Look at the line of tabs right above the blog title (Pocket Full of Words). You’ll see a new tab there for Write A Book With Me. The tab includes the short list of game rules (mostly non-rules, frankly), the playing levels with explanations, and ways to keep track of what’s going on.
You don’t have to write at a particular time of day. You don’t have to get your words in one sitting. You don’t HAVE to do anything. Again, the point of this is for folks wanting to write who have been unnerved by my usual write-or-starve method of getting books done to discover that there is another way, and it too produces full-sized books regularly.
Small word counts consistently.
That’s it. You don’t have to post your progress. You can play and lurk. But feel free at any time to jump up and down and yell, “Yes! I have more words done than I ever thought I’d get.” It’ll happen.
On my end, I’ll include the Write A Book With Me category in my nightly wordcount-and-update posts, and you can use that wordcount for your next day’s writing, for the same day’s writing, or just as a reminder that you intend to write that day.
FINAL NOTE: This is intended to be fun. If it isn’t fun, don’t do it. There are a million ways to make a living on this planet and a million more to entertain yourself or someone else that will not include you being miserable, so if you discover that writing makes you miserable, stop. Life is too short to embrace misery out of some misplaced sense of obligation or duty.
I do believe I will tackle this, so I have questions:
1. Does planning count towards your word count? … or…
2. Should I do all my planning, and then start?
Oh Holly, You are so much fun. Please count me in. You are becoming my writing muse. Thanks
This is a nice idea. Have been hoping for such an idea for a long time and I am in Holly. Thanks for this effort and what a nice way to get the book written. Step by step, or as someone said, Bird by Bird.
This sounds like a way to help me with my first book. I have hit a point where I keep going over the first two chapters and not moving forwards. Thank you.
I would like to be in on this.
Jenni.
I’m in. This sounds great, thank you Holly!
I’m starting tonight.
Pam
Hiya, Holly!
Great idea…count me in! I have two writing projects on the docket for this summer. Lots-o-editing of the ugly first drafts. It’s way more fun to run with a pack of working writers. Thanks for setting this up.
1900 words today. I have poured myself into today. Crying and laughing, under the influence of Lamisil, which is killing me slowly. I just wrote how my main character finds what he is suppose to do. I am having a hard time with putting in an Antagonist. I think I am falling in love with my main character’s wife, please god make me find some other antagonist, I am done for today. Is there something wrong with me?
Oh, wait, I write in Dutch. Is that okay?
I’ve been writing 500-600 words a day for a long time now, so 250 should be a fluke!
Count me in!
So delighted to find a fellow Holly! I’ll look forward to your progress. I’m writing a novel, too. Maugham says, “There are four rules to writing a novel–unfortunately, no one knows what they are.”
hi holly wordwrangler here, i’m a newbe, need your advice on something, i wrote this story, i’ve rewriten it five times an each time i think it’s perfect, then i go back an read it again, a few day’s later an it doesn’t’s sound as good as the day i wrote it, i go back an reread the previous verion, i think maybe i should have left it alone .
any words of wisdom for me
Jerry the wordwrangler
3000 words today. Part of it will be scrapped though, I am sure 🙁
Still, probably one tenth survives.
Count me in! With a full time job, 250 words a day sounds about right. Currently have 2 WIPS, both fantasy: Bloodsworn at 21,994 & White Knight at 10,815.
How long have you been working on your books? How many chapters are you in?
2 years & 5 chapters on Bloodsworn, a year & 3 chapters on White Knight. Very sporadic on both of them. Trying to establish some kind of writing schedule/discipline & using the Think Sideways material to *not* write by the seat of my pants, for once. I suffer from writer’s ADD, & the inability to say no to an idea; had 7-8 WIPs going until about a year ago, most of them fanfictions, just writing for fun. Finally sat back & realized that if I wanted my original stuff to get done, I was going to have to do some pruning on the queue. Having 2 active lets me switch over if I get stuck on 1.
I know that feeling well. Have been working on the same story off and on for quite a few years. Do great for about a month, real life intrudes and months or sometimes years go by before I pick it up again. Have to do it though or the characters are going to drive me crazy wanting out of my head. LOL
This is cool! Guess if I do this, this makes me an intermediate because when I sit down 500 words would be my minimum, unless I’m writing poetry. I can’t seem to stop until I reach a certain point in my writing…which I’m lucky that my schedule allows me to work that way.
I did go to the local cafe today with pen and paper to write. It looks to be about 500 words…would be more but some friends came in and chatted with me and then it was time to get back home to make supper. I have words burning trails in my head, so I suspect I’ll have some more words to report later.
1064 words today, and a major lightning strike with a plot I am going to focus on after finishing this. Took notes, and made a file for my tiddlywiki so I can add to the file whle I keep working on this 😀 am at chapter 10 of 12 by the way. Scene two is almost finished 🙂
1241 words for today! Wrote end of book, Part of CH2, Working on CH3 now.
It sounds like fun – thank you so much! 🙂