Don't break the thing!

So as of today I've written 500+ words for 119 days straight and have accrued 62,530 words. I started on Jan 2 with the GYWO challenge and somehow managed to keep the momentum up. I had read once that it took 21 days to form a habit or some such thing. (Turns out according to this article it takes 66 days for something to become automatic.) So I figured that if I kept up with writing daily that the act of it would somehow become effortless or that it would at least become easier. But it didn't work out that way. Just nope....

The whole habit thing is bullshit (for me). Biting my nails is a habit. To write or not to write is a decision that I have to make every day. It's gotten to the point where I just know that I'm going to get it done though, but it's not a habit. It's more like... something that gets done. I've learned that if I'm really in a mood where writing is the last thing I want to do, I take a look at what is driving it. Once I figure the true cause then I rank it on my "legitimate" excuses list and then decide. (Have you lost a limb? No? Are you vomiting right now? No? Zombies? Then do your words!) Also having a streak has kind of made the excuse ranking harder because it's grown into a "do you reeeealy want to break the chain because you feel lazy today?" kind of thing and then I  drag myself to the computer.

Setting a reasonable word limit also helps.  500 words a day has gradually become easier because it's only 500. I don't tend to go over it by more than 100 words. It's strange but somehow it makes the whole routine easier... Maybe that's what it is... Not a habit but a routine. Man how is it that I've just figured this out now... I have a routine.

These kind of things are definitely not for everyone. Many folks are binge writers or start and stoppers, or just don't need that kind of structure or challenge and will put out hundreds of thousands of words this year, but for me it's been an interesting personal challenge and it's heartening to know that somehow I'm still at it.