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Planning Ahead to Achieve New Writing Goals

Posted on November 1st, 2010 in Writing by Val Mills

Why you should set new personal writing goals for November and how to achieve them.

Many Triond writers are heaving a sigh of relief at the moment, having reached their goal of publishing ten articles for October. But now is the danger time, the time of sitting back in contentment and forgetting to move forward.

Now is the time to plan ahead. You achieved the goal of ten, so you know you can do it. If it was easy, that is great. You should set more challenging goals for the coming month. If it was difficult and you found yourself rushing to reach the quota at the end of the month, now is the time to plan ahead for November. Here are some hints on how to do it.

Increase your output goals: You made ten, so you know it is possible. If you didn’t make ten, even though you had the best of intentions, think about where you went wrong. Did you keep putting it off? If you made ten, increase your goals for this month. People have been suggesting Triond may increase the quota to 20 in a future challenge. Will you be ready for that? Don’t just wait to see if it happens, start preparing now. Get into the habit of writing more regularly. If you wrote ten articles in October, why not aim for 12, 15 or even 20 in November. That way you’ll be ready if 20 is the next challenge Triond throws our way.
Pace yourself by planning ahead: Once you’ve decided how many articles you plan to write for the month, calculate how many you need to write on a daily or weekly basis. Don’t go overboard and set a goal you can’t achieve. Just take it in small steps. If you can’t write daily, acknowledge that, but don’t turn it into a road block. Maybe you can write one article every two or three days. Maybe you can write more than one over the weekend. Work out a regular pace that suits you and stick to it as closely as you can.
Think ahead to what is coming up in your life: November is a busy month for many people. National and community activities and events, preparations for Christmas, work deadlines and numerous other events come to mind. How will you be involved in these things? Everyone has a unique perspective in the things they do. Think about how you could share your experiences with others around the world. Get your brain working, processing ideas ahead of time. Then, when you come to write the process will be easier.
Make notes in advance: If you think of an idea, write it down. Brainstorm ideas around it if you have time, so that it’s there when you have time to write. I find if an idea pops into my head, a quick brainstorm using what, where, when, why, how, who gets quite a bit of information onto the page. Then, when I come to write I have something to start with.
Think of yourself as a writer: You’ve written a number of articles during October. You’ve set goals for November. It follows then, that you are a writer. Many people hate to attach this label to themselves and consequently allow other things to interfere with their writing time. Keep your writing brain switched on. Tell yourself you have articles to write, and then stay alert to possibilities. They are all around you.