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Wednesday, September 1, 2010

In Memoriam: 50k in 50 Days

Yesterday was meant to be the final day of 50k in 50 Days. 

I failed.

But then again, maybe I didn't.

My final word count was 9,314.  That's more than I've ever written on any one piece. I think it's a good start on a novel, and has given me hope that my ideas really can be expanded enough to fill a whole book.

And the writing-without-editing process really helped me out.  I tend to be a bit obsessive as I write, and nitpick sentences, etc.  This means I usually only do one draft, but it can take ages.  My usual method would still have me stuck in the first thousand words.

It's also made this whole "being a writer" thing a bit more real.  Getting up and writing everyday (when I was still on the wagon) really did something to boost my ego.  I still didn't go around telling people I was a writer (partially in fear that they would ask me what I was writing), but it made it more real to myself. 

Thank you, Sarah, for giving me the opportunity and the push I needed to get started.

Maybe next time, I'll just start with 20k in 20 days instead.

4 comments:

Jamie Council said...

I think a smaller goal will be better for both of us. However, I think I might be able to do better now that Thing 1 is in school, but finding time between both of them was all but impossible. Or maybe it is just a lame excuse to blame it on my kids....

sarah darlington said...

Thanks!!! I think that's a wonderful start. That's around about how much I wrote on my story this summer.

Witless Exposition said...

Jamie, I'm up for a smaller, personal challenge if you are. :)

Sarah, thanks again for starting it! It really was the kick I needed. Even though we didn't finish, I think it was a good start on both our parts!

Unknown said...

I am over from the BBQ blog party, and I just wanted to say that I used a similar technique for writing my novel Charlotte Collins. My goal was to write 50k in 30 writing days. As in, I didn't write every day of the week, but I did try to accomplish 50k in the days I did write. I found it to be the right way to go for me. Not that you asked for it, but my biggest tip is to separate your writing and your editing. Just keep writing, even if it's nonsense, and go back and edit only after you are done.

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