Expertise Hours Two: The Evaluation

[cathschaffstump]

Some of you might remember when I decided last year to commit to 12 hours of writing time a week, or 624 hours for the year. My hope was to collect expertise hours to the tune of around 6K more before I retire in 2020 to write full time. More details? You betcha!

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So, how did it go? Well, the good news is this: I will get my hours in. I was disciplined enough and carved out enough time in my life to meet my obligation to myself. I will be a little short at the end of this super full time week, but I will have a little more time to write on vacation next week, so it will all pan out. Nicely done.

Positive Observations:

1. My output has increased. You wouldn't know it to look at what's circulating. This year I wrote two novel rough drafts, planned a series of books, and wrote one new short story. Good.

2. I am improving in patience.

3. There is less pressure to produce a product, and more time to experiment and research.

Other observations:

1. I have exercised LESS this year than I usually do. I will credit most of that to rib damage, although I know there have definitely been nights I have chosen to sit and right over work out. Gonna have to figure that one out.

2. If I have time, but no goals or guidance, I can easily fritter my writer time away on research. I need some research, but I need to make sure I only research what I need to research.

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I'd call the experiment a success. As I gear up to do the same thing next year, I will try to move toward setting and reaching goals. I think figuring out how long it takes me to actually do things is the next key step. Like with time dedicated to writing, I can reach goals only if I plan the goals as something that can be done in a reasonable time frame.

I really recommend this approach. It keeps you from feeling that you'll get to write...some day. In spite of the day job, I'm definitely writing now.

Catherine

Mirrored from Writer Tamago.