This post originally appeared on the WriteAnon blog on 3/14/11.
The last few weeks, I’ve been trying to write 2000 words or more each day. I’ve found there are a few things that have helped me be successful.
1. Don’t sit down to write 2000 words at once.
I’ve found a lot more success when I focus on writing a scene or much smaller goal, like 100 words. I can write 100 words in 3-5 minutes. At that pace, it will take 1-2 hours to write 2000 words. However, blocking aside 1-2 hours seems hard, while blocking a few 30-minute chunks makes it a lot easier. With 30 minutes at lunch, 30 minutes before dinner, and 30 minutes before bed, there are one-and-a-half hours right there. I can usually find the extra time somewhere else (generally a little longer at night).
2. Focus on scenes, not word counts
Each of my scenes tends to run from 1000-3000 words. By focusing on completing a scene, I take the pressure off just filling out my word counts, and can focus on completing scenes. The word counts tend to flow after that.
That being said, if I’m stuck, I’ll fall back to just trying to write 100 words. Small goals are easy to achieve.
Click here to read the full post, which includes four more specific strategies, on WriteAnon.