Thing 95

95. Pick a day and write for 24 hours

My coworker mentioned to me once that his professor had issued this assignment and it sounded fascinating to me. The only time I block out a large chunk of time to write is when I'm up against a deadline like a fest or NaNoWriMo. And I've never done it for a whole day before--absolutely never as the only thing done all day long. I was lucky enough to have Friday off from work, so I used this bonus day to accomplish this thing.

My accomplishments for the day:

• Finished two Strokes short stories I've been wanting to write for years:
  • "Commencement" (a Sin story)
  • "Not That Kind of Girl" (working title; a Julia/Ace fic)
• Finished a Marvel fanfic I promised to write back in May


• Wrote fills for four different writing prompts from A Writer's Book of Days (January 20, 21, 22, 23, & 24)


• Wrote the first draft of a personal essay/memoir fragment

I didn't have a grand revellation regarding the content of my writing. I didn't go anywhere particularly exciting with it, apart from the fact that I finished two stories I've been stuck on for a long time. What I did have a revellation about was the process. I have never before had the luxury to spend an entire day writing. What was fun about it was not having to squeeze my writing in-between other things. I could spend time on pieces and leisurely write without having to worry about the time or the word count. I could just create and enjoy creating. I read/hear a lot about needing to make time to write, about making writing a priority. But it wasn't until I spent all day on this one task--writing--that I realized how beneficial to me doing that would be. I'm not sure if or when I'll be able to do it again, but it definitely helped me realize how I need to make time for it to do it properly. I also realized that it would be much more effective if I weren't so tired. I fell asleep a number of times during the day because I wasn't being active, just sitting here writing. It was hardest in the morning, when I really wanted to be asleep, and mid-day when I really wanted to nap. By the end of the day, I was stiff and tired but on a roll. I went to bed at 2:30 because I had to be up around 7am, but I wish I could have kept writing all night. The night is when I usually hit my groove when writing. So maybe the solution is to block out a night some time and write all night. Maybe something like 8pm to 8am some day when I can then crash.

This was definitely a worthwhile project. I got some great work out of it and though I didn't write anything more brilliant than usual, I learned a lot about my needs as a writer.