Timed Writing
Lately, we Critters have needed a kick in the fannies to get writing, and we’ve been discussing different ways to motivate ourselves. Here’s one way, which occurs to me only because my three-year-old is being a pain in the…fanny.
He wanted me to go get him some crackers. Now, there’s no reason he can’t procure his own snack–the cupboard is at floor level and he can easily open it. He just didn’t feel like leaving the family room couch and going upstairs to the kitchen. (Neither did I, for that matter.) So I told him, “I bet you can’t get those crackers before I finished counting to ten”, and he was off.
Suddenly, it was a game and he was racing the clock. Of course, I stopped counting the minute he was out of earshot and picked up around six the as soon as I heard his feet pounding down the stairs.
Why can’t we use this same motivation to write? Something like, “I bet you can’t write ten lines in ten minutes.” Then, set the timer and start typing. No stopping to edit, or reread. Just–go! Maybe you can write more than ten lines. Or maybe, you’ll write less; then you’ve lost the time challenge, but you’re still some lines ahead of what you would have been if you’d never written at all.
So, what do you think? Ready? Steady? Go!
I've been thinking about this…
challenges, timed writing, motivation. We could set up a thread.
We could actually use that chat we've got OR set up an IM chat on one of the many IM chat mediums–yahoo, msn, etc.
Penny Dune(Quote) (Reply)
I used to do sprints on yahoo with a few people.
We'd write in 10 minute segments and compare wordcounts.
You would not believe how much you can write that way. I still do it myself, I set a timer for 15 mins, and I am not allowed to get up, open a browser, or anything in that time.
Hey presto. Lots of writing.
In fact, I did this yesterday after I scrapped 7k of my anthology story the night before I wanted to have it done. (It was, it just didn't work.)
So I sat there yesterday morning and had a rather daunting task ahead of me: Rewrite the entire ending of the story. I set an eggtimer (on the PC) to 15 mins.
And off I went.
When I originally finished, the story was at 28k.
When I started yesterday morning, it was at 21k.
When I posted it last night… it was at 32k! I have written 11k yesterday — in 15 minute intervals.
It works.
Silke(Quote) (Reply)
I have never done this (I know, you're shocked right?) Give me time limits and I freeze (I was never good at those timed typing tests either – remember those? Or am I dating myself. Even though I typed upwards of 95 words a minute – tell me you're timing me and it's downhill…)
Anyway, not to digress off topic (who me?) I might be willing to give it a try. I like setting myself a goal for the week, but I can't count out this method unless I actually try it (
Debora(Quote) (Reply)
Love the thinking here, Cyn. For me, the distractions pile up and are what make writing difficult, especially lately. I may try this 'timed writing bit', if only to up my word count during the short bursts of uninterrupted time I do get.
R.M.Gilbert(Quote) (Reply)