Here are some excellent articles from around the web to hone your writing skills. This month’s posts focus on time management for writers and what to write about.
setting realistic writing goals (thewritersaurus). As the title states, this article discusses how to set realistic writing goals. Importantly, the author notes that ‘word count’ goals will (and should) vary from writer to writer. “For some it might be 500, for others, 1000, 2000, or even 5000 words in a day.” The goal is to get addicted to writing every day; along those lines, the author stresses that “[y]our word count goal should be as high as possible while still being easily attainable” and should include positive reinforcement.
Traditional Time Management for Writers? Why It Doesn’t Work (And What To Do Instead) (Ali Luke, WriteToDone). In the same vein as the above article, with a different focus: time management. Pointing out that many time management books are not intended for writers, Ali Luke lists five rules of time management for writers:
- When You’re Writing, Write
- Minimize Interruptions
- When You’re Not Writing, Get Enough Down Time
- Spend More Time Planning and Less Time Editing
- Keep Learning About Writing
Seeds of Inspiration: Write What You Want, How You Want (Santana García, The NaNoWriMo blog). “Maya Angelou once stated that there was no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside one’s mind.” We’ve all heard the saying “write what you know.” This post has a good take on that: “Write the book you want to read.”
