The 2020 Daily Writing Challenge – November 23

/ JoHawkTheWriter

2020 Daily Writing Challenge

Writing is like driving at night in the fog.
You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.
– E. L. Doctorow

Today is Day 328 of the 2020 Daily Writing Challenge.

Did you write yesterday?

My year-end countdown has begun, and what a wild ride 2020 has been. The adage says what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger. I’m not dead, yet therefore I must be tougher right? The question becomes — How much can I accomplish before we ring in the new year?

It all starts with a well-conceived strategy, and mine includes a master list of 100 activities to help me reach my annual writing goal. It may sound impossible, but many items are almost insignificant and require fewer than 15 minutes to finish. They are micro-actions, minor jobs that, while they are crucial, they are the ones I repeatedly push to tomorrow.

My new resolution is to stop multitasking and instead concentrate on finishing one task before starting another. I have dedicated a cute notebook to collect random thoughts that often distract me from my current job. I aim to eliminate some low-priority habits and devote my time to higher valued assignments. Each evening, I will organize tomorrow’s calendar and schedule my most important activity in the top slot of my To-Do list. I pledge to complete that job before doing anything else. It means moving my daily writing session from afternoons to first thing in the morning. Well, second after my coffee, of course. November and NaNoWriMo begin on Sunday, and I need to incorporate the challenge into my routine.

Are you participating in NaNo? Do you have a plan? What can you achieve in the next few weeks?

Let us know in the comments below.

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

The Dilemma of Sunday Afternoon Possibilities – Daily Quote

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 3 Comments

this-is-sunday-and-the-question-arises-whatll-i-start-tomorrow_-kurt-vonnegu

Sunday is unlike any other day, and it holds a special place in my heart. Wedged into the weekend’s end, Sundays represent a time of ease, relaxation, and less structured busy housework. Freedom, lack of structure, and general flailing about without a set plan, wears on my need for an ordered schedule and measurable productivity. I feel my anxiety rising, and I long to transition to more productive work. While others nap, play games, and indulge in binge-watching favorite shows, my fingers itch, my mind looks forward, and my body hums with a desire to act.

Thoughts turn to possibilities. Rested and recharged, I can’t wait to begin again. I pull out my planner, review the past week, assess where I stand, and plot my path. The start of a new week carries so much promise, and I front-load my week’s plans. The surging strength within me demands direction. I devise a strategy to channel my intensity toward tackling onerous tasks, pushing a project across the finish line, or maybe clearing the slate, and embarking on a fantastical endeavor.

The adage counsels us to “make hay while the sun shines.” I plan to take an enormous bite from my task list while my energy is at its peak. The afternoon is perfect for setting the stage, so in the morning, I can explode out of the gate.

How will you spend your Sunday?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

The 2020 Daily Writing Challenge – November 22

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 3 Comments

2020 Daily Writing Challenge

Writing is like driving at night in the fog.
You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.
– E. L. Doctorow

Today is Day 327 of the 2020 Daily Writing Challenge.

Did you write yesterday?

My year-end countdown has begun, and what a wild ride 2020 has been. The adage says what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger. I’m not dead, yet therefore I must be tougher right? The question becomes — How much can I accomplish before we ring in the new year?

It all starts with a well-conceived strategy, and mine includes a master list of 100 activities to help me reach my annual writing goal. It may sound impossible, but many items are almost insignificant and require fewer than 15 minutes to finish. They are micro-actions, minor jobs that, while they are crucial, they are the ones I repeatedly push to tomorrow.

My new resolution is to stop multitasking and instead concentrate on finishing one task before starting another. I have dedicated a cute notebook to collect random thoughts that often distract me from my current job. I aim to eliminate some low-priority habits and devote my time to higher valued assignments. Each evening, I will organize tomorrow’s calendar and schedule my most important activity in the top slot of my To-Do list. I pledge to complete that job before doing anything else. It means moving my daily writing session from afternoons to first thing in the morning. Well, second after my coffee, of course. November and NaNoWriMo begin on Sunday, and I need to incorporate the challenge into my routine.

Are you participating in NaNo? Do you have a plan? What can you achieve in the next few weeks?

Let us know in the comments below.

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Never Give Up, and You Can Reach Your Goals — Daily Quote

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 7 Comments

it-does-not-matter-how-slowly-you-go-as-long-as-you-do-not-stop.-confucius

I’m not a patient person. My modus operandi is setting audacious goals and compiling long to-do lists as I schedule my daily and weekly tasks. Friends and family council me, telling me I am too optimistic, too unrealistic, and too driven. They caution me to decrease my breakneck pace, saying I will burn out and quit.

