The Weekly R.A.P #3
Writing Goals Check-In for June 11, 2023
Welcome to the 3rd Weekly RAP of the HIBOU’s 100 Days of Summer!
Reminder: The Weekly RAP is a gentle tool for staying accountable to your writing goals. If you set a goal with us in the comments of last week’s newsletter, check in about how it went by adding a comment! If you’re just joining us this week, ignore the first two questions of the RAP sheet and just set a goal for next week.1
So, how did this week go?
THE WEEKLY R.A.P #3 — June 12, 2023
RECKONING—If you set a writing goal in the comment section of HIBOU’s June 4th post for The Weekly RAP #2,2 did you achieve your goal? Yes? No? Partially?
ANALYSIS–What went well this week? What was a challenge? What insights did you learn about your writing this week? Looking ahead to next week, can you repeat what went well? If the coming week has similar challenges to last week, how might you adjust your writing schedule or your goal? Are there any new challenges to take into account this week?
PLAN–What is your writing goal for the coming week (6/5to 6/11)? What is your plan to get it done? How will you reward yourself for the work you complete? A friendly reminder that smart goals are (s)pecific, (m)easurable, (a)chievable, (r)ealistic, and (t)ime-bound.3
Copy and paste the template above into the comments, replace the questions with your answers, then hit post and check out what other HIBOU subscribers are up to and cheer them on!4
Remember to be kind to yourself if you didn’t make your goal!
Today is the start of a fresh, new week!
You might also want to read “Writing Accountability Experiment,” the first post in the series.
Click the link if you need to refresh your memory!
Holy cow it’s JUNE so I better get started may express your frustration clearly, but a smart goal makes the action more concrete. : By June 11, I will get create a working synopsis for part two by working for a half hour every morning.
Because this is about us not me, my weekly RAP response is posted in the comments.
CATHY’S WEEKLY RAP FOR JUNE 11, 2023
RECKONING: Rough draft of chapter 26—check! Return to morning schedule and swimming reward—not so check!
ANALYSIS: I’m excited I finished a rough draft of chapter 26—go me!—but if I’m being honest, setting a content goal gave me permission to slack off a bit. I did about half of my normal writing time because I was on pace to finish the content goal. This is a good reminder why I give myself time goals paired with content goals in priority order. Also, I’m like a cat in a bath with the morning writing, Perhaps the fur beast we may be adopting this week will change that? I mean she will, but when my mornings get late it’s generally because I’m trying to do too many things and my evenings are creaking long either because I’m trying to work or trying to give myself some down time and breathing space. I need to journal about my true priorities this week.
PLAN: I will return to my goal of writing x hours working on the second draft of chapter 26 (aka the type and tweak draft) and moving on to chapter 27 if/when I finish that. Should we actually adopt a fur beast, I will obviously need to put that first for the getting to know you period, but as of right now, we are fur beast less, so the writing is the priority.
RECKONING: I was traveling most of last week, so I hadn't really set a firm plan. HOWEVER, I'm happy to say that once I was back, I did manage to "touch" my novel every day, spending anywhere from 25 mins to 2 hours with it.
ANALYSIS: 1.) Using a pomodoro timer has been a HUGE boon for me. It gets me out of that "I can only write if I have an hour or more" mindset, and also takes the feeling of "ugh, I have to write," away. I mean, all I have to do is write for 25 minutes! (And then, almost always, I re-up for more). It's crazy how effective I'm finding it. 2.) I have finally, after months and months of dicking around / false starts / etc., found what I think is the right narrative voice and ethos for this book, and it's making all the difference in the world. I still have NO idea where it's going in many ways, but at least now I feel like I have my writing shoes on (the right ones for this novel's terrain) and can really get rolling.
PLAN: I will continue to do at least one pomodoro a day, but ideally 2-3. If I can manage to do that every day this week, I'm going to reward myself with a big, indulgent couple of hours of reading on Saturday or Sunday, maybe over an almond croissant and latte at Caffe Nero.