An aspect of the “where do you find the time” question related to goals. The question was whether publishing as often as I do helps me to reach any sort of real goal, and, if so, what goal that was. I’ve been thinking about the question a lot and have been trying to find the words to describe my goals.
One of the goals is to get my name known. Do I have to publish five times per week to achieve notice for my name? No, but I can’t see that it hurts my efforts. Having a steady stream of posts makes it easier to find me and to know my background and the way I work.
Another goal is to have posts for people entering or already working within the writing field. I want to be able to converse with those people. I know I’ll be refining and refocusing some of my content in order to meet this particular goal. Is five posts per week a necessary component of the aim? No, but it gives me room to play and to develop an idea.
The truth, though, is that my publishing schedule has more to do with me and my own relationship with the writing life than with a set goal. Yes, I need to have a return on investment with the time and energy I spend writing. Yes, I want the writing to turn into consulting jobs and speaking engagements. At the same time, I need my schedule. I’m the sort of person who requires and enjoys structure. It offers comfort when everything is out-of-control and not responding the way I would like. It keeps me committed to honing my own craft. It causes me to remain diligent with my writing, reading, and learning habits.
What are your goals when it comes to the work you do? Do you have a publishing schedule?
I was happiest posting once a day. My big goal is to get more writing jobs and to do a much longer work. Writing every day helps keep me on track, but that has not been possible of late.
Thanks for the reminder Erin!
@NancyD68 We all need reminders. Have you read lorigosselin ‘s post about dark chocolate? It’s all about how we need reminders. 🙂
I’d almost forgotten about your book project. I hope you can get back into a schedule that lets you write more often. The book project is something that’s on my “big goal” list, too. I need to start taking some steps to put that project into motion.
@NancyD68 Hi Nancy! Nice to see you again!
Good luck with your book project! What fun!
Lori
Hey Erin,
I have a schedule of publishing 2X/week. It was 3X/week when I started but that proved to be too much with everything else I had to do! I believe in finding the schedule that you can uphold well, whatever that may be. Some people do once a week and it works for them. As long as the writing is good, right 😉
Lori
@Lori Exactly! Nancy and I were having a conversation about quality versus quantity on Facebook earlier.
We’ll see if I can continue with the pace I currently have. If quality starts to suffer or it’s time to focus on some of the other projects I hope to accomplish this year, I may have to change it.
I don’t have a publishing goal or schedule. I just write with reckless abandon because it suits me and soothes my soul.
@TheJackB My writing process is more like that. It’s the editing part that causes me to pause and to question where a certain post fits, if it fits, or if it has any publishable qualities. I typically have a queue of posts written, too, so my schedule often is based more on what I’ve written than on what I’ve not. I am trying to do a better job of focusing my writing, though, at least in terms of what I publish. I know it’s important for where I want Write Right to go. 🙂
Back to goals or schedules – I don’t think there’s a right answer unless it’s writing consistently and regularly (which you do without a schedule). That’s the only benefit I see in having a schedule, especially for the writer just starting to write. It’s one of the things I enjoy most about conversing with other writers. We’re all writing, but we all have different reasons for writing and different aims we’re trying to reach.
I have to write with reckless abandon anyway. If I don’t, the perfectionist voice escapes her soundproof cage and starts shrieking at me.