Week three goals and word count.

Week three.

From here on out is the grueling part. I've actually started the book, so I can't just say, "Hey, you're done with the outline, now get writing."

But if I hadn't already started, now would be that time. The time to put pen/pencil to paper...or rather fingers to keyboard.  So if you are reading through these posts and actually learning something, good for you. So to you, I will say, start somewhere. Anywhere. And keep going. Don't worry about spelling, typos or even getting that perfect word the first time through. Just get your story out. You can change it later.

As for me, I'm into the second chapter, which is a decent start (but personally, right around the point where I stall out). I've done a general outline of the entire book, but I'm only going to detail my outline a few chapters out, that way I still have creative freedom and my characters can make decisions on their own if need be. I don't want to lock myself in, because, think about it...how boring would it be if I knew every little thing that was going to happen before it happened?

So for me, personally, it's time to get the story out. Every time I sit down, I'm shooting for writing somewhere around 1,500 words. Sometimes I don't hit it, but hey, I'm starting out- cut me some slack. Some writers are sticklers for word count (and some publishers too from what I hear), but I like to use word count more as a guideline- a ballpark. So, for me, I'm shooting for right around 40,000 words (if you need a guideline regarding word count, take a look at this to get an idea- there are charts, etc, but it all depends on the specifics of the printed page, i.e. font, margins, and so on). If you do the math, and I produce 1,500 words each time I sit down...everyday...it's roughly 26 days.

Also, as an aside, what I just said brings me to another observation I've made: I should never take day off...it gives me too much breathing room. Too much time to second guess or rethink. If you can, good for you, but I've learned from this past weekend that I cannot. There are worse things, I guess.

So as for the goal. I want to get a solid week of consistent 1,500 word sittings. That's a good goal.
1,500 words x 5 days. If my word count is not 7,500 words higher than it is today, I fail.