Write All Day
Maybe you’ve got the “Every Single Day” down, but how about “All Day”?
Careful: is that even the goal?
I’m smack in the middle of 7-day intensive, “Write All Day” retreat for successful authors who think it’s fun to spend a week in a castle in the middle of the Austrian alps.
From the moment you wake up with the sun (or sometime thereafter … ) until you fall back into that same bed: you’re writing.
You see, dear incredulous reader, it’s November. Which means it’s NaNoWriMo month. It’s a challenge to write a 50,000-word novel in that month. 30 days, 50,000 words. Or, if you like division: 1,666 words per day. Of course, if you, ahem, don’t quite meet that daily goal for the first part of the month then you’re going to need to step up the pace for the rest of the month.
Better Together
That’s where a writing team comes in. We’re 6 writers at a thick wood table that was probably the scenes of manor barons from hundreds of years ago. Of course, they didn’t have WiFi, but it’s the same window onto the forest, the same light that comes through in the morning, and that same thought of “Am I ready to tackle my goal for the day?”
What’s my goal for the day: write.
What are my peers dong? Writing.
What am I doing? Writing.
What do I need to stop doing now and start doing hereafter? Write.
Yes, I’m writing these words, but I’m not working on my novel.
My character, Charlie Holiday, was just interviewed posthumously (yes, it gets a little tricky) and he opened up about his life and a bit of a teaser about his last days alive.
I had my headphones rocking for the first few hours of the morning, the sun was coming through the window, my tea was hot, my keyboard was hotter, and Charlie was letting loose about the last days of his life and the secret he was unleashing while he still could.
So that’s what I was doing yesterday.
I’m trying to Walk the Talk. I’m trying to live the life I want to lead Every Single Day.
How’s your day going?
Postscript: I wanted to add that Writing All Day and Every Single Day is not my goal. Frankly, I don’t want to do any one thing all day. I don’t want to sit on the couch and watch Stranger Things with my son. I don’t want to walk in the woods with my dog all day. I don’t want to write all day. I want balance. I want creation and refilling the creative well.
TIP: Do you hear yourself occasionally saying something like, “Wow, if I could just do this all day then I’d happy.” Here’s a challenge: give yourself the gift of “All Day” for a day or two. See how it goes. No, how it really goes.
Sure, we’re butts in the chairs here, but we’re also chatting in the kitchen, walking in the forest, cooking dinner, and sharing our expertise. Is that purely “Write All Day”? Nope–and that’s a good thing.
Careful what you wish for.
