It has been... months since I last kept track of my daily word count.
I know it sounds simple. Some might not understand. It was once important to me to keep track of how many words I produced each day. The task, I felt, focused too much on manufacturing. "KEEP WRITING, YOU NEED TO SHOW IMPROVEMENT FROM YESTERDAY!", my ego shouted. For many days, weeks and months I listened. I only stopped when I came to the realization that it was being kept track of for the wrong reasons. I wasn't writing because I wanted to write something, I was writing because I had a number to surpass. So I stopped.
I left off worrying about how many words I was writing daily. I started back in my daily idea generation. I started writing short, flashy fiction(not slashy). I started fleshing out my older story ideas that had grown on me over the years. I forced myself to realize that I need to stop talking about it and start editing my old first drafts. I made myself start reading up on editing. I planned three book stories. Lastly, I have been writing one of them for NaNoWriMo... and that was when I remembered word counting.
I know. I have fallen back on some old ways. I've improved them. I have rediscovered where they fit in my writing life. I also remember that word counts are not, and should not be, a replacement for doing good work no matter how many words you produce. Sometimes less is more, and I have to keep that in mind.
I WILL start back keeping track of my count, but I will only do so for posterity. I think that is one of a few things I can take away from my NaNoWriMo experience. I'll expand on the others in a separate post.
I will now go and say five Wendig's Beards and five Our Muses in penance.
Keep Writing!
~JFo
*the above catholic references are in no way meant as sacrilege. I make-a da funny. If you no like-a da funny, say so in the comments.
No comments:
Post a Comment