Saturday, January 17, 2015

New Year's Resolutions

With the start of the new year many people are grabbing onto their New Year's resolutions and are beginning tasks to better themselves. In the writing community, some people will decide to take courses in writing to increase their level of skill. I know because I did that exact thing two years ago.

What I discovered from my venture was that I developed a dislike for long-winded lectures and a lot of homework. But at the same time, I found that my writing habits improved so that I was writing almost 1,000 words a day. That was because of the daily journal we were required to keep. At first I grumbled about it and complained that it was extra writing. Since then, I've stopped the journal and gone onto to writing on stories.

If you have trouble being motivated to write something or anything, start a daily journal. You don't have to go to school to get motivated, unless you think you need instruction in the skills of writing. In a journal you can write anything you want, as long as you write something each day. I remember one day in my journal, I wrote about how stupid it all seemed. I wasn't afraid to write that because no one else was going to read it.

Do you keep a journal? I'm starting to write in mine again this year with the hopes of getting back to my 1,000 words a day. Happy hand cramps (unless you keep it on a computer)!

5 comments:

  1. I have a journal, although I haven't been writing in it every day. I usually write in it when my head gets so full of dilemmas it feels like it'll burst!
    I've been doing a word a day prompt to get myself back in the habit, so writing at least 500 words a day. If I do it in the morning it puts me in the mod for writing.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Heather! Sounds like you have a good thing going to get you writing everyday. I like prompts. They make you start thinking. Good luck on your writing.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I used to keep a journal for over 20 years. Then I had a big lack of free time during the day. So I devoted that to writing fiction. Good luck!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Christine: Wow! A journal for over 20 years! I imagine you have a lot of ideas in there for stories. They would keep me busy for a long time. Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  4. Hi Karen, I think I'd feel the same way about a class. My time is so limited already... But I do like the idea of a journal. Now, to develop the discipline. Good post--thank you for the inspiration. :-)

    ReplyDelete