I have a slow speed. Sometimes I downshift into low gear. I recognize it is necessary and healthy to disengage and relax, and I take days away from my work. I can do nothing — for a while. Extended periods of relaxation with nothing to do, increases my stress and grates on my nerves, my anxiety escalates, and I can’t sit still. I pace the floors, roaming from room to room, desperate to find an activity to keep my hands and mind engaged. I know I will attain my goals because I cannot stop.

How do you relax?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

The 2020 Daily Writing Challenge – November 21

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 3 Comments

2020 Daily Writing Challenge

Writing is like driving at night in the fog.
You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.
– E. L. Doctorow

Today is Day 326 of the 2020 Daily Writing Challenge.

Did you write yesterday?

My year-end countdown has begun, and what a wild ride 2020 has been. The adage says what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger. I’m not dead, yet therefore I must be tougher right? The question becomes — How much can I accomplish before we ring in the new year?

It all starts with a well-conceived strategy, and mine includes a master list of 100 activities to help me reach my annual writing goal. It may sound impossible, but many items are almost insignificant and require fewer than 15 minutes to finish. They are micro-actions, minor jobs that, while they are crucial, they are the ones I repeatedly push to tomorrow.

My new resolution is to stop multitasking and instead concentrate on finishing one task before starting another. I have dedicated a cute notebook to collect random thoughts that often distract me from my current job. I aim to eliminate some low-priority habits and devote my time to higher valued assignments. Each evening, I will organize tomorrow’s calendar and schedule my most important activity in the top slot of my To-Do list. I pledge to complete that job before doing anything else. It means moving my daily writing session from afternoons to first thing in the morning. Well, second after my coffee, of course. November and NaNoWriMo begin on Sunday, and I need to incorporate the challenge into my routine.

Are you participating in NaNo? Do you have a plan? What can you achieve in the next few weeks?

Let us know in the comments below.

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Listening to the Voice in Your Head to Create Wonderful Stories – Daily Quote

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 5 Comments

one-advantage-of-talking-to-yourself-is-that-you-know-at-least-somebodys-listening.-anonymous

I have a secret. You can not imagine how embarrassing it is when someone catches me and laughs. Talking to myself in my head and aloud is an everyday occurrence. I assure you, my conversations are rather mundane. Where is my phone? Did I pay the bill? Should I buy lemons at the grocery store? Who is knocking on my front door? Why did I come into this room? Those are typical topics I explore almost daily.

Late at night, when the house is finally silent, questions fade and grow quiet. The voice changes and my evening adventure begins. Since I was a child, the voice has helped me sort through tough times, and it has told me bedtime stories, creating imaginary characters and fantastical worlds. It is my trusted companion. Together we work through complex issues, solving the day’s problems. I write the tales I tell myself and share them with my friends.

What stories will you tell yourself today?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

The 2020 Daily Writing Challenge – November 20

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 3 Comments

2020 Daily Writing Challenge

Writing is like driving at night in the fog.
You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.
– E. L. Doctorow

Today is Day 325 of the 2020 Daily Writing Challenge.

Did you write yesterday?

My year-end countdown has begun, and what a wild ride 2020 has been. The adage says what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger. I’m not dead, yet therefore I must be tougher right? The question becomes — How much can I accomplish before we ring in the new year?

It all starts with a well-conceived strategy, and mine includes a master list of 100 activities to help me reach my annual writing goal. It may sound impossible, but many items are almost insignificant and require fewer than 15 minutes to finish. They are micro-actions, minor jobs that, while they are crucial, they are the ones I repeatedly push to tomorrow.

My new resolution is to stop multitasking and instead concentrate on finishing one task before starting another. I have dedicated a cute notebook to collect random thoughts that often distract me from my current job. I aim to eliminate some low-priority habits and devote my time to higher valued assignments. Each evening, I will organize tomorrow’s calendar and schedule my most important activity in the top slot of my To-Do list. I pledge to complete that job before doing anything else. It means moving my daily writing session from afternoons to first thing in the morning. Well, second after my coffee, of course. November and NaNoWriMo begin on Sunday, and I need to incorporate the challenge into my routine.

Are you participating in NaNo? Do you have a plan? What can you achieve in the next few weeks?

Let us know in the comments below.

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer