Ask The Writer

How do I keep my resolution to write more this year?

ONLINE EXCLUSIVE
By Brandi Reissenweber
Published: January 16, 2012
Q: I make a resolution to write more every year. However, I’m rarely able to keep my resolution much past the second week of January. Any suggestions on how I can be more successful?

A: I love the idea of writerly resolutions for the new year. It’s a fresh start and an opportunity to reconsider how your day-to-day choices line up with your values. Still, you’re not alone in losing motivation early in the year. One reason might be that the resolution—important as it may be to you—is vague. Yes, you want to write more, but what does that mean? How will that change the way your day or week unfolds? Without that more specific understanding, you’ll only attend to this resolution when you think of it and when you have some spare time. Both may be rare occurrences. Waiting for them to happen at the same time . . . well, you see where I’m going. Give yourself concrete resolutions in order to set yourself up for success. Do you want to complete your novel this year? Do you want to finally revise all those short stories you’ve written? Do you want to write a thousand words a day? Or perhaps you want to write during your lunch hour three days a week. All of these may mean you’re writing “more,” and they’re giving you a specific goal to write toward.
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