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Writing GOals Update: 3/24/2019
Mar. 26th, 2019 10:38 pm Status Update
Hooray for annual late winter/early spring writing retreats! I got a room at a bed and breakfast in Portland, Maine and enjoyed a weekend away from my aggravating job. I would get up and write for a few hours in my room, head out in the early afternoon to write some more at a tea house, and then take walks until dinnertime. While a lot of the local attractions were not yet open for the season, the weather allowed for a few pleasant harborside or cemetery strolls. I also spent a lot of time in Portland's many bookstores; if you like vintage paperbacks (especially horror ones), you'll find this city a paradise.
1. Words written this week: 3,127 words. I met or exceeded my GYWO daily quota (411 words) three times, and made it past the 15 percent mark on my 2019 GYWO goal.
2. Write 4+ mornings a week: I didn't check this box this week, but the weekend mornings when I did write were lovely. My room at the bed and breakfast had a desk, a little floor heater, and a white noise machine, and it was lovely to be able to take breaks with a tasty breakfast downstairs or a relaxed shower. I've found on my retreats that I can sometimes get some leeway on when housekeepers visit by telling the innkeepers I'm a writer working in the room, although this time I got a bunch of questions about my work that I didn't really want to answer.
Hooray for annual late winter/early spring writing retreats! I got a room at a bed and breakfast in Portland, Maine and enjoyed a weekend away from my aggravating job. I would get up and write for a few hours in my room, head out in the early afternoon to write some more at a tea house, and then take walks until dinnertime. While a lot of the local attractions were not yet open for the season, the weather allowed for a few pleasant harborside or cemetery strolls. I also spent a lot of time in Portland's many bookstores; if you like vintage paperbacks (especially horror ones), you'll find this city a paradise.
1. Words written this week: 3,127 words. I met or exceeded my GYWO daily quota (411 words) three times, and made it past the 15 percent mark on my 2019 GYWO goal.
2. Write 4+ mornings a week: I didn't check this box this week, but the weekend mornings when I did write were lovely. My room at the bed and breakfast had a desk, a little floor heater, and a white noise machine, and it was lovely to be able to take breaks with a tasty breakfast downstairs or a relaxed shower. I've found on my retreats that I can sometimes get some leeway on when housekeepers visit by telling the innkeepers I'm a writer working in the room, although this time I got a bunch of questions about my work that I didn't really want to answer.
3. Friday Morning Writer Date: Couldn't get this box checked either, but I was able to make up for it later in the weekend.
4. Write two original stories: I finished that draft of my fairy-tale style GYWO Yahtzee entry and a first draft of an art-inspired flash fiction piece (see #5).
5. Write to prompts for story ideas: I ended up writing for a visual prompt at the Portland Museum of Art, which had one particular sculpture that I found remarkable. I hesitate to say more because I'd to keep the magic going with the story until I can get a second draft done.
6. Post personal fanfic: This was a pretty fic-intensive weekend. I got a bunch more written on my current Hammer Horror fic, though I spent a lot of that time trying to figure out how to give a particular character a convincing development arc. That's always an interesting exercise when writing fic: how do you force a character to grow and change when their creator may not have been that invested in them to begin with?
7. Craft on My Commute: Kept plugging away at the DIY MFA book during the week, though I gave myself the weekend off from all but guilty pleasure reading.
