To those of you participating, happy Camp NaNoWriMo!
Despite Wednesday being the first day of the April session, many people’s projects are well under way, and the feeling of excitement circulating among fellow writers has had me thinking about my own project almost constantly. The hardest part about keeping up with my word count goal, though, is keeping myself motivated.
Especially because of how close it is to the end of the school year, I can always count on April to fill up quickly with an abundance of standardized tests, final projects and preparations for summer break. Adding a hefty writing goal to the mix already seems a little difficult to keep up with. By the time I get around to actually working toward my camp goals for the day, I am often tired and not really motivated to write.
Yet, there is an age-old trick that many writers admit to using to keep themselves motivated. Chocolate, coffee, or even a mix of both. It might sound cliché, but sometimes the best motivation for when you simply aren’t motivated is a sugary reward afterwards.
Of course, it doesn’t necessarily have to be candy. Personally, the thought of going to bed after I’ve reached my daily word count does wonders on my focus and concentration late at night. Granted, I don’t usually surpass my goals when using extrinsic motivation like food or a nap, but small rewards can help keep me focused on the day-to-day tasks when the big picture is seeming just a bit too daunting.
If you’re ever in a pinch and don’t feel the creative juices flowing that make you want to write, don’t be afraid to use a guilty pleasure or two to your advantage. Setting any type of writing goal requires you to be able to see both the finish line and the steps you need to take to reach it. Those steps, though they may seem tedious at the moment, are the only way you can ever hope to reach your goal in the end. So what if they’re sprinkled with a little sugar from time to time? The big idea is to just keep going, because you’ll never be a writer if you never write.[vc_separator color=”grey” align=”align_center” style=”double”][TS_VCSC_Title_Typed fixed_addition=”false” title_strings=”Today’s Excerpt:” whitespace=”pre” showall=”false” mobile=”false” wrapper=”h1″ title_lines=”false” font_theme=”false” font_family=”Alex+Brush” font_type=”google” font_size=”36″ fixed_color=”#000000″ font_color=”#000000″ font_weight=”inherit” font_align=”center” padding=”15″ viewport=”true” startdelay=”0″ typespeed=”10″ backdelay=”500″ backspeed=”10″ loop=”false” loopcount=”0″ showcursor=”true” removecursor=”false” margin_top=”0″ margin_bottom=”0″]”‘Alright girls. Once Nicole get’s back on the rail, we’re going to try cantering, one at a time.’ She turned to face me, watching as I pulled Legs into an open area and fell into step with the other two riders. She waited a moment, making sure Legs was under control and I was settled in before continuing.
“’Hootie’s rider, how about you pull out and go first?’ she asked, turning to Jessica. She nodded, shooting me a quick smile before turning back around to her horse and the task ahead of her.
“’Now, remember: gather up your reins, kick with your outside leg and pull on the outside rein to pick up the right lead going into the canter. Use your inside leg once you’ve got the canter to keep it going. Whenever you’re ready….’”[vc_separator color=”grey” align=”align_center” style=”double”]By Nicole Schroeder