Word count lets me better quantify how much writing I am doing.
What does a writer do? They write, of course.
Over the years, I have played with being a writer. For a time, it was a hobby. Then it was an obsession. Finally, I began to move the pieces to make it into my career.
Over the past year-and-a-half, I have done a LOT more writing. I published the first book of The Void Incursion, Opening Gambit – and am publishing the second in November. I blog at least 5 days a week – and since November of 2018 have published over 900 articles on Medium.
While that is a considerable amount of writing – a couple of weeks ago I asked how much writing is enough? It was the first time I looked at my daily/weekly word count. From that, the conclusion I came to was that I could do more.
Examining my word count, up close, really opened my eyes to how much I was doing. But it also let me see how much more I could do. And since then, I have ramped up my work.
More writing = more joy
While writing is my work, it brings me joy.
There is no sensation quite like getting into the flow. When a sentence leads to a paragraph and it all comes together. Before you know it, there is a page of work. Time seems to stand still. And the words just flow from my head to my fingers to the screen.
This is not a sensation limited to writers. I know that other artists – like sculptors, painters, woodworkers, chefs – get into a similar flow. Even martial artists experience it (what Musashi called the “place of no mind.”)
It may be work – but damn does it feel amazing to do. For me, writing is not a chore. It’s an opportunity to express myself. It is a chance to create something new and potentially amazing.
I take equal pleasure from writing fiction as I do working with nonfiction. However, over the past year, my work on my fiction has slacked. It was inconsistent alongside the very consistent nonfiction writing I’ve been doing.
As I began to focus more on playing with my daily word count, I realized that I could easily write 1200 words of fiction daily. Probably more.
I have had an idea brewing in my brain since watching The Clone Wars. In the interest of writing more and producing something with a more commercial appeal to it, I decided to experiment in planning.
Shifting from pantser to planner
I have written multiple times about the idea of planners versus pantsers among writers. I’ve always been a pantser. An idea pops in my head and I write it.
There are advantages to this. It means I sometimes unexpectedly create characters and situations. I am not committed to a specific direction and such. There are flow and freedom without a plan.
There are disadvantages to this. I have written a whole book without a clear plot. More than once. Sometimes I get to a point where I am unsure what comes next – and while I don’t wind up blocked, per se, I get briefly stuck.
To take this idea of a story about clones (which is NOT tied to Star Wars at all), I decided to begin to plot. I planned out some characters, some idea of the situation, and background.
I knew I was writing a story some 500-600 years into the future. Then I did some research into actual star systems, exoplanets, and theorems of faster-than-light travel. I began to formulate an overall plot idea.
Before I knew it, I was writing an outline of the first chapter of the story. Before long, the first book was outlined chapter-by-chapter.
Then, I planned out the next book (working through the overarching plot of the story). After that, I outlined the third, then the fourth book. Every chapter, all the main characters, inciting incidences, and twists and turns.
In a week, I had 4 books planned out for a whole new series. After that, I also got the idea for more books in the same series (same characters, new overarching plot).
Planning increased the word count
Doing a word count made this a lot easier for me to understand how much work I have been doing, and how much more I could do. Particularly when it comes to writing fiction.
When I saw that my fiction word count was about 600 words a day, (3000 words in a five-day week), I determined I could EASILY double that to 1200 words a day (6000 words in a five-day week).
Planning the new series, writing the first couple of chapters of the first book of the new series, and working to complete the 4th (of 5) book in The Void Incursion has dramatically increased my word count.
My goal was 1200 words a day, 6000 words for a 5-day week. Having this goal created another motivation – and I am now writing 6 days a week consistently.
Here’s what I have for my first 3 weeks:
| Week 1: | Low word count – 300 | High word count – 3840 | Total word count: 10,257 |
| Week 2: | Low word count – 1100 | High word count – 1600 | Total word count: 6840* |
| Week 3: | Low word count – 699 | High word count – 2011 | Total word count: 7555** |
So far, I am well over the goal I set for myself. I am excited to continue working on The Void Incursion and to begin writing out the chapters I have outlined for the first book of my new clone series.
And with a little help, I have a name for the series. Forgotten Fodder.
Setting up a new goal
With the increased word count, I am looking at setting up another goal.
So far, this year, I have published 1 book. My next book, Critical Position, is coming November 9th. After that, on December 7th I will be publishing the one-off fantasy novel Infamy Ascending.
Initially, my plan for 2021 was to publish 2 or 3 books. The 3rd Void Incursion novel, Strategic Crush, in May – and the 4th in November (tentatively titled Antipositional Moves).
I am also (too slowly) working on my edit to Harbinger – the 3rd book in The Source Chronicles. It will need to go to a professional editor – and given the length of this novel that’s going to be a greater expense than most of my edits have been.
Having the first 4 books of Forgotten Fodder outlined, as I began to write the chapters for book 1 (tentatively titled Unexpected Witness,) the flow proved to be even greater than I could have imagined. Between this and my new daily word count practice, was it possible to increase just how many books I would put out next year?
With the end of the 4th Void Incursion book upon me, my focus would now be on Unexpected Witness. Having each chapter outlined – could I write this book in under 2 months?
This being the goal – if I can reach it, that will dramatically increase publications in 2021. It would reschedule the Void Incursion books by a month – because I think it is possible to release a book every-other-month in 2021.
Can I publish 6 books in a year? That may seem a bit much – but it’s been done by others before me. If my editor can keep up – I should set my sights on doing this.
Nothing worth having is ever easy
I have said that a LOT over my lifetime. Hell, one could argue that it IS my mantra. But this is the career I believe I’m meant to have. To make it more practical I need to be writing and publishing more.
Given 3 weeks of increased word count – if I continue this, here’s what I’m seeing:
My goal is 6000 words of fiction a week. Based on the first three weeks of word count, my average is 8200 words a week. If I can maintain that, I am writing 65,600 words over 2 months. Ergo, I should be able to write an approximately 50,000-word novel in 6-7 weeks.
There is nothing unreasonable about this. Easy? No. But with enough focus and dedication, I can make this happen. If it takes me 6.5 weeks to write a novel, I can write 4 novels in 26 weeks. Six months. If my editor can keep up with me (or I hire more than one) this could be utterly viable.
This WILL require me to be diligent and mindful of my writing. But that doesn’t scare me – it thrills me. I don’t see this as more, harder work. What I see is a chance to walk my talk and produce much, much more.
Have I lost my mind? Perhaps. However, I could make an argument that I have found my muse. By focusing on my word count and giving myself a better idea of what I am doing versus what I CAN do, it feels like this is a step I should be taking.
This is what brings me joy. This may be a challenge, but it excites me rather than scares me. I’m thrilled to see how mindfulness of my word count will help me to be a more prolific writer.
Thank you, as always, for being a part of my ongoing journey.
Thank you for joining me, and for inspiring me and my craft.
This is the seventy-eighth article exploring the ongoing creative process. Please take a moment to check out the collection of my published works, which can be found here.
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