Writers write. That’s the bottom line.
I’m realizing that I definitely write more in the middle of the week than on the edges. Weekends have actually proven much tougher for me to dedicate to writing than weeknights. Last week I wrote a fair amount for my blog, getting into pieces about what the gig economy might mean for Christians specifically, the association between fasting and mourning (and whether it still applies today, now that the Messiah has come and sent the Holy Spirit), and a movie on Netflix I watched with my wife called “The Heart of Man.” I also worked a bit on a novel I’ve been dipping in and out of, and contributed to a Christianity Today article. It was quite a diverse week in terms of writing, and I can’t decide yet if that helped my craft or hurt it. I had a higher words per hour rate (aided by my fiction-writing, which is always considerably speedier than blog or journalism writing), but I also felt distracted, especially on the weekends.
Words Per Day
Sunday, February 11: 200 words (blog)
Monday, February 12: 514 words (blog)
Tuesday, February 13: 2,601 words (blog and fiction)
Wednesday, February 14: 1,803 words (blog)
Thursday, February 15: 1,657 words (blog and journalism)
Friday, February 16: 388 words (blog)
Saturday, February 17: 927 words (blog)
Week 7 (Feb. 11 – Feb. 17) Totals
Last week, I wrote 8,090 words and spent about 4 and a half hours writing, averaging 1,765 words per hour.
2018 Totals
Since the beginning of 2018, I’ve written about 53,500 words and spent approximately 34 hours writing.
Published Writing From Last Week
The Church and the Refugee – In this chapter of my Refuge series, I wrote the story of Mara (not her real name), who is a refugee from Iraq I met in Lebanon. She has a frightening–and frighteningly common–refugee story, which helps to shed light on why so many refugees are so terribly disadvantaged. It also elucidates how the church can and does come alongside refugees. The church in the West can learn a lot from this little story.
What Do Explorers Pack? – After reading an astounding story in The New Yorker by David Grann, recounting the life and arctic adventures of the modern explorer Henry Worsley, I was struck by so many things. One of the smaller details that interested me came from Worsley’s first quest across the frozen land at the bottom of the world. Along with two other men, he had to prepare for at least a nine-week journey. No supplies were dropped along the way and no delivery system had been arranged. So the question must arise: What does one take along?
The Parable of the Fast – I don’t typically share straight fiction on my blog–I leave that for other venues–but in the midst of the Lenten season, I wanted to share a little parable I wrote. Basically, it’s a tiny tale about what fasting is, what it costs, and what it might be for.
Writing Tracker – Week 6 (Feb. 4 – Feb. 10) – Follow along as I track progress toward my writing goals. Here’s an update from the sixth week of the year.
Here’s What’s Coming Up
In the near future, I’m planning to write more in my series about the Kardashev Scale, which I’ve been steadily plugging away at, and how it might come into contact with the Kingdom of God. I’m also working on pieces about sharing one’s testimony (and how to do it with different audiences) and what it means to be a writer today. Please share and read along!
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.
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