The last rays of sunlight on Mount Everest on May 5, 2007. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
My Goal:
Write 200 words a day for the month of July. (Not counting my weekly columns, which have to be at least 750 words to fill my space on page 5 of the paper it lives in).
Why?
Same reason people climb Mount Everest.
What is that?
Because it’s there.
Actually, Kathy Drue, from the blog: Lake Superior Spirit is attempting this, so I thought I would give it a try. I told her that it would be challenging to decide which babies to throw out with the bath water. (If you wonder what this baby thing is about—I learned from one of the members in my writers’ group, that “killing your babies” means that there are times when you have to edit out some of the best parts of your writing to achieve a goal: to make it more readable, the correct length, or not elaborate on something that does not need elaboration. That is my loose definition for a horrible term much befitting the process of editing).
I have been looking for a doable challenge for some time.
Think I have found it.
good luck with it all!
thank you – hope I make it to Day 2!
Yay! Go for it. Write because you can’t NOT write. How’s that for a writing lesson?
I just read your ‘about’ – YOU need this challenge?? Seems you could be giving us lessons.
well, the challenge is two fold – to write for the blog every day, and to keep it down to 200 words.
Just got home from the airport picking up the kids. So glad that you are accepting the challenge and running with it. You can do it! If you’re too challenged, we can form a support group.
Let me know how you like it.
I may need to take you up on that. Thanks for the idea Kathy – you are a generous soul!
Still learning about editing….. but I get how hard it is to eliminate words you worked so hard to put together!
It is difficult – I am usually more verbose, so this should be a good exercise. Join Kathy above to see how she is going to do it too.
Good luck Lou….I will support you any way I can.
I know you will – just read them even if they are not my usual posts
Good luck with the challenge!
Thank you -
You go girl!
Thanks Stacie – will do!
A worthy goal! Seems doable, too – please keep us posted on your progress.
will do – am looking forward to it
Good luck!
Xx
we will have to see what happens – thanks for cheering me on–you know 200 words is not much
Happpy Awarding my friend
You have been given two awards – check this post out: http://gobakeyourself.wordpress.com/2012/07/07/a-classic/
Congrats
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
I am honoured – thanks so much. And congrats to you too.
Will you keep us posted on your progress?
I will – have day 3 in draft form as we speak
Great challenge! I’m practicing with writing every single day as well. So much energy and support to you!
And back to you – I wish us both good luck!
Good luck – I’m rooting for you!!!
thank you – I can use all the cheering on I can get
I’m sure you will do it – it’s in the blood – and besides it will drive you mad not to do it!!
true – but who is to say I am not already there? thanks for the confidence in me though.
Way to challenge your craft LouAnn! Can’t beat ol’ Strunk & White w/ their ongoing credo to ‘omit needles words’ Keeping to 200 words is nice and tight, you’ll do great…. less ‘babies out w/ the bathwater’ and all that
Looking forward to seeing what you come up with.
*anna
I think you are right – there will be no rambling on with this exercise.
I think this is an excellent idea. This sort of self-discipline can really hone your writing by forcing you to be concise and find new ways of expressing yourself. It’s something I would definitely benefit from trying.
I am rather enjoying it – doing a lot of deleting though.
thank goodness for the delete key. maybe we should put a little picture of the baby in the bath on that key. for us, sometimes we say too much about the kids. while it reads well and it’s positive, we know it’s a public statement of something they’d rather not see posted even if only a small number of people would read it. delete, delete. we can’t wait to see the posts of your progress for some pointers for our own writing.
~the friend who told me about the babies in the bath phrase read my post and wrote and told me it is :kill your darlings not your babies, and she attributed it to Hemingway–but since it would have spoiled my whole post, I am not going to change it — in my case my darlings are my kids – therefore the baby analogy – maybe I will save that for one of my 200 word posts
~I agree that when we talk about out kids it is not easy to delete – maybe I will not try to talk about mine in just 200 words, or break it into two or three posts. Although they would be happy if I just did not talk about them at all.
~I enjoy your posts –but if you want to join me in this exercise, welcome aboard
I have a hard time with editing my writing, as I imagine most people do. I cringe when my posts breech the 500 word mark. I am too wordy, I know, but I just can’t help myself. Quite often I try to counteract a long post by following it a day or two later with a very short one. I am sure nobody notices or cares, but it makes me feel like I have achieved a balance.
But really it is just an excuse to allow myself to keep those 500+ word posts.
Most of my posts are well over 500 words – I personally do not mind long posts when the subject is of interest to me, or it is a peek into a friend’s life (I consider you a good blog friend). This exercise is not meant as a guide but as an exercise. I really enjoy your blog–so whatever you are doing–keep doing it!
It’s hard for me to even put 200 words together (except for those two long-winded memoirs I wrote). Actually, I was rather pleased that I wrote something that long! Even if some of you posts are long they are still enjoyable!
Thank you – and I am surprised that you have a hard time putting 200 words together – it certainly does not show.