It's good to have a goal, something to shoot for in most aspects of life. Right now with my hair just beginning to grow back, I'm setting hair goals. I think the first--and I should be able to achieve this fairly quickly--will be the Joe Girardi. That's doable, right?
That doesn't look so hard to do, does it? Another week or two and I should be there. Then I can really apply myself (the key here is to do nothing) and aim for the next level up, which would be the Drew Carey.
Mind you, we're talking the standup comedian/sitcom star Drew Carey, and not the game show host Drew Carey, who slimmed down and grew his hair somewhat longer. Still not exactly Jimi Hendrix, but still a couple of steps away from where I am now. It's important to set achievable goals and when possible to set them in stages, so you still have more levels to achieve when you've reached your next success.
But hirsute matters aside, goals are a helpful tool to the writer. Sitting down to write an entire novel at one time would be not only daunting but also close to impossible. One has to eat and sleep, for example. So let's assume our hypothetical author will be in for the long haul. That makes incremental goals essential.
Start by writing the opening you had in your mind. Because if you didn't have a premise ready, you have no story and should be off planting ferns or painting the kitchen until you have an idea. What are you doing wasting our time here, for crying out loud?
So let's assume you have a premise and you're off to the races. When you get back from the races, sit down and write your opening. Your goal here is simple: Get the story moving and introduce your character(s). First goal: Write enough to make today feel like an accomplishment. It doesn't matter how many words that might be (For me, it's 1,000 words because that's what I've decided. It's completely arbitrary but for my process it works.), but get them down on pixels.
Next (and I'm not making any estimates in terms of time, so this could be the same day, the next day or three years later because it's you writing and not me--if it were me it'd be another 1,000 words the next day) the aim should be to finish a chapter. It doesn't have to happen today, but it's what you're driving toward. The end of a chapter. That's all.
Once the first chapter is done, the goals become more obvious. Chapter after chapter until you reach the centerpiece of your story, where things go a little nuts and something BIG happens to drive your character forward into the second half. That's something you'll probably want to have in mind ahead of time, although it might change as you write. Stories have a way of deciding what they want to be about.
Perhaps you're a plotter, unlike myself. You have index cards with each scene represented and you know exactly what the plot point after the one you just wrote is going to be. Good for you. But you still have to write it. Your goals might be more tangible, more concrete. You can see them. That's great. Now sit down and meet them.
Once past the midpoint the end is the final goal. There is no reason to believe you have to reach it today unless you're one step away from THE END. But it is the incentive, the initiative. It's what you drive toward. Keep going. Each day, each chapter, each page, each paragraph, each sentence, each word along the way is a step toward that achievement. Feel good about what you're doing even if today isn't a a fun one. You'll reach the last goal as long as you don't quit. So don't quit.
I hate writing. I love having written. And in only three weeks, my 20th published novel will be released. Reviewers have called it "hilarious" and "nifty," among other nice things. Guess why? Because I kept my goals achievable and I kept them in sight. You can do that too.
Congratulations on the 20th novel. Sounds like a howl.
Posted by: Jersey Jack | July 24, 2017 at 09:19 AM
You should be ashamed of yourself.
Posted by: Jeff Cohen | July 24, 2017 at 01:36 PM
I dressed my dog up as a cat for Halloween. Now he won’t come when I call him.
Posted by: Jack Getze | July 24, 2017 at 02:28 PM