Hello dear readers,
It’s been a while since I’ve checked in with you on anything writing-related, and so I wanted to give you a little update of where I’m at.
I decided back in December that, throughout January, I’d focus on getting the first draft of my current novel finished. So far, this is going well (see below), but I find my attention drifting to other things—namely, a novel I wrote years ago, and only now am I figuring out where I want to go with it.
One sleepless night, fueled by an ill-advised late afternoon coffee, I typed plans furiously into my notes app, feeling for the first time that I knew how I needed this old project to end. To keep myself from leaping toward this one, as I tend to do when I’m excited by something, I’ve promised myself I can take a look at it immediately after this first draft is done. Which, in the past, wouldn’t have been a great motivator, but this time it is. I’ll take what I can get.
Since September, I’ve been using a website called Trackbear, through which you can track your projects, goals, and daily word counts. I love it because it has graphs, and what self-respecting writer doesn’t like graphs. Plus, it’s an easy way to see how much you’ve written each day, and how much progress you’ve made over time.
On that note: a quick breakdown of my daily word counts for January, because I’m historically terrible at acknowledging when I’ve accomplished anything at all. It’s also a way for me to see just how far I’ve come wordcount-wise, because day to day, it doesn’t always feel like I’m moving forward.
Let me say, I know the timeline below will rankle some people. It rankles me. Normally I’d go by weeks, or begin the first of the month, or some other standard rhythm. But I didn’t start writing again until January 5, and so this is what we have. C’est la vie!
Writing log, January 5-12:
January 5, 2026: 764
January 6, 2026: 1925
January 7, 2026: 2883
January 8, 2026: 1993
January 9, 2026: 0
January 10, 2026: 0
January 11, 2026: 4375
January 12, 2026: 3523
Total written in January: 15,463
Total for manuscript: 36,461
For six days of writing, that’s not bad—in fact, I’m quite proud of this number, given that I let the draft hibernate for a good three weeks over December. I am a bit worried, as I tend to jump into things head first and tire myself out, but so far that hasn’t happened—fingers crossed that it won’t.
Since I have the whole day ahead of me today, I’ll be logging another few writing sessions over the coming hours. If the past two days are any indication, I’m hopeful that I’ll nearly hit the 40,000 word mark. And at this rate, I’ll have the first draft complete by the end of January—exactly where I planned to be.
And now, I’m going to brew another cup of coffee and dive in. Wishing you a restful day, and if you’re writing, a good stint with no distractions or interruptions.
—Catherine
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