50 is not 0.

CovidWriMo is not going swimmingly.

I set myself a goal two weeks ago today: I would complete a 20k-wordstory in fourteen days. Today is day fourteen.

I’ve written roughly 10k.

That’s not great progress toward my goal. Halfway, in fact. I really should be much farther along.

I could make all sorts of excuses. The last week has been insane with, you know, that whole pandemic thing. Go figure. My ministry is actually busier than ever as I touch base with the congregation members and figure out how I can serve my community best. It used to be I could write an hour a night, sometimes more. Now I’m lucky to stay awake. I’m just wiped out.

Nevertheless, I have made some progress. I’ve not made my goal, but I’ve not written nothing.

And 50% is not 0%.

This is not a failure. Sure, it’s not success. Yes, I can do better. And as we figure out whatever the new “normal” is going to be as we slog through this pandemic isolating just-don’t-kill-the-kids stuff, hopefully my writing will find its place again. Or, rather, I will find a place for it, because if I let it find its place, I will never write again.

So, no, it’s not a success. But it’s not a failure. 10k words were written. Half of a story is right there. The rest are all outlined, ready to pour out.

And 10k words are far better than 0k. Work has been done.

So what does this mean?

Well, it means we fail upward. What have I learned? Well, much of my current ministry is very different. Almost every weekly appointment is canceled for now. For instance, the nursing homes are closed to me. That opens up hours in the mornings. Instead of stuffing in more ministry there, should I put my writing in that place? After all, a lot of my ministry has shifted later as people are home now and contacting me in those hours.

Does it mean I keep writing, but move my expected word count lower? That could be it, at least for now. A trained brain is wonderful when you can keep in a certain habit. However, if I write in the morning instead of the evening, it’ll take a bit to retrain my brain. So I expect lower word counts while I adjust to whatever new schedule happens.

And this is where I’m at. 50% of a goal. Not great, but far better than 0%. It’s worth it to keep going. Some is better than none.

How about you? Are you attempting to write more during the pandemic? If so, what adjustments are you finding you need to make?

CovidWriMo

Self-isolating? Time to write! Let’s do CovidWriMo!

(I did not come up with that name. Someone in one of my writing groups did; I take no credit!)

Woo! So many of my obligations in my ministry are isolating that I’m likely going to have more time to write. Time to pull out the computer. Let’s up that word-count!

Wait.

My kids are also home from school. And they’re loud. They like arguing with each other. They do not assist in increasing word counts. Ever. At all.

So I guess this isolation stuff isn’t good for writing after all.

Wait!

“Yeah, kids, why don’t you watch some tv?”

Now they’re screen zombies! Now I can go write!

…but that would make me a bad parent, wouldn’t it? Sigh. All right, only one episode, kids.

But I can write during that, right? All right! Computer on! Hands on keyboard!

Wait! I should double-check that there haven’t been any developments I missed. Let’s do a quick scan of headlines, just in case. Shouldn’t take more than a second.

What do you mean your episode is done already? Ack! And now the loud has returned!

Kids! Go outside!

Peace and quiet at last! Word processor open. I know exactly what story I’m tackling. Should be straightforward.

…he fell out of the tree?

Of course he did. I’m coming.

OK, so maybe self-isolating won’t be great for my word count as long as the kids are also conscious or, you know, existing.

Look, the pandemic is serious. We want to do what we can to limit the spread of the disease. There are definitely negatives of that, and I suspect we’re going to feel echoes of those negatives for quite a while.

But one of the positives that may exist for you is the chance to get more writing done. If that’s you, seize that chance!

Meanwhile, I’m going to go make sure that there’s no broken bones…

Angered by the Rebel Librarian

This book angered me. That’s what makes it good.

So, earlier this week my older son brought home a book from school insisting I read it. That’s actually a pretty normal occurrence in our household. The boy’s a reader, rips through books, and is often excited about them.

Usually, I’ll ask him what the book is about. His answer usually consists of, “JUST READ IT!” with complete exasperation. Apparently I’m asking unreasonable questions.

This time, though?

This time, he told my wife a good ten-minute synopsis of the book. He was still excited when I got home from work an hour later. This excitement is a huge endorsement!

So I picked up the book as it sat on the kitchen table. Property of the Rebel Librarian. Well, the title’s already won me over. Continue reading “Angered by the Rebel Librarian”

Shotgun Writer

man wearing jacket carrying a gun
Photo by Harrison Haines on Pexels.com

A friend and I chatted about writing. This friend of mine is amazing. He’s going for a doctorate while working full-time as a minister and serving his wife and kids. He’s also a writer.

I asked how his writing was going. This is something the two of us do on occasion to encourage or commiserate.

I’m going to paraphrase here, because my photographic memory is 8-bit, but he said something along the lines of, “If I took all the writing I did for my doctorate and everything and focused on just writing, I’d have a few books done by now!”

Oh, man, that one hit home. A lot. Continue reading “Shotgun Writer”

Regularity Pays

The phone pinged. My wife looked at the text. She broke out into laughter.

It was the owner of my comic shop. She hadn’t seen us in two weeks, and she wanted to make sure we were okay.

Well. I’m a little embarrassed!

See, I’m usually at my comic shop Thursday late morning or early afternoon. Last week I didn’t go because there were no comics out that I wanted to pick up. (You can check what comics are out every single week at Diamond Comics.) This week I didn’t go in the morning or early afternoon because of appointments I had in my regular capacity as a minister.

And when I didn’t come at the normal time today, the owner worried. Continue reading “Regularity Pays”