A Late #ROW80 Check-In

Forgot to even post about ROW80 progress in all the house excitement yesterday.

So the goal I set this round was 250 words a day.  It was hard for me to set this goal because I am not one who likes to go backward.  I’d been averaging 600-750 a day the last couple of rounds, so to just set the bar SO LOW at 250 words was difficult for me.  But I set it.  Because with everything going with Daisy and the house and a few other attention sucking things, I just haven’t had my normal level of productivity in me.

And I largely have failed to meet it. BAH.

I’ve written SOMETHING 8 out of the last 18 days, for a whopping total of 2552 words.  In nearly 3 weeks!  I guess that technically averages out to 319 words a day on the days I wrote.  Which is, I admit, better than nothing.  But there’s been a lot of writing and deleting, writing and deleting.  Which is annoying. Because it’s happened.  I’ve lost my mojo and fallen into page fright (and sleep deprivation–how will I ever survive kids?).  I’m not under delusions that I’ve suddenly forgotten how to write and that this is anything but a temporary setback, but it’s just…ANNOYING and personally unacceptable.

I’ve done a read through.  Made notes on places I can expand and add some color, clarify some relationships.  Figured out what needs to go in a scene I’m adding in toward the beginning (waiting on a source to hopefully email me back with some information before I can write it properly).  Thought of another thread I need to weave through the whole trilogy.  My hero is, in my head, starting to become clearer independent of the heroine (which he needed to) and I’m trying to wrap my brain around what changes because of that, trying to figure out how each of them has changed in the other’s eyes over the last year.  I have another major character to introduce in the next scene, and I’m trying to figure out how to present him.  So it’s not as if I’m doing nothing.  I’m just not satisfied with what I’m doing.

I’ve been trying to decide whether I want to change my goal, lower the bar even more to give myself SOMETHING I can meet under the current challenging circumstances.   But y’all.  I just can’t do it.  I can’t drop it under 250 words.  I should be able to write 250 words in 5-10 minutes if I know what I’m doing with the scene and I can stay conscious enough to write them (which, I admit, has been a problem lately–I’m becoming narcoleptic…kind of like I did when hubby broke his leg, though not quite that bad).

So I’m keeping my goal of 250 words minimum for my writing sessions, and I’m adding to that a stipulation that I’m going to SHOW UP a la Andrew Mocete.  I’m going to open the WIP and sit my ass down and focus on it, sans internet, sans TV, and probably sans sofa because if I sit down next to a pillow I will invariably slump over onto it, pass out, and start drooling from all the mouth breathing I’m doing because it’s allergy season.  I want to spend the rest of April getting back in a groove of daily writing, even if those words are low.  And come May, I can look into upping that word count by some amount.  I’m under no illusions that I’m likely to get back into a truly normal routine of production until after we move Memorial Day weekend.

7 thoughts on “A Late #ROW80 Check-In

  1. When you started this challenge, the whole idea behind it was that ROW80 is for writers who have a life. Your life has been CRAZY lately, so it’s understandable that writing isn’t going as quickly or smoothly as it has in the past. Once you get moved (that’s still just so awesome), I think things will settle down. Having a goal of 250 words sounds pretty reasonable. This blog post contained more words than that, so I think you’ll be able to do it. Just don’t get upset if you have days where you can’t. You’re very busy. The words will come.

  2. Kait, IT’S OKAY!! I know you know that, but still, I just wanted to tell you. You have even admitted in this very post all the things that you have been doing. Your uber productive self probably usually does those at the same time as work, showering, driving, cooking, etc. But maybe right now you can’t because instead you’re worrying about Daisy and the house and everything else. It’s ok to not have enough energy left to produce words. This is part of the reason I use a time goal. I know that if I show up as you say, I will do something. I still track my words, but when I don’t focus on the number when I’m stressed out, something always comes as long as I show up. Congrats on the house and good luck with everything! <3

  3. Setting your goal at 250 words a day was a huge show of self-care. Good for you! It is hard to go small, but it’s great that you know that’s where you are right now. Good luck for an easy move, and keep taking care of you (especially in this darned allergy season!).

  4. Hang in there. I know things are chaotic but you’re stronger than you think. Keep trying. Keep writing. Every word counts. Write your way through the storm.

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