Challenge: complete

Morning folks - as you can see my TFD word count has moved from 21,607 - yay! Since Saturday morning I've managed to have two writing sessions per day and I'll continue to update the word count as I go. I'm going to put a figure forward as my goal for this week, so I will be delighted if I can make it to 35,000 by next Saturday. Challenge on!

So far: Sunday - 2245 words / 23,852 total
           Monday - 4502 words / 28,354 total
           Tuesday - 3818 words / 32,172 total
           Wednesday - 4024 words / 36,196 total  (goal smashed a little early)
           Thursday - 3850 words / 40046 total
           Friday - 2033 words / 42,179 total
           Saturday - 1128 words / 43,307 total

Follow on: 23rd February

Morning folks – I join you after a small writing session of an hour that brought my total words count to 43,307 – which is a staggering 21,900 words in one week. That is a first for me, I have never managed to write so much in such a short time.

I know with the NaNoWriMo, last November, that I completed a lot each day, but I can honestly say, I have surprised myself and surpassed my expectation. My goal was to reach 35,000 – that seems a long way back from where I currently am. I have another writing session planned for later today, so fingers crossed that goes just as well. Who knows what tonight’s final word count will be!

So, what have I done during my half term holiday – simple, I’ve written. I have managed other things as well but my focus has been my work. I’ve snuck a couple of hours reading ‘Before I go to sleep’ by SJ Watson, which I’ve found absolutely riveting. I think it’s been good having a reading genre completely different to the one I’m writing. I’ve heard many authors say they can’t read when they write but I’ve found it helps to disassociate myself for a short time.

I attended a writers’ group on Wednesday, a small gathering of four, but with plenty to talk about. I didn’t take anything to read so critiqued the others’ poems and short story. There was much talk regards the books we’re each reading, I’d taken BIGTS with me, one other book produced was an autobiography by H.E. Bates (author of ‘The Darling Buds of May’)– which is apparently very, very funny. I’ve since learnt that Bates was a midlands boy, living at Northampton and much of his work includes the midlands’ countryside.

I‘ve watched a plethora of films: Ghostbusters, 27 dresses, Dream house and Batman – that’s like two months of films for me watched in one week! Honestly, I’m certainly not a film buff, preferring the written word to any film version.

And finally, my plans for this week. I return to the day job on Monday, so it’s back to the juggling act. My aim is simple - to write everyday.

I managed to Tweet my progress throughout the week – so fingers cross I can continue to do so . So, please follow me on Twitter for regular up-dates at @odwyer_author – enjoy!