Cast the Bones
People on the outside think there's something magical about writing, that you go up in the attic at Midnight and cast the bones and come down in the morning with a story, but it isn't like that. You sit in back of the typewriter and you work, and that's all there is to it. — Harlan Ellison
Permit me to take a moment and appreciate the irony of taking myself away from writing my story to blog about setting and keeping regular goals while writing a story.
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Okay, I'm done.
Admittedly, this one might be a bit shorter just because of the subject matter — I decided after this past Christmas that I wanted an attainable writing goal for this year, but I still wanted something BIG enough so I can feel accomplished and proud of myself if I reach it. That's the way goals are supposed to work, right?
So I decided that my "big goal" this year was going to be getting four books written this year. At first glance (for me, anyway) that seems like a ridiculously-high bar to jump for, but isn't that the way "big goals" are supposed to be? If all I tried to do was to finish one, and I finish it this Spring like I'm planning, that leaves another three quarters of the year to give myself an excuse to fart around and waste time. Better to put the bar high NOW and see if I can catch up to it.
To be honest, I'd be perfectly happy with three books finished. Or two. Putting the number as high as it is gives me three months to work on each of them, and allows a chance to still have some wiggle room if the words come more quickly or slowly from week to week.
On that note, I'd like to offer one suggestion for any aspiring (or current, or successful, or whatever) writer out there: set your aims on a weekly word goal instead of a daily one. Setting your aim on 2,000 or 3,000 words a week gives you more flexibility instead of 500 words every day. I know that people like Stephen King claim to push out 2,000 words a day, and that might work very well for him, but trying to emulate Mr. King might very well end up just frustrating and burning you out. 2,000 words a day is a wonderful goal to set, but if you don't think you can attain that on a regular basis, then start at 3,000 words a week with one day off (do the math), and start pushing it up slowly until you hit your limit on a consistent basis.
Or you could just find any available attic and start casting the bones. Best of luck with that.
