Some of you brave souls who’ve taken on the NanoWriMo challenge this year are struggling with your daily wordcount targets… at least, you are if my Twitter feed is to be believed!
I know where you’re coming from: that intimidating blank screen, the panoply of possibility, the agony of indecision… not to mention the constant self-editing. All of these are major factors in me not having a writing career that makes John Scalzi look like a hobbyist[1].
But help is at hand! The Lifehacker team have discovered the ultimate anti-procrastination app for writers, the aptly named Write or Die:
Set a word count and time you want to write for. Then, set how you want the app to “remind” you if you stop writing—”Gentle” pops up a text box, “Normal” plays a harsh sound file, and “Kamikaze” mode slowly deletes back from your stopping point until you get back to it.
Kamikaze mode sounds thoroughly evil, but I’ll bet it gets you hitting your targets pretty fast. Then there’s just the editing to do…
[ 1 – It must be pointed out that laziness and lack of talent are also major players; even more major than the others, perhaps. ]