I use Scrivener to write my first drafts. This program not only allows me to color-code in whose head I am with each scene, it allows me to set a schedule for the project, and then it calculates the amount of words I need to write each day in order to accomplish my goal and get the work done on schedule. It will even flash a "Goal Met"indicator and ring a bell for you.
My current WIP is the 8th book in the Cotillion Ball Series, and is the first book in which I face the effects of the Civil War head on. The setting is MacDougall Hospital, set on Fort Schuyler in the Bronx. At the height of the Civil War conflict, this hospital cared for 2,000 wounded soldiers. The tone of the book is much darker than my normal, because of the subject matter, but I'm finding it exhilarating to write. That is, after the first 500 words.My writing goal, according to the almighty Scrivener, is nearly 1,000 words a day. Which roughly translates to one scene a day. I like to write this way, since I can stay clearly in one person's head throughout. Today, it was Elijah's turn. I planned how I was going to start the scene last night, as I was drifting off to sleep, so I tore up the screen for the first 80 words or so. Then, I stared at the blinking cursor for several minutes, uncertain where to head. The next sentence came to me as if through a vat of molasses, then the one after that. I kept pulling down the "Targets" tab on my Scrivener program to see how many words I had yet to go. When I got to 200 words for the day, I got stuck, so I stared at the pulsating cursor for a few more minutes. The rest of the scene unfolded in my head, finally, and I began to type quickly. When the bell rang that I had met my goal, I wasn't ready to stop, so I kept going until the scene was finished.
I surprised myself that I completed the scene, and that once I got past the first 500 words, I got so sucked into the scene that the ringing bell was an annoyance rather than a blissful chime signaling that my day's torture was done. And the little extra bonus from not stopping until the scene was done? Tomorrow, when I settle in to write the next scene, I'll have a few fewer words to write to get to my daily goal.
So, how about you? Do you write in all-out sprints like Colleen McCullough, or do you plod along like I do? I'm curious to see how many different styles I'll be able to record in the comments.
20K in a long day? Wow....
ReplyDeleteIf I'm not working a day job, 3K is about normal for me on a 'work' day. It's about a chapter a day, but I wind up starting the next chapter too, which helps the next day.
I run my goals on a week - so this week (with the day job) I goaled 10K. I might have been a little optimistic since this is my first week back. But I still have today to make up what I'm missing. :)
I think 3K a day is terrific! So your goals per week fluctuate based on what else is going on in your life? That might be a good thing for others to remember. You can be flexible. Glad you're back, Lynn. You'll soon be at full speed again.
DeleteMy RWA chapter gives out "Purple Roses" for 5K days. I do manage a few of those a year. If I try to go by word count, it's usually 250 a day (Mo-Fr) and 1K a day on the weekends. This year, my goal is 30 minutes of actual book time 5 times a week.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a good plan, MJ. I'd love to be able to write enough in one stretch to get one of those purple roses! What a great idea.
DeleteI did 25K in three days and it nearly killed me! Generally speaking, I'm a plodder. I use WriteWayPro, which has features similar to Scrivener, and it keeps me on target. I try to do at least 500 words each day during the week, more on weekends. It does not, however, always happen!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on your first release, Marin. Whatever method you're using, it's working. I'd be lost without Scrivener.
DeleteScrivener sounds a lot like my husband. Together we figure out a schedule, based on deadline and other things I'll have to do before the deadline besides write. I keep a chart of how many pages I need to write daily and weekly, and a calendar to write down each day's page count. When I've had a good day, my husband and I high five. I'm sort of a hybrid plotter/pantser, so sometimes the scenes fly onto the page and some days I'm afraid to start. Fortunately, whether the words drip out slowly from my brain or pour out, they always are there.
ReplyDeleteI love the line about your husband! Glad you figured out a way to make things work.
DeleteSadly I can't or my day job won't let me sit all day and converse with my characters. Therefore I have to jump around and take notes on what's going on with them. And many of the times I can't type them down onto my laptop so my phone works as my little helper. But I know for sure I don't get in more than 1,000 words a day, if any at all but if I do, I was just a lucky day.
ReplyDelete~Ki
It's tough when your characters are talking to you, demanding you take care of their needs, and the old day job gets in the way. I applaud that you're able to figure out a way to make it work for you. Congrats.
DeleteHi Becky, I'm definitely a plodder and, like you, aim for 1000 words a day. When I'm in flow, I can get up to 1500 words. Anything beyond that would not work for me. Joanne :)
ReplyDeleteI think 1000 words a day is a really good target to have. That way you can finish a first draft in 2-3 months. Then comes the hard part--revising, editing, polishing. You're never done.
DeleteI really vary but most times consider myself a plodder, especially when writing synopses! :-)
ReplyDeleteSynopses and blurbs are the most painful things to write. You have to condense all those words you labored over for months down into a couple of paragraphs. It's so tough.
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