Writing Tracker (Dec. 31 – Jan. 6)

Writers write. That’s the bottom line.

At the start of 2018, I set a few concrete writing goals. As part of fulfilling those goals, I hope to publish my writing stats each week to 1) hold myself accountable, 2) inspire other writers, and 3) track my writing data. Scroll to the bottom to see more on writing goals.

Words Per Day

Sunday, December 31: 1,015 words (blog)

Monday, January 1: 1,250 words (blog)

Tuesday, January 2: 1,270 words (blog)

Wednesday, January 3: 1,178 words (blog)

Thursday, January 4: 1,135 words (fiction)

Friday, January 5: 911 words (blog)

Saturday, January 6: 1,276 words (blog)

Week 1 (Dec. 31 – Jan. 6) Totals

Last week, I wrote 8,035 words and spent 4 hours and 30 minutes writing, averaging 1,733 words per hour.

2018 Totals

Since the beginning of 2018, I’ve written 7,020 words and spent 3 hours and 45 minutes writing (I’ve excluded 31 December 2017).

Published Writing From Last Week

Refuge – An introduction to a weekly series about refugees and the Kingdom. Over the course of the next year, I hope to provide practical and spiritual insights into refugeeism and how we can respond.

Goal-Setting in Writing – Laying out my writing goals for the past several years and how this year’s goal is different. The strategy must be different, too.

Four Traps of Our Bible-Reading Plans – Especially as the new year begins, many Christians have beautiful hopes to be more disciplined and joyful in the reading of God’s Word. I want to encourage you–and warn you of four potential pitfalls along the way. Being aware of the dangers will help us avoid them.

It’s Never Too Late for Your Resolution – Why should we suppose January 1 is the only or best time to set off toward new resolutions? Let’s prepare for our goals, but start them in a month or in six. Every day can be Day 1.

Calvin of Arabia: Protestant Theology Translated into Arabic (Christianity Today) – This was actually published at the end of last year, but it was publicized last week. It’s about exciting new efforts to translate more Reformation theology into the heart-language of many Christians and future Christians in the Middle East.

Here’s What’s Coming Up

In the near future I have plans to write more about the gravity of the tragedy of refugeeism and why it is so insidious; why it is helpful to go beyond a goal mentality to an investment mentality; and the benefits of the church returning to the regular use of catechisms.

Why Sharing Your Goals Is Important

Accountability: Because my writing goals for 2018 are to 1) post at least twice per week on this blog and 2) publish a book online, I know that I need to hold myself accountable and be held accountable by others. Making my writing statistics is one way for me to do that. With my writing production out in the open, others can see if I’m keeping up and, if I’m not, give me the necessary encouragement/kick. Posting my stats also keeps me personally motivated, as I don’t want to be embarrassed by falling behind my goals in public.

Inspiration: Assuming I can maintain my writing production at a level I’m satisfied with, I hope it will be an inspiration to other writers. I work full-time and have a number of ongoing commitments, but because writing is important to me, I make the time. You can too. Even 15-minute writing sprints over the course of weeks and months really adds up.

Data Tracking: I love seeing trends in data almost as much as I love writing. Amateur data analysis is incredibly easy today, and I love to see my numbers crunched. It’s fun and fascinating, but it also helps me write. Tracking my writing means I know how much I can write per genre, per hours; I know my pace; I know how much time I’m actually dedicating to writing; and I can see how my writing accumulates and improves over time.