In the month of February, I blogged quite a bit on my personal blog, sometimes managing 7 blogs a week. I also completed a chapter of All I Wanna Do, the epic fanfic that seems like it’s never going to end but will, eventually. I also slaved over my first short story submission, Try to Say No, which I’m particuarly proud of. I’ve heard nothing about it, thus far.

My word count for February comes in at 33, 431, beating January’s 31K by a few thousand. I am at 22% of my goal for the year, which seems about right. At the end of March I should be over 25% of my goal. My YTD count is 64,756.

Sometimes I just can’t believe I write that many words!

I am hoping to get to Chapter 41 this weekend and the beginning of this week and have an update to that story by next weekend. My father is in town so I need to use my time wisely this week!

So, what comprises my word count? Whatever I write on purpose, for pleasure. I include updates to current WIPs, drabbles, writing exercises, book reviews, and blog posts that aren’t written for a specific purpose like some kind of commercial post (which I never do anyway). I also don’t include short ‘hi, bye’ posts. My word count isn’t suffering so I don’t feel the need to waste time sending that through a word counter.

I’ve been doing a TON of writing at work– revamping our website and rewriting all of the content, updating the graphics, etc –and if I could count all of that, my word count would be outrageous. However, that’s writing that I’ve done for work as part of my job and that doesn’t really count for GYWO. I wouldn’t want to count all that anyway, then work writing would fill up my word count and I wouldn’t feel challenged or compelled to write for myself.

So tomorrow the count starts over at ’0′ (figuratively, I’ve no intention of moving my physical counter back, it’s come so far!) and I’ve got to get on the ball with more writing. I feel kind of uninspired lately and oddly I feel this way whenever I spend a lot of time talking to people who are further along this writing journey than I am. I don’t know if it’s a need I have to feel like I’m ahead of someone, or if I feel subconscious competition, or if I just feel like I’ll never be able to do what others are doing but… I always go through a period of doldrums, so I’ve cut myself off from that. I do best when I keep my eyes on my own paper.

As for any ideas of publishing… they’re far off as well. I’ll definitely keep trying to get short stories, etc published but “Same Time Next Week” is in danger of even being finished, let alone published. Not to mention that there’s no way I could even self publish that story. It’s entirely too graphic and I’d be embarrassed. It will sit at the archives and will continue to be my ‘I let it all hang out and I’m proud of it’ piece. Maybe sometime I’ll finish it, I just… I got nothin’ right now. Less than nothin’.

Only thing I do have is a whole month with which to fill with writing! Yay.

Pen in hand,