This is my cherished word count tracking spreadsheet that I’ve been using for a long time to track my word count and productivity. I use this sheet for all of the writing I do, including fiction, nonfiction, academic, personal, etc.
It’s extremely useful if you want to get an idea of how productive your writing routine is, and if you typically work on a diverse set of projects (like myself) it helps you track your productivity in each one. I used to keep a kind of timesheet as well, where I would document which times of day I worked in which projects and for how long, and this can be helpful for that too.
I got a lot of requests to share my system and make a post breaking it down, and I’ve also created a template you can copy and use yourself in good sheets or excel.
– I’ve seen so many posts on how to feel productive, but not too many on how to actually be productive. I do firmly believe in the power of mindset but that only does so much if you’re not actually going to sit down and get to work. I hope this is helpful to those who need it right now, whether you’re facing the end-of-the-year deadline or you’re trying to finish an essay before Christmas break is over or if you’re just trying to get out of a writing rut. This, as always, is my advice derived from personal experience and it may not work for everyone, but if this can so much as point you in the right direction, it has served its purpose.
Get Your Priorities Straight
Do you really want to spend this time writing? Or do you need to get that essay done? Is the laundry piling up in your closet, forming into the shape of a demon that’s going to scare the crap out of you tonight? If there is one thing I can pass onto you as advice, it’s to write with a clear mind. I’m not saying that you can’t write if you have other responsibilities, but writing to escape the million other things you know you need to do is not going to make that weight leave your shoulders and isn’t going to allow you to create good content either. it is much easier to be creative when the boring chores of reality aren’t nudging at your brain whenever you get stuck on a word that sounds wrong.
Eliminate All Distractions
Social media is not the only distraction there is that’s keeping you from writing. If you need to get stuff done, realize that maybe it isn’t wise to have two friends over to “study”. Be honest with yourself when the situation is starting to get critical. Do not set yourself up to fail by turning Netflix on in the background because “the noise just makes me feel more comfortable when I’m alone”. That’s what ASMR is for. Don’t make excuses for the fact that creating distractions is a form of procrastination.
Say No To Yourself
Your brain is going to tell you “Just one more YouTube video” or “Just a 30 minute power nap” or “I’ll have more time to write tomorrow anyway”. Ignore that voice. Recognize that that, forgive me if I offend you, is BS. You cannot have faith in the convenience of the future if you want to be a successful writer. If you constantly depend on the cozy belief that you will feel it tomorrow or that you don’t have anything going on tomorrow so you can spend today doing whatever and shove it all on future you, you are going to get slapped hard by reality a lot sooner than you think. Train your mind to hear that voice and respond with “no, there is a good to fair chance that something unexpected is going to pop up tomorrow and that right now is the only time I’ll get to get this done, so I’m going to power through and do it now” because it is much better to have it done early than be worrying about it later on.
Write What You’re Excited About First
So, it’s common sense that you’ll be more motivated to start writing when you’re excited about what you’re writing, so start with that. This is one of the oldest pieces of advice in the book, but it’s popular for a reason. If you need to, start at the end or the middle or a scene you’ve been thinking about a lot recently or whatever. Even if you go back and edit one of your past scenes to throw yourself back into your own story, it’s ok. It’s allowed. Do what you need to do to get into it.
Just Get Started
I promise you that writing is more fun and exciting and a lot easier than you think when you just do it. Even if you know that what is coming out of your pen is garbage, just enjoy it. Fool yourself into thinking it’s the best art there has ever been and sometime into the writing session it will become such. If you tell yourself what you’re writing is golden, it will become golden. Confidence is pretty much everything when it comes to writing, because the confidence shows in the final product at the end of the day. Just remember, like everything else in life, you just have to fake it until you make it.
Face Reality
You’re not going to get 10,000 words written and edited and ready for publishing in one day. You’re not going to wake up tomorrow any more motivated than you are right now. You aren’t going to suddenly feel ready to write your entire book if you spend an hour scrolling through inspirational quotes on Tumblr. You are never going to be more ready to write than you are now, so stop making excuses and procrastinating and read this as a sign: start now. Don’t second guess it, don’t spend time making your surroundings perfect and outlining the chapter ad nauseam. Just write. Right now.
– At long last, it is finally here; The long awaited guide to showing instead of telling. This is obviously a very divisive subject in the writing community, so if there’s something you disagree with, that’s totally fine. These are simply my tips based on my own experience and you can take or leave whatever is useful to you. I hope this is helpful. Happy writing!
It is important to note that showing is mainly about conveying exactly what you mean to your reader. Telling is so dangerous in writing because it’s very easy for readers to interpret information that is told to them in a way that throws off any one of the elements of your scene. The best way to catch these instances of telling is to identify moments in which a reader could ask “what do they mean?”
Take those moments, for instance, if you were to write, “the woman was pretty”, and clarify what pretty is in the context of your story, or your perspective as the author. People have different definitions and associations to words, and your job, when it comes to showing, is to make your definitions and associations as clear as possible.
Use Strong Verbs
Showing does not mean telling in a more roundabout way. It means taking a bland description without any imagery and rewriting it in a way that paints a picture in your reader’s mind. You do this by using strong verbs and powerful words. For instance, instead of saying “hit, looked, walked”, you’d say “struck, peered, trudged”. See what I mean?
Balance
As a writer, you need to understand that there are no hard rules. There must be balance to everything, and despite how universal this “rule” may seem, you should know that it’s not that black and white. Here are two tips to help you keep balance between showing and telling.
