burn out or sheer
laziness. With the start of Round Three though I’m going to step up and try to
reach my goals once more.
It is with this in mind that I lay out my intent here, on
the internet, for all to see. My intent behind restarting my RoW80 goals is to fulfil
a number of needs. The first is to write more. It’s simple, but effective. I’ve
not been writing as much as I want and if I want to become a professional
writer I need to get into writing every day, even if it’s just a little. The second
need is to push myself. I have a lot of free time at the minute and I know that
as soon as I get a job I’m going to wish I had used it more effectively. I hate
the feeling of regret so by pushing myself to reach the goals of Round Three I
might be able to prevent it before it’s even begun. The third is simply to give
myself more direction in how I spend my time. I spend so much of my day bored,
surfing the internet that it just seems a waste and these goals will help me
use my time more efficiently and effectively. The fourth and final need is to
push me to complete the things I want to do that aren’t that fun but necessary
for my chosen career dream. Even if it’s writing a synopsis, editing existing
novels, planning new ones or even working on the scripts of projects that have
fallen by the wayside. I’m going to push myself to work on them all, even if I
don’t really want to because they are necessary.
So that’s it. My intent is laid out clear and simple. The
third Round starts at the beginning of July so in the next few days I’m going
to think long and hard about the goals I’m going to set myself on the first
post. They need to be clear, measurable but not overly fixed. I think I know
them already actually. Now it’s a matter of just writing them down and checking
them out. They won’t be all focused on writing though, I know that much.
Sounds like you're in the same position I am, wanting and needing to write. Good luck with this round!
ReplyDeleteThis year was a really rough year for me. I've been doing writing dares for years -- heck my blog is called The Daring Novelist because it's an attempt to make life into an ongoing novel dare.
DeleteAnd I can say that I don't often hit my entirely reasonable and often low-set goals. But I can also say that it makes a big difference to keep throwing your hat in the ring.
The first few times you do a challenge (of any kind) you'll do unbelievably great or sink like a stone. But after a while, you'll even out and it will be an ongoing struggle -- and for me the key to getting through that struggle is to continue to report progress, even if there is no progress, day after day, week after week.
Don't be afraid to shift your goals more than once within a single round of ROW80. Lower them for a while, raise them back up if you want. Count minutes rather than words. Just make it so that you have a daily (or at least twice weekly) deadline -- not just a deadline at the end.
This summer has been the first time I've really hit my stride in a LONG time. I did it because I tried and failed for two years ahead of that. (This after thirty years of writing.)
Looking forward to your updates!