…or still planning to?
If so, when you’re done drop a comment here, or over at Moonrat’s place. Let us know how it went, or just leave a link to a post at your own blog which does the same thing.
(My own account is here.)
Ridiculous pursuits, matters solemn and less so
Aerin says
http://www.insearchofgiants.com/2009/05/maybe-another-day.html
Moonrat says
i succeeded in devoting… MOST of the day. i’ll admit i read a couple hours’ worth of MIDDLEMARCH on either end. but otherwise, yes.
the thing is, i was hoping to accomplish one task, which was to figure out who i wanted to narrate my new project by going through all my many research notes. at the end of the day, i felt pretty good with my decision. no sooner had i closed up my computer, i started to revisit and question. sigh.
however. as we all known. trying to derive quantifiable “success” from a creative project is essentially a losing prospect from the get-go. so, more qualitatively, i’m pleased about the mental work i spent going through all my notes, reminding myself of what i had, and (hopefully) putting a bunch of my ideas in my head that can compost while i sleep.
thanks, JES! without you i wouldn’t have done this at all.
Misssy M says
Yes I did it, but I did kind of cheat and write a blog post too, but that’s writing too so it still counts I reckon.
So word count that day (not including cheeky wee blog post) was around 4,500 on the book. It made me think ,though, that I am better at writing in short bursts, and I don’t think I could sit down for a working day writing my book. I need thinking space. Which is just as well as who has the luxury of writing an 8 hour shift every day?
John says
Moonie: Congratulations on a day well spent! I’ve never been able to get through a George Eliot novel I wasn’t being forced to read, so I think even the Middlemarch hours could classify as noble sacrifice to your art.
I mentioned to Aerin in a comment on her blog that research — even (or especially) of the “let me see what I’ve already got” sort — is never wasted. When I turn stuff over to my subconscious I know it’s in good hands; it’s the conscious part of my mind that gets me in trouble.
Thank you so much for picking up the ball and running with what was, after all, just a sort of off-the-cuff blog post. Anyone who doubts the Power of the Moonrat just needs to check my blog stats for the past week!
Misssy: I saw on Twitter — buried like a clamshell in all the sand of the Eurovision items — the phrase “4000 words” and almost hung up my spurs right there. I mean, quality, quantity, blah blah, but I know just from reading your “cheeky wee blog posts” you’re no stranger to the former, and I suspect if I actually READ those 4K words I’d be really depressed today.
Years back, I did have the 8-hour writing shift option — for a couple of years, even. Thank gods it was only an option and not a requirement.
Kate Lord Brown says
Bravo! My w/c this week pitiful but mid-research actually have an excuse to read books for a change :)
Miriam Forster says
I camped myself at the local Starbucks and wrote from about 11:30 to about 7pm. I knew i wouldn’t be able to focus for that long if I just wrote on one thing, so I worked on several small projects that I had been procrastinating on, trading off whenever I got bored.
Other than the nasty cheesy breadsticks, (Doughy, greasy AND salty. ick.) the oddest part of the day was that no less than five people I knew came in to get coffee. I managed not to be too distracted, though!
By the end of the day my brain was fried, but the procrastination was dead. Thanks for the great idea!
John says
Kate: Well, word count is just the end product of a lot of what you did during the week. So let’s toast your future word count, eh? :)
Miriam: An ingenious idea — taking along more than a single project. Of course, we’d like to hear that those five people you knew were themselves writers in search of solitude, but I guess we can’t be greedy!
“My brain was fried, but the procrastination was dead.” That’s a T-shirt waiting to happen!