My daily goal is 2000 words. A lot of the time I can make it, or even surpass it, but sometimes I fall short. Maybe my mental health isn’t the greatest that day. Maybe one of my chronic illnesses is acting up. Maybe my focus isn’t what it could be (and caffeine can only help that so much.) So what do I do on those days? I try to not sweat it. I know. It’s easier said than done. But beating myself up over it solves nothing and can make the problem worse. Learning to let go and not be so hard on myself is something I’m still actively working on, but it’s paying off.
It’s important to note that my word count didn’t start out so high. Originally, I didn’t have one at all. My first book I wrote when inspiration struck, which is why it took eight years to finish. With my second book, I knew I needed a routine in order to get things done faster, and so I spent that book, and the follow three, playing around with different methods of keeping me to task. I went through daily word counts, weekly word counts, daily page counts, weekly page counts, and from my own personal experience, they all worked out as well as the others. What I’ve settled on finally is daily word counts, with no stress to make up a weekly word count as well. Some people do that, and that’s perfectly okay. When I was doing weekly goals, it was nice being able to make up the time if I wanted to and so I can see why it works so well for some people. But for me, I prefer daily word counts.
Prior to my word count being so high, I stuck mainly to pages, which was originally two pages a day, double spaced. When I decided to try a word count, however, I set my goal at 1000 words a week. For one, I was in college at the time, and only had so much brain power to devote to my writing. For another, I was nowhere near ready to tackle 2000 words a day. I needed the practice first off. But I also needed to figure out how to motivate myself as well as how to kick start the brain juices when the words didn’t instantly flow. I also needed to work out how to deal with setbacks and defeat, and none of that came easy. All of that had to be squared away well before I could set a daily goal so high.
The biggest factor into why I don’t always meet my word count, however, is health related. It can be physical, like a migraine, or my arthritis, making it too hard to sit at the computer that long, or brain fog caused by the arthritis and migraines. It can also be mental health related, which is just as valid. This is where coping skills can come in handy, but those are fallible, and sometimes your brain just won’t make words go. And that’s perfectly okay. You’re not the first writer to be impacted by mental health struggles, and you’re not the last either. It is something you’re going to have to come to terms with, though, if you want to be successful. Beating yourself up because your health got in the way is counterproductive and can create a shame spiral, which can be hard to break.
I find it important to set regular, reasonable goals, whatever those may be. It can be seven pages a week (an old goal of mine) 1000 words a week (also an old goal) or whatever you think you can do with the time you have. You also don’t have to write every day either. If all you have is an hour on Mondays, then set your goals to reflect the time you do have. And start small. Your first project is going to be a monumental undertaking, a large portion of which will be learning what works best for you. So take your time. As long as you make regular, consistent progress, you’ll get there. I can all but promise that.