Every summer I try to challenge myself to write more. Ironically, summer is usually a slower time for me. So it’s the best time of year for me to get a grip on my current writing project. This summer is no different and I’ll be sharing my writing challenge experiences. Feel free to join me. It’ll be a win-win situation.

The challenge is to write at least 500 words a day, which comes out to about two double space pages. The weekly goal would be 3500 words or about 14 pages. So even if a day slips by—there is still the weekly goal. By the end of the challenge, I could have about 45,500 words, which comes out to about 182 pages. Hey, that’s a middle-grade novel!

The best part about the challenge: There are no rules. Just write at least 500 words about anything. If you get more than 500 words—that’ s great, more meat for your taco. The goal is to get words on paper however you can and watch the pages grow.

For me, I’ll be concentrating on rewriting the middle part of my current novel. This current revision has led me to dump 10 chapters—and find something else that works better.

The challenge is 13 weeks—June 1st until August 31st. Don’t worry about the number 13 being a bad sign. In many cultures, this number means luck and prosperity. Plus, it’s also the age when children become teens. So for this challenge, the number 13 is going to be a positive talisman.

I’ll do milestone posts every Monday until August 31st. I’ll also post inspirational quotes from some of my favorite craft books. If you do the challenge with me, I hope that you will post your progress as well.

So let’s get this thing started! The Summer Challenge is officially on!

One of the several craft books that I will use for inspiration this summer is The Writer’s Portable Therapist: 25 Sessions to a Creativity Cure by Rachel Ballon, Ph.D.

Dr. Ballon says you should use all these traits to write every day:

Commitment
Risk
Energy
Action
Truth
Enjoyment

Which is also an acronym for C R E A T E.

So put this on a post-it note or write it down on your legal pad before you start writing and make it happen.

Now go write something already!

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Summer Challenge Milestone #11
Summer Challenge Milestone #12