Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Word Count Wednesday

Well, dear friends, the day I have dreaded all week is here. Word Count Wednesday. I come before you feeling chagrined. Conscience-stricken. Contrite.

You see, I didn’t write at all this week. Even though I know I should have. I gave myself the excuse that the funeral threw everything off. And the kids seemed extra needy this week. I told myself that since I was off my routine, I couldn't squeeze in the writing.

But the reality is, I procrastinated. I read. A lot. And I indulged myself in watching way more TV than I normally do. Not only did I watch America’s Got Talent (I love Landau and iLuminate!) but I also watched this show called Downsized, where this family who has seven children between them have lost their home and had to declare bankruptcy because of the economy so they’re trying to learn to live frugally. It’s like a train wreck you can’t turn away from! And then I found Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman on a cable channel yesterday and I watched that. I sort of miss that show. There’s just not a lot of good wholesome TV on these days. Maybe they’ll make a reality show like that, Livin’ in the 1800s--Can You Do It?

But the point is, I chose to do other activities when I could have worked on my novel. I sort of regret it, but I’m telling myself my muse was resting. Recharging. And now we’re ready for this week and to totally knock out some great chapters.

How did you do in your word count this week?

12 comments:

Melanie Goldmund said...

Would you count Fringe as good wholesome tv? I think I would. In any case, I got hooked about nine months ago and now I'm eagerly awaiting more.

I've been called as the teacher for early morning seminary. Along with the actual teaching, I also have to prepare lessons for each day, and the whole thing has really changed my daily schedule. I'm not very good at talking extemporaneously, so I have to write a lot of things down for myself. By evening, I sometimes feel as though I've squeezed every word out of myself that I have, and even if I haven't, I'm still exhausted and need to recharge overnight.

But I did do some writing on Monday night, about 500 words.

Sarah Tokeley said...

I've done pretty well this week. I've averaged about 3k per day since Friday. Just trying to keep it up :-)

Julie Coulter Bellon said...

Melanie, I've never watched Fringe. I might have to check it out. I'm excited for the season premiere of Castle on Monday. :)

Sarah, you are amazing! I'm hoping to do that this week. :)

Stephanie Black said...

Julie, don't feel guilty at all about taking a break from writing! It's good to recharge those batteries.

Not sure of my word count for the week, but I'm proud to report that I emptied my box of bribe chocolates and need to buy more, so that's gotta be a good sign :)

Jordan McCollum said...

After a very long break/drought, I started a new WIP last Tuesday and I'm not pushing myself too hard. I'm up to 7k as of last night :D .

They did do a reality show living in the 1800s... what was it called... Oh, Frontier House! (Thank you, Google.) It aired 9 years ago on PBS.

Jill Campbell said...

Hey we had the same word count. But I have that word count a lot. Rest the muse. Nurture the fam and spend some quality time with Dr. Quinn. Sometimes that's the most important thing.

Jon Spell said...

Julie, I just counted up all the words from your posts (but not comments) for the past week, including today's, and it totals up 2,437 words. Sure, that's probably pretty low for you, but you don't have to come up completely empty. =)

I think I can foresee an hour of TV on Monday during which you won't be writing. The return of Castle!

Julie Coulter Bellon said...

Stephanie, that's a very good sign!

Jordan, I've never heard of Frontier House. But I wonder in today's age of cell phones and iPads if anyone could really unplug for very long. LOL

Jill, I'm so glad to find someone else in the same boat as me. Who understands. Thank you. Truly.

Jon, I think you are my new favorite friend tonight. I *did* write words on my blog! I'm not a total writing loser this week! YAY! And I am SO pumped for Monday's premiere of Castle. The spoiler clips look AMAZING! Have you seen them?

Anonymous said...

I'm supposed to be writing right now but i'm checking emails and reading your blog, hmmmm.

Crystal said...

I haven't been writing much lately because I'm gearing up to move, so life has been getting in my way, too. Not to worry - we'll both get back at it, I'm sure!!

Dora Hiers said...

Don't feel guilty, Julie. You may have gotten some great ideas from your break, and you can't help but prioritize differently after a funeral. And there's nothing sweeter than spending time with your kids! They won't be around forever...

Shanda said...

I love Dr. Quinn and was so happy to find it on cable again! Don't feel guilty about letting things settle a bit. I've found there is always a reason for it, and sometimes that reason is just to let things decompress for awhile. You'll be back at it soon enough. :)