What Can You Actually Get Done in A Month, Part II
Where I publicly set some goals! And talk writing process!
Hi friends!
First, over 100 new people have signed up for my little newsletter over the last month—welcome! I use this space is where I share updates about my editing and consulting work, as well as my thoughts about what makes writing sustainable and fun (like hosting solo writing retreats and the case for starting more than you finish). Everyone I work with gets added to the newsletter, but always feel free to unsubscribe if this isn’t your jam! If it is your jam, and you want to help me get 100 more readers, you can feel free to share it as well!
AcWriMo and Me
Earlier this week, I wrote about what is possible to accomplish in a month, and I posed four questions that can help you decide how to structure your writing practice during that time. I’ve also written about how to clear the decks in order to create the space in your life that you need to make AcWriMo a success. (If you want to write with us, sign up here through Nov 2!)
Because examples sometimes help, today I want to talk about what has worked for me in AcWriMo-esque situations. And, because I am such a big believer in public shame accountability, I’m going to write down my goal for November here, so hundreds of people can read it and hold me accountable to it.
On Breadth and Depth, Product and Process
In my real life, I move back and forth between depth and breadth—I try to keep projects at different places in my writing pipeline, I get bored easily so I like to think about new things, and so having a breadth of writing projects works well for me.
When it comes to using a discrete amount of time like a writing challenge or retreat, though, I am a depth person: I like to work closely on one project. I like the feeling of thinking about just one thing every day. I go back and forth between process and product goals, but try to make it clear to myself what I’m working on. Here are three examples.
Early writing (process goal): When I participated in the brilliant Janelle Hanchett’s Write Anyway workshop a few years ago, I wrote just shy of 25,000 words in 30 days—about 833 words a day—on the topic of mothering. Not too bad for pandemic writing. I haven’t done anything with that body of writing, but I have cannibalized it for different writing projects since then, and it was instrumental in clarifying my thinking as I extricated myself from academia.
Structural work (product goal): Last year, I initially planned to start drafting a new project, but then the muses overtook me and instead I reverse-outlined my current book, paragraph by paragraph, and it took the whole month. I hated it, but wouldn’t have been able to do it without having a public audience to commiserate with; and in the end, I had a structure for the book that truly works. Without AcWriMo (and the writing groups that have followed) I don’t know that this book would ever have been this close to completion.
Finishing a round of edits (product goal): At our writing retreat in Atlantic City this summer, I had an ambitious product goal: I wanted to incorporate suggestions I’d gotten from reviewers into the manuscript and then print a full draft before I left. And I did it—I pressed print! And felt the beautiful heft of the 200 pages of paper (…and then didn’t look at it all summer, so planning a follow-through is really important!).
My 2023 AcWriMo plan
Get this book into the world (product goal): I’ll be honest with you, I had very high hopes of working on a new project this year, but that wasn’t in the cards. But I have a very specific to-do list of what needs to be done to finish my book and get it into the world, and so that is going to be my sole goal for November. By December 1, the book will be with publishers. (Putting that in writing makes me want to hide under my bed).
I’m setting a product goal for myself because I know it’s reachable (barring late-season hurricanes or a month with kids home sick), I know it needs to get done, and I also know that part of the reason I haven’t reached it yet is because I can infinitely revise something.
But…will it take me the whole month? I’m not sure, and if it doesn’t I have a plan B writing project that I’m looking forward to doing, and that will be a reward project for the remainder of the month (more on that later).
Motivation, Rewards, Celebrations, Accountability
Specific reward structures don’t work super well for me. I think this is because my writing process is too iterative and because if I can actually make myself sit in front of the computer and open my book, I’m not prone to avoidance. It’s the sitting down that’s the tricky part.
As I mentioned before, I bought myself a standing desk and treadmill as a “Happy AcWriMo” present to myself. I also have a reward in mind that I’m going to give myself when the book is out for review (this one is a surprise!). I’ll also do things to make my life easier along the way, like ordering in food slightly more often and spending money to have our amazing housecleaner come. And my big reward is coming December 17-January 10 where I’m giving myself my first true vacation in…four years? (Except that we’re running a writing retreat in there, but that still kind of counts).
So….how can I get to where I want to be so I come by all of these rewards honestly? The absolute best thing for me in terms of creating accountability is having Zoom co-writing sessions. I block these off on my calendar and am shockingly good at only using them for book work. This November, I scheduled one writing session a day, every day, that I will show up and facilitate.
I’ll also share daily writing thoughts as I have in years past, both in Slack and maybe somewhere else in the universe (notes? Bluesky? Who knows with these new-fangled internet thingies). These seemed to help motivate other folks last year, and they helped me keep focused on making the month about writing.
The final new thing I’m trying this year is planning how the month will end to ensure that I stay motivated and don’t just stop working entirely once November ends. Part of this is scheduling a celebration and toast at the end of the month with all of the other AcWriMo folks (you’re invited! Just write with us!). Another part of it is using the last few days of November to make a plan for what’s next for myself: what I need to do in December to wind things down, and how I’m going to pick things up in mid-January once I’m back from my break.
PS - I joined Bluesky, and I might like it there. You can find me at: kellyclancy.bsky.social, and I’ll follow you back!
Happy weekend, friends! I hope it’s a little spooky!
Kelly
A few fun reminders —
First, registration for Spring Writers’ Circles is officially open, and they are already over half full with amazing folks I know for a fact you want to spend a semester with. If you register by November 15, you’ll get discounts on the price of registration. You can find more information about the spring sessions here, and you can use the application form here to apply. You can read more about why I decided to create the writers’ circles, and my vision of writing together, here. Please join us, and invite your friends and colleagues!
Also, you know this because you just read a post about it, but we’re ONE week out from November, which means it’s time for AcWriMo! Register here, and read more about how to prepare for AcWriMo here (complete with an AcWriMo BINGO card). Again, this is free and everyone is welcome, so invite your friends!
Finally, Mirya and I still have one space in our January writing retreat open - let us know if you want it! We’re announcing more details about Mexico City soon, so stay tuned for that and let us know if you want to be the first to get notified. The details are all here and the application is here, and I’m happy to answer any questions. Hopefully this newsletter helps you brainstorm ways your university will pay for this.
And….
December: A little editing pause. I’m going to be taking December 17-January 10 off from editing to decompress, spend family time, and focus on the writing retreat. If you have something in the pipeline and we haven’t talked about it yet, let’s touch base to figure out how to schedule it around that time. If we’ve already talked, you’re on my schedule!
…Spring editing! This is a great time to make plans for us to work together in the spring—let me know if you’d like to get on my editing calendar for mid-February and beyond. Bring me great stuff to read! Let’s get it published!
Referrals: Because writing is better with friends—especially AcWriMo writing—I’d love for you to refer people to write with us. Substack has a fun new recruiting plan where you can get stuff (writing prompts! A Zoom call with me!) just for referring people to the newsletter—if that’s your jam, you can use this button:
Good luck, Kelly. I look forward to reading your book.