IWSG: Setting Goals

The first Wednesday of the month is here, which means it's time for IWSG. If you're not familiar with this meme, it was started by Alex Cavanaugh. It's a group of writers who share their insecurities, encouraging words, and support with each other and our followers. If you'd like to join us, great! Click here for more information.

I've always been goal orientated. I also like to create to-do lists. Both of these things help me stay on task. By setting goals, I have a target to aim for and, because I like a challenge, I find a way to hit it. To-do lists help me keep track of the things I need to get done. Because I hate to have items looming over me, I tend to finish my lists quickly. These two tactics have always helped me accomplish what I have to do as well as what I'd like to do, so when work on my current project came to a halt I decided to use NaNo as a way to kick my butt back into gear.  

Last month I set a goal to write 50,000-words by the end of the month. In a way, I accomplished this. I added 21,000-words to my latest WIP which put my total word count at 53.500-words. Mid-month I hit a road block. I had too many plot threads and a few details that really needed to be smoothed out and/or developed better before I could write the last few chapters. I decided to revise what I had so far. As of Sunday night, I revised 34,000-words. That included re-writing a few scenes, deleting the slow parts, adding more detail to what worked, killing one of the plot threads, and, best of all, discovering the missing link needed to add more suspense to the middle of the book. Not too bad for thirty days of writing. If I can keep up this pace I will have a completed draft of book three in my Embrace series done before the holidays. 

If you're finding it hard to complete your projects, I highly recommend setting a goal or making a list. Let me know you're doing it and I'll be right there to cheer you on!

Happy writing, and happy holidays!