As of this writing, twenty-four hours after posting our challenge, we have 52 people signed up! How cool is that! Looks like quite a few of us do best when we’re not going this totally alone.
In the comments to the Seventy Days of Sweat post below, Sharon says:
I have three proposals I want to write so that’s around 50k worth if I include the synopses. Hmm and I’ll throw in at least 30k of a book that’s not due until November.
And you know what? That’s perfectly fine! We’ve had a lot of questions / comments about authors already being in the midst of a book, etc., and how that will keep them from participating. Pshaw, we say! The point is to write between 60K and 100K words during the 70 day challenge.
It’s all about the writing. The habit of writing. The doing it daily and making it an integral part of your life. Yes, there are authors for whom writing is a hobby, and there’s nothing wrong with that (tm Seinfeld)! But those of us here digging in are pros. This is our career, our vocation.
I was talking to PBW yesterday. She has 3 books to write by the first of September. Not 3 proposals. Not 3 chapters. Three books. Granted, she is an anamoly, but what she’s done is work out a way to manage her homelife, her children and their schoolwork / activities, as well as her personal and writing needs to make it doable.
So ask yourself how badly you want it. What you’ll do to get it. What sacrifices you’ll make to see it happen. Let Stephanie tell you what she goes through daily in order to get her writing done. (She’s promised to post later, so check back if she hasn’t yet!)
When my kids were in grade school & junior high (as in before any of them or their friends were driving), I was for all intents and purposes a single parent who worked a full time job, supported the four of us on my own, and still managed to get them to football, volleyball, cheerleading, and Girl Scouts – not to mention birthday parties, movies, sleepovers, etc.
And I still wrote. Daily. I dictated into a tape recorder while driving. I took printed pages to critique and edit during football halftimes. I sat outside the Girl Scout meetings with my paper and pen and I wrote. (Actually, the only time I slacked off was when I started dating the husband and was having too much fun to face the page!) These days I have more time, but I also have a day job (for 14 more days!) and I’ll get up at 3:30 or 4:00 (A.M.!!) to get in the writing before I walk out the door if I need to.
But you know what? My kids never saw my focus on my work as being abandoned. They knew they weren’t abandoned. I was there for them every step of the way, and they pitched in when I couldn’t be because they knew how important writing was to me. What they saw was dedication and pursuit of a dream. They saw what it takes to meet obligations and balance everything life throws our way. They also saw that telling these stories made me a much happier person – and mom!
I’ll post tomorrow about how your Sweating Sponsors are going to deal with prizes, and make sure everyone understands about posting word counts, etc. And I’ll make the 70 Days post sticky here at the top (once I install the plug-in to do so) so that anyone who pops in late can still play!
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I need to write the final 32K of my current WIP by 31st August, ready to spend September editing it.
Any way I can join the challenge?
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Well, if you’re like me, editing means killing pages and writing new ones, so sure! We’re easy. We just like giving a boot to everyone’s arse! The sign-up post is at the top.
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Yeah, Portia’s in!
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Thanks for the additional info Alison, especially regarding WIPs in progress, edits/rewrites – it takes my one big worry and knocks it out of the ballpark: which was changing my focus from what i’m working on with my CP to finish up/fine tune.
Looks like several of my Tribe are on board so…. count me in. I’ll sign up in the appropriate place. Whew – that was a long drawn out decision-making process. (Laughing at myself)
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How am I supposed to write anything when I’m lingering on this website and reading such excerpts as the one for The Heartbreak Kid? oooeee, boiling blood and racing heart going on here! right, right, think straight, screw your head back on, back into ancient Ephesus we go…
:-)
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LOL, Deniz! Glad you enjoyed it!
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I wrote 300 words today…then lost electricity. Oh well…catch up tomorrow!
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Merry, Merry, Merry! Pen and paper, girlfriend! :)
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I stumbled across the seventy day challenge today 7/11/07. I would still like to play catch up and take the challenge. Is that still a possibility? Cora
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Lost two days to health issues. But! I managed to write quite a bit today on a different project and talked through some plot issues on a third project. Tomorrow is looking good for getting a lot written!
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Cora – Yes! Cut-off is midnight CDT tonight.
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Plugging along at about 690 Words a day. I picked up Writing Erotic Romance and think there will be a lot of re-write after September. Cora
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Can I still post my word count for last Wednesday? I’ve been writing and forgot all about it!
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You can post anytime, and posting is never required! It’s just part of the community spirit!
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My weekend has been full of “relocating scenes to fit better after doing some resuearch on blackjack. Back to the word count tomorrow. I wish I could write and “fix” at athe same time LOL Cora