I love this method you are using with such a lovely goal. I turned 40 in September and decided that I want to be more comfortable with writing for myself and my own audience. I have wanted to write a book of essay style memoirs for MANY years and am finally sitting down to write it this year. I have no set timeframe in mind. I am simply taking Fridays off of homeschool to write. Sometimes it will be for my Substack and other time for the book. I began last week by making a list of potential essays. That’s as far as I have made it and it feels good.
Taking Fridays off from homeschooling sounds divine! Wednesdays are our Margin Day--the place in our schedule for catching up on whatever needs catching up (school projects, house cleaning, meals ahead). I wonder if I could put writing on that list too and have another little pocket of time?
That is exactly what Fridays are for us - a margin day where I do things that I cannot otherwise get to during the normal school days - homeschool planning, running errands, writing, meal planning, work for our business, etc. My husband usually takes the day off from work (we are entrepreneurs) and I have space to get things done while he and the kids do some deeper cleaning and have time to connect. But writing for at least an hour or two is (now) always on the top of that list.
May I borrow your calendar? What an excellent container! I'm very inspired by the pace you set, Kortney. I agree, 3 poems feels very manageable and attainable (speaking as a mother of a 2.5 y/o who works outside the home). I also think setting a goal of 3 poems during aforementioned timeframe will help me consolidate my revision process, which has been rather scattered of late. Our recent correspondence has fanned my little flame and I am excited to set some parameters for my writing life before 2024 greets us. (side note: I too am a writer of small things, and enjoy reading small things, too). Thank you so much for this post!
Thank you Kortney! Our correspondence has been so meaningful as I allow this inner shift within my writing practice to unfold. So grateful for your wisdom, and your calendar too!
My writing goals for the new year are to, a) stop fussing over and revising pieces that are more than a year old and write more new things instead, and, b) try to assemble a manuscript from the poems that have piled up since A Body of Work in '21.
So interesting to hear more about your process. It sounds like a good year!
I have to make myself revise (Poetry Circle is happening--must find something to share). And I often sort of hit a wall with a poem. It's not finished, but I can't do anything else with it.
The poems that I shared yesterday were from April Daily Writing, through the first round of revision, then put away till last week.
I love this method you are using with such a lovely goal. I turned 40 in September and decided that I want to be more comfortable with writing for myself and my own audience. I have wanted to write a book of essay style memoirs for MANY years and am finally sitting down to write it this year. I have no set timeframe in mind. I am simply taking Fridays off of homeschool to write. Sometimes it will be for my Substack and other time for the book. I began last week by making a list of potential essays. That’s as far as I have made it and it feels good.
Taking Fridays off from homeschooling sounds divine! Wednesdays are our Margin Day--the place in our schedule for catching up on whatever needs catching up (school projects, house cleaning, meals ahead). I wonder if I could put writing on that list too and have another little pocket of time?
I love your list of topics to work from as well. Here are some one word prompts that I am using: https://www.kortneygarrison.com/2023/10/05/one-word-prompts/
That is exactly what Fridays are for us - a margin day where I do things that I cannot otherwise get to during the normal school days - homeschool planning, running errands, writing, meal planning, work for our business, etc. My husband usually takes the day off from work (we are entrepreneurs) and I have space to get things done while he and the kids do some deeper cleaning and have time to connect. But writing for at least an hour or two is (now) always on the top of that list.
What a beautiful framework to write in cycle with the seasons. I love this!
May I borrow your calendar? What an excellent container! I'm very inspired by the pace you set, Kortney. I agree, 3 poems feels very manageable and attainable (speaking as a mother of a 2.5 y/o who works outside the home). I also think setting a goal of 3 poems during aforementioned timeframe will help me consolidate my revision process, which has been rather scattered of late. Our recent correspondence has fanned my little flame and I am excited to set some parameters for my writing life before 2024 greets us. (side note: I too am a writer of small things, and enjoy reading small things, too). Thank you so much for this post!
I have a feeling you could make something prettier than my silly Google Doc, but here it is in case you want to make a copy for yourself. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PG2mo1MP2ZQzpki4ZWPZgOeZIsq_Ulaf9AMmfCppWDg/edit?usp=sharing
And remember, my goal was 1 poem a month. For years. This big push has only been because I wanted to mark my birthday with a project.
Thank you Kortney! Our correspondence has been so meaningful as I allow this inner shift within my writing practice to unfold. So grateful for your wisdom, and your calendar too!
My writing goals for the new year are to, a) stop fussing over and revising pieces that are more than a year old and write more new things instead, and, b) try to assemble a manuscript from the poems that have piled up since A Body of Work in '21.
So interesting to hear more about your process. It sounds like a good year!
I have to make myself revise (Poetry Circle is happening--must find something to share). And I often sort of hit a wall with a poem. It's not finished, but I can't do anything else with it.
The poems that I shared yesterday were from April Daily Writing, through the first round of revision, then put away till last week.
My process is whatever will keep me from facing a blank page... I'd rather toss cards into a hat than write (most of the time, anyway). :-)