Staying accountable for writing your book can be tough. Books are not a quick “check it off the to-do list” item. You usually set one big deadline for yourself and have to work within that. This can make it difficult to stay on track when you’re tired, distracted, or have other things going on.
Writing a book is no different than any other project. You want to work backwards from your deadline and set milestones to hit along the way. Once you’ve done that, you want to break the work down into even smaller chunks that become more doable and that you can cross off your list.
But writing isn’t a black and white process. It’s creative and shouldn’t be rigid, which makes it difficult to keep yourself accountable. By setting daily, weekly, or monthly goals, it becomes easier to ensure steady progress. Here are some common goals you can set for yourself as a writer.
Milestones
As a former project manager, it’s probably no surprise that I use milestones to keep myself accountable to my writing. What do I mean by this?
These milestones are multifaceted. The first part is that I have different tasks within my writing process. These included organizing the chapter/outlining the chapter in detail, writing the chapter, and editing the chapter. I also create a higher level outline at the beginning of the book process, so I already have an idea of what the various chapters will be. When I set milestones, they might include, “Write Chapter 5”, “Edit Chapter 3”, “Outline Chapter 7”.
I plan on a weekly basis. I set a few milestones that I want to accomplish for the week, which gives me some flexibility, but also keeps me focused on steadily moving forward.
However, there are tradeoffs to every methodology. I’ll admit that this one is no exception. Challenges with this methodology arise if one of the milestones ends up taking longer than expected. If that’s the case, it’s likely you’ll fall behind on your other milestones for the week or on other projects. And that’s just generally not a good feeling. You have to be willing to put that behind you and get back on the horse the next week (something I’m still working on).
Word Count
A lot of authors set a word count goal for each day. What word count makes sense for you will depend on your schedule, priorities, deadlines, and ways of working. Some people may write 500 words a day. Others may write 2,000 words a day. Some may even hit more than this fueled by adrenaline or a flow state; however, I wouldn’t recommend setting over 2,000 words per day as a consistent goal.
Word count is a great way to consistently stay on track. You can set daily goals for yourself or set a broader weekly goal that gives you flexibility in your days. It allows you to see steady progress in your book. It also ensures that you’re actually getting the writing done and not getting distracted with other types of work.
As with all frameworks, there’s a catch (at least in my opinion). The reason that I don’t use word counts is because I like to finish complete segments of the book I’m working on. Could be a chapter. Could be a section of a chapter. If my goal is simply word count though, I may be left hanging in the middle of a section. Setting a word count range may help account for this.
Furthermore, the effectiveness of this methodology for you may depend on how you work. My brain loves checking off boxes. I know that if I focus on word count rather than milestones, I’ll be too focused on quantity, when quality is my highest priority.
Time
Some authors may set an amount of time that they’d like to write for. Similar to word count, you can set daily or weekly goals.
One major advantage to this methodology is that when you are planning your week or your days, you can physically block out the amount of time that you plan to write for. You can go on Do Not Disturb, tell others not to bother you, and relish your writing time.
This way of working also prevents the milestone issue of feeling bad if something takes longer than expected and you don’t finish it. You know you put in the time, and you know you’ll put in the time again the next day or week.
You can probably guess what the downfall of this approach is. The ever-present temptation of distraction. These distractions could come on your phone, other browsers, etc. You may be physically sitting at your computer, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you’re making the most of your time.
You also run the risk of productive procrastination. You could convince yourself to do some research or editing that is ultimately unnecessary but is easier than getting the true writing done.
Which methodology works best for you will depend on you. If carving out the time for this level of accountability sounds daunting, hiring a ghostwriter is a great option. If you’d love to learn more, book a free session using the button below!
Disclaimer: This blog should not be construed as providing, or intending to provide professional financial, legal, psychological, or other professional advice. It is simply meant to share my experiences with those who may find them relatable and helpful.