Writing contract self-evaluation

I totaled the number of hours I wrote these past 30 days and it came out to 19.91. I counted partial hours in the total. So I met my goal of 18 hours (5 hours per week minus two vacation days) set out in the writing contract.

I could have done better on documenting the time. I would often forget to document it daily and lump them together on a day when I actually remembered to document my time.

I produced 18 posts on my Annette's Notebook blog this month. Twelve of those posts were documenting my refined sugar fast. Six were on other topics including my trip to New York and an article on feminism. I also wrote some journal entries during that time.

I don't know if the quality of my writing improved. I really didn't do anything different on the blog than what I have been doing. I didn't have a goal as far as that. I didn't submit anything for publication.

Would my writing get better if I spent more time doing it, or if I set some more goals? Undoubtedly. I was doing some career research this week and came across this blog post. In the comments, the author says she spends four hours each weekend day on writing fiction, and six to 10 hours per day writing, for a total of 100,000 words a month. I suppose it all depends on my commitment to it and where I want to go with it.

I give myself a grade of B. I did put in the time and I didn't produce total crap but it's not the kind of effort that would merit an A.

One hour of writing completed today.

I completed one hour of writing. I finished my post about New York.

I wrote for about 40 minutes tonight, and about an equal amount of time yesterday. My mind is toast tonight so I will be going to bed.

Another hour of writing completed. I did about 45 minutes yesterday.

One hour of writing completed today.

I completed one hour of writing tonight.

I wrote last night. Tonight I am topping off the writing at 50 minutes because I have to do the dishes. Yes, dishes. And because I am tired and desperately need to go to bed on time today. Also I don't know what to write about other than I am really grumpy from work and very sleepy. There is no inspiration here.

I didn't do too bad on my writing project while I was on vacation. Actually, I believe I met my goal last week. I stayed up late to write Monday. I wrote on the plane Tuesday for an hour, for an hour at my sister's on Wednesday. Thursday and Friday were problematic though I was able to write *something* on both of those days. Saturday was a travel day and I wrote for an hour at the hotel. Sunday I wrote for an hour on the plane. I don't think I wrote anything very good. I wrote letters and in my journal. But I didn't break the rhythm of it.

One hour of writing completed today. Actually spent most of the hour reading and thinking of things to write about. But that is permitted on the contract.

30 minutes of writing time Friday + 30 minutes Saturday add up to one hour. Half hours weren't covered in the writing contract. I fear I am in violation. I need to plan my time better. Sleep, replying to e-mail and going out to see friends have won over writing the past few days.

I finished my hour of writing. Here is what I wrote.

And I did write yesterday but I forgot to write that I did, d'oh.

I completed my second hour of writing.

Day 1 of writing

I completed one hour of writing!

Writing contract

I saw this writing contract in O magazine last month and thought THAT is what I need to do to get serious about writing. Here is the contract with a few modifications:

A. Contractor is required to do the following:
Write one (1) hour per day five (5) days per week for one month.
Write a blog post by 9 p.m. confirming that the daily milestone has been achieved.

B. During the hour of daily writing the contractor may:

Write fiction.
Write in his/her journal.
Write on a blog.
Do reading related to the subject of the writing.
Sit there and think.

C. During the hour of daily writing the contractor may not:

Check email.
Surf the web unless directly related to the task.
Watch TV.
Answer the phone.
Do any work related to his/her day job.
Write a list of things to do.
Do anything on the current list of things to do.
Get out of the chair.
Do anything besides items 1, 2 and 3 in section B above. NO EXCEPTIONS.

D. Other Items

Contractor may select two (2) days grace period, AKA vacation, during which time he/she will not have to complete the hour of daily writing. When sending the daily email to the Mentor on these days, Contractor must write “Vacation (1)” meaning that the contractor has selected this day as one of his/her two (2) optional vacation days.

At the end of the Contract Period, Contractor will post on the blog a report self-evaluating the Contractor’s performance during the Contract Period. This grade will be based primarily on attendance, but other factors may weigh in the Contractor’s progress.

Contractor is encouraged to submit written items for publication, but is not required to do so. Administrative tasks such as preparing cover letters, addressing envelopes, researching literary magazines, tracking manuscripts, etc. are not to be included as part of the hour of daily writing.


I'm going to start this tomorrow and see how it goes.

Update: 30 things

Eight days until my birthday. I don't think I can complete the project in time. A new role at my job and a serious relationship, both of which came into my life unexpectedly, have drastically limited my free time.

Funny, if I were back in grad school or undergrad I think I might have been able to accomplish these things with no problem. But I suppose my age and the baggage that comes with it itself are the impediments to finishing, which I think is interesting.

Let me revisit the list and mark an x next to the things I've done:
1. Start a new blog - x - This one.
2. Go on a hike
3. Submit a proposal to a magazine
4. Learn Spanish
5. Drink an Irish car bomb
6. Plan a 30th birthday party - x - Nothing big, with my family, but at least it's something.
7. Go on vacation to a place I've never been - x - San Francisco
8. Decide on a life philosophy - x - Not finished with this but I've been reading about philosophies.
9. Ride on a roller coaster
10. Volunteer for an ongoing project - x - Baby sitter at my church.
11. Reread Walden - x
12. Reread On the Road - x
13. Buy three new albums by up-and-coming bands
14. Create a Twitter account - x
15. Learn how to make enchiladas
16. Get a massage
17. Enter a 5K - x
18. Go on a diet for a month
19. Make a chocolate souffle
20. Finish reading the Old Testament
21. Go to a concert
22. Visit a farm
23. Watch 10 movies I haven't seen from Roger Ebert's Great Movies list - x - OK, I only watched one!
24. Read five books I wouldn't ordinarily read
25. Subscribe to The New Yorker
26. Start a book club
27. Find a date NOT via an online dating service - x - This actually happened though it didn't work out.
28. Decide on an idea for my book
29. Listen to five albums I don't have on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time - x - I've done two: The Beatles' White Album and Joni Mitchell's Blue.
30. Find peace with God - x - Ongoing but I'm doing better with this

Not great but not terrible. Some of these things haven't been accomplished due to finances. Spanish classes, albums, new books, trips to amusement parks and magazine subscriptions can get expensive.

On the other hand, the things I've done on the list have been well worth the time and expense I've put into them. Walden was the perfect book to read at this point in my life. I looked at On the Road with a whole new (and not entirely positive) perspective.

I'm so glad I ran the 5K. That was one of the best things I did in 2011. And my taste in music has been stuck in the '80s pop genre for far too long. It had been so long since I'd listented to a truly great album such as the White Album. And I remember being so jealous of Joni Mitchell listening to "Blue," because how can someone be that talented?

The good thing is that learning doesn't end at 30. There's still time to make enchiladas and ride roller coasters and learn Spanish. There is time, but I find that as my life becomes busier I really have to prioritize the one thing I really, really want to accomplish. It's sad to say but at this point I feel like there is exactly one serious hobby or goal that can fit into my life at any given time. If I am going to read The New Yorker cover to cover I can't also start a book club. If I'm going to learn Spanish then I can't also choose that time to get serious about writing. Unless I want to go totally insane.

But let me also add that I wouldn't call these goals non-essential because I definitely think they are essential to a person. They bring life to your soul. They remind you that there is more to life than work.

So the 30 things list project rolls on as the clock keeps ticking and the digit turns from a nine to a zero. No, it's really not that big of a deal.