Challenging Myself Yet Again with 2100 Words Per Day
Finishing the first draft of Shadows of Atlantic City by February 11th.
For those who don’t know, I challenge myself a lot in a myriad of ways. From trying to maintain a diet plan to what I can publish in a year, I am constantly working toward the best version of myself possible. This time around, I am aiming to finish the first draft of my newest novel, Shadows of Atlantic City, by the middle of February.
Yes…I finally gave it a title that I like.
Prior to Christmas, I was doing relatively well. I kept up with a steady flow of writing for several weeks. That is until I filled my living room with kids for Christmas. It was the first time I had all of my children under one roof for Christmas since 2011. So, there’s no wonder why my workflow was disrupted.
Still, I wish I could have been much further along in the book than I am today.
The Difficulty of Writing 2100 Words Per Day
In reality, I used to be able to write 2000 words before lunch. That was back when I was a freelance writer working with clients on Textbroker, and then the writing I used to do for GreenGeeks Web Hosting.
Nowadays, though, I don’t write as much. I mostly spend my time researching articles, validating keywords, editing my writing team’s content, and handling images for the posts. This is in addition to working on my own projects, such as the blogs and YouTube channels. And all while trying to write a book or two.
Then, we can include the chaos that is my life in general. Take last week, for instance. I spent more time on the road than I did in my office, and that’s not an exaggeration.
So, despite the fact that I know I’m capable of writing more than 2100 words per day, it’s the influx of living mayhem that often derails my efforts. If I want to make this one happen, I’m going to have to find a way to push through the mess.
Why Does It Matter?
As a self-published author, it really doesn’t matter when books are published, right? I mean, I don’t have agents or publishers giving me a deadline. But it still matters to me for a few reasons.
It’s a confidence builder to be able to finish the first draft of any book.
I don’t want to be one of those authors who puts out a single book every three years.
Although I am small-time, I have quite a few people who are waiting for me to put out another book.
I have a lot of ideas just waiting for me to start them. However, I made a deal with myself that I would only write one at a time from now, on. Otherwise, nothing will ever get published and I’ll keep adding half-finished projects to the list.
Besides, when you have a deadline in mind, it creates a sense of urgency. This is quite helpful when you need a bit of a kickstart to your motivation.
What Does That Mean for the Other Projects?
If all goes well, working on 2100 words per day shouldn’t overly derail my plans for anything else. Currently, I’m working on building up a few blogs while getting a couple of YouTube channels stabilized. As long as no one throws a wrench in the works, everything should move just fine.
Unfortunately, chaos is my co-pilot. The trick is to adapt as best I can when things go south, as they inevitably will. In reality, it all comes down to how badly I want it and if I’m willing to do what it takes to meet my goals.
Of course, that’s true with any goal or challenge you set for yourself. It’s one thing to say you’re going to do something, but it’s another to actually put in maximum effort to see those things happen.
In any case, the only project that is an absolute is the work I do for clients. After all, they are the ones who pay my mortgage. Anything after that block of time is technically fair game. However, I tend to work more on the WriterSanctuary.com blog and YouTube channel. Those two are the more likely to generate revenue before the end of the year.
What this means is that some types of content might be delayed for a few days in order for me to meet the goal of writing 2100 words per day.
Let’s Crush This One Out
The goal is set and the timeframe is saved. Today, 2100 words might be quite a push given everything else I do. Yet, I am confident I can still finish the first draft of the book before the 11th. Let’s just hope my daughter doesn’t wreck another car or a family member doesn’t need me to drive back and forth across Colorado.
In total, I need 48,353 words to hit the 75k mark. I’m relatively certain I’ll wind up adding more during the subsequent drafts. I added 12,000 words to Kingmaker after its initial beta reading.
Let’s see if I still have what it takes to smash this one out of the park.