Our Daily Count

One thousand words. At least. Every day.

Seems easy, right? Some days it is.

Some days it’s torture. And usually on those days I’m writing about how difficult it is to write at that level.

True story. I hit my daily count more quickly on the days that I’m agitated.

It’s just stream of consciousness rambling. Which is why not much, if any, of that will ever make it to print. Even here.

And you know what my writing is like here…

The thing about making the daily word count is that I know that I have to set aside a time to write. For me it’s best if I can do it in the morning.

Ideally, I’d be able to get up in the morning, make a cup of coffee, read my daily scripture reading, and sit down to write.

Unfortunately, there’s usually fifteen-to-twenty minutes of caring for the livestock.

Sing for me Janis…Oh Lord, won’t you buy me an electric fence.

I digress.

Most days I really write more than a thousand words. In addition to the running file where I do the writing described above, I’m writing blog posts, and emails, and reports, and, of course, a script. That’s all outside of the day job.

Generally, I’m not counting all of those words. Unless it’s November and I’m participating in Nanowrimo. Some years I’ve been known to ask if it was acceptable to paste my Facebook status into my Nanowrimo novel.

It would make just as much sense.

Again, I digress.

A thousand words seems like a large goal. It’s really not.

By setting that goal, however, I’m becoming more successful and productive with my writing.

What I’m learning is that it’s good to have big, long-term goals. It’s also beneficial to break those down into

Historic Occasions
(click the pic)

manageable amounts.

Like my yard this week. The goal was front yard Tuesday night. Back yard last night. That quickly escalated into “I need a new lawnmower” Tuesday night. Sigh…

The plan was for that to allow me to get back inside and back to the writing. Plans change.

I’m enjoying my new journal that helps me track those segments of my day. The advice that comes along with the book is to not have any blank space in your calendar. Instead they suggest that you fill every time slot even if you’re writing in “checking Facebook” or “napping” or whatever.

It’s a learning process. In graphic design I’m not afraid of white space on the page. But the implication in a calendar is that I don’t have anything to do.

That’s never the case.

At the same time, what this allows me to do is to put in a time where my task for the hour or so might be vegetating in front of the television. And that’s okay.

What goes into your “unscheduled” block of time. Feel free to put in “Read and Share The Write Side of My Brain.”

It all counts.

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