Setting Goals: Writing Tip Wednesday

I recently began the large task of editing my rough draft. After all the horror stories I have heard
about editing, I hesitated. I really didn't want to dive in just yet, but I knew if I didn't now I never would. So I began to simply read the novel through first. Trust me when I say, this is not as easy as it sounds. It involves a lot of embarrassment and face palms. So, I found it difficult to want to go back and even read it.
It was just so bad.





So I needed a goal. Because in the past as I wrote rough drafts, the thing that pushed me to keep going, was a goal. So I did it. I estimated the amount of pages I had left, figured when I wanted to be done reading through, then split the work among the days. After that, I forced myself to sit down, read through and examine my work, knowing I could stop after I did five more pages.

I am now nearly finished reading through and having a little more hope for my rough draft.

You may laugh at my small attempts, but for people like me who need a goal, it works wonders.

When writing, I like setting a word count per day. 300 words is always my minimum, but I normally hit between 500-1,000.

When you set a small goal, you tend to go over it and enjoy doing so, feeling confident. 

At the beginning of a week, setting a week long goal is always good. Some times I can finish it all on Monday, then I am excited to add to my list through the week. By the end of the week, I can look back and see what I accomplished and what I lacked doing. Then I can rearrange my schedule for the next week to be sure to get those things done.

Hope you all learned something from this little tip! Do you set goals? If so, do you always finish them? Keep writing and editing on!

-Melody