Don’t overwhelm your reader with information that is unnecessary. If your reader can continue without knowing a detail, don’t include it, and don’t justify keeping it to yourself because you want to bulk up the word count or sound fancy.
When you’re telling, be brief about it and make sure that the inclusion of the detail is imperative to your reader advancing in the story.
Showing Through Dialogue
Dialogue is a really great way to show a reader character traits that showing through description never could. The way a person speaks, the words they choose, the manner in which they respond to things, are all great ways to give your reader information about that character. Use this to your advantage so that you don’t have to spend extra time describing it later.
When You Should “Tell”
When the number of words it would take to show instead of tell a piece of information isn’t worth your reader’s time
When you’re essentially repeating information the reader already knows. In this case, you’d say “so-and-so explained what she had said” instead of reiterating what she said and reaching a point where your writing is redundant.
When you want the reader to form their own emotions around the events in a scene, rather than planting them in their mind. Telling allows for the reader to have some emotional freedom, but this should come in little bits. Approach this excuse to tell with caution.
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The first thing you must decide when you embark on the journey of drafting a story is how you’re going to get it done. Typically, there are two groups you can fit into, though most writers are somewhere in between. There are writers who plan meticulously before they begin writing to create a very clean first draft, or there are discovery writers (otherwise known as “pantsers”) who find more success in choosing a premise and then using a zero draft to explore the idea before gluing down any details. You are most likely someone who falls between those two methods. Some initial planning to feel familiar with your idea before you do some of the planning through the writing itself. Having some semblance of a method will help you narrow down your own process, which is immensely important if you want to get any substantial project near completion.
Pieces of A Novel - Wordsnstuff November Monthly Writing Challenge
The idea of this challenge is to plan one piece of your story per day. For those participating in NaNoWriMo, this may be a helpful tool to use in conjunction with your daily writing goal. This can help you sustain inspiration, and it can help you find that balance between careful planning and spontaneity that many struggle to maintain.
This tool is designed to help you plan and/or write a longer story in a short amount of time, particularly a novel. If you choose to both plan and draft each scene assigned to each day, you should in theory have a near complete first draft of your story in a single month. Instead of basing the challenge on a word goal, it’s organized into a list of tasks. Once all/most of these scenes are planned or written, you will have a nearly complete draft, missing only the scenes unique to your story.
The inciting incident of the beginning of your story.
Establish your protagonist(s) core need and bring key characters into the picture.
A scene that progressively complicates the beginning of your story.
A scene that establishes the protagonist(s)’s strengths and/or weaknesses
A scene that creates a crisis question at the beginning of your story.
A scene that foreshadows the arc of the main characters.
A scene that climaxes the beginning of your story.
A scene that establishes what the protagonist wants, versus what they think they need, versus what they actually need, as well as what they’re willing to do to get it.
A scene that resolves the beginning of your story.
A scene that gives the reader a glimpse into the antagonist’s power, needs, or goals. Alternatively, if there is no antagonist, a scene that establishes the background of the main challenge the protagonist is trying to overcome..
The inciting incident of the middle of your story.
A scene with a twist—something new happens. A new friend, minor antagonist, or new information arises as a result of the middle inciting incident.
A scene that progressively complicates the middle of your story.
An unexpected twist gives the protagonist(s) false hope. An important clue or weapon arises.
A scene that creates a crisis question in the middle of your story.
A scene that establishes how the protagonist(s) and antagonist(s) motivations could become their downfall.
A scene that climaxes the middle of your story.
A scene that reveals the protagonist(s)’s and/or antagonist(s)’s greatest fears.
A scene that resolves the middle of your story.
A scene that foreshadows what the protagonist(s) and antagonist(s) will gain/lose in the process of pursuing their goal.
The inciting incident of the end of your story.
A scene that establishes that there is no turning back for your main character(s)
A scene that progressively complicates the end of your story.
A scene that establishes how the main character(s)’s strengths/weaknesses help or hinder their success
A scene that creates a crisis question at the end of your story.
A scene that establishes what the protagonist(s) and antagonist(s) learn once they initially succeed/fail
A scene that climaxes the end of your story.
A scene that answers one of the major questions of your story, or resolves an important dramatic theme.
A scene that resolves the end of your story.
(bonus) A scene that hints to the continuation of the story, if a sequel is to come.
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Happy Halloween!
With NaNoWriMo beginning tomorrow, I want to wish good luck to all participants and recirculate this as a potential directive tool to help you reach that word count!
x Kate
Hi! I’m Kate!
Welcome to all the newcomers, and hello to all those who have been around a while. Just a quick tour/reminder:
Here is my masterlist, where you can find all my articles and original posts categorized neatly for your convenience.
Here is where you can make post requests or ask general questions.
Here is my Ko-Fi if you’d like to push your request to the top of the list by making a small donation.
Here is my Patreon, where I will soon be posting lots of early articles and testing new content for the blog!
Here are the other platforms where you can find wordsnstuff:
Hi everyone! I’m attempting to restore Wordsnstuff to a regular schedule on here, and I’m considering spicing it up by adding a new type of content here and across other platforms.
I’d appreciate your input and please feel free to add any other ideas you’d like to see realized.
A person frustrated with a lack of justice makes a wish that everyone thinks the way they do, and wakes up one morning to find that they now share their mind with every other human being on the planet.
For every super power in existence there is someone who is immune to it. You are immune to ‘Time Stopping’, allowing you to move around in the time frozen world like the user does. However you have no idea who they are or when they will stop or restart time.
