So, I've been writing my morning pages on the website 750 words. I was up to a 55 day streak, and just a few days away from completing the month of June without missing a day. I was a happy Albatross (30 days in a row) well on my way to receiving the Pteradactyl badge (100 days in a row) when... yes, I missed yesterday! Sigh... I woke up this morning with a sinking feeling in my stomach. Maybe I just forgot that I wrote something yesterday? I remember thinking about it several times yesterday but when I logged in... alas... I definitely wrote nothing yesterday. And now, I have lost my lofty Albatross status and am back to being an Egg... Sigh... Well, today is a new day and it's time to dust myself off and try again!
Amazing how well it works, these little badge incentives. I really do not find it burdensome to sit down and write my 750 words, mostly because it only takes me 7 or 8 minutes on the computer, whereas 3 long-hand pages takes at least 30 minutes. Funny how that happens. Maybe I need to actually write on the computer for 30 minutes to match long-hand writing? That would be an awful lot of words!!
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Showing posts with label Morning Pages. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Morning Pages. Show all posts
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Friday, May 13, 2011
Morning Pages
I've been using the 750words.com site for the last while to do my morning pages. And it works very well! Better than writing on paper for 3 pages. Maybe it's because it goes a lot quicker. I can do my allotment of 750 words in 10 minutes or less, whereas writing 3 pages on paper takes me about 30 minutes. So, my fingers can actually keep up with my thoughts more when I'm doing it on the computer. Plus, I can just write and when I hit 750 words, it will tell me and I don't have to worry about keeping track at the bottom of the page. All I have to do is show up and write - which is what morning pages are all about.
The website only has about 600 users at this point, which surprises me, as I would think a lot of morning pages people would like to take advantage of this. But... mabye some people are purists and just like the idea of pen on paper. I know that I prefer that for certain things as well, so, I can understand. Now, we'll see how long I can keep my writing streak going.... A whole month maybe??
It's nice to just be able to go "bleugh" on the computer screen and get all the random thoughts out of my system and not have to worry about spelling or who's going to be reading it or anything like that. It certainly does what morning pages are supposed to do. I know that Julia Cameron strongly recommends the pen and paper approach but... I don't know... in today's day and age, well... maybe this works too.
The website only has about 600 users at this point, which surprises me, as I would think a lot of morning pages people would like to take advantage of this. But... mabye some people are purists and just like the idea of pen on paper. I know that I prefer that for certain things as well, so, I can understand. Now, we'll see how long I can keep my writing streak going.... A whole month maybe??
It's nice to just be able to go "bleugh" on the computer screen and get all the random thoughts out of my system and not have to worry about spelling or who's going to be reading it or anything like that. It certainly does what morning pages are supposed to do. I know that Julia Cameron strongly recommends the pen and paper approach but... I don't know... in today's day and age, well... maybe this works too.
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Out of Routine
Well, that just goes to show me... routine`s are nice, but don`t count on them! This morning, the 750 words site wouldn`t let me log in, and a bunch of other people as well. So... I feel kind of at loose ends. Plus I`m out of my other routines as well... Got up later than usual, and everything feels different today.
Funny how that works. We get into a routine and get comfortable with that, and then something comes along that upsets our apple cart and we need to regroup and readjust. I am missing my morning pages though. Of course, I probably could just open Word and type up a blank page storm for 750 words but it`s not quite the same thing. You see, on this 750 words site, you start to get a streak going if you don`t miss a day, and you get points and little badges. If I miss today, then I`m back to step one again. Silly little small things perhaps, but it just goes to show you that we humans do not need a lot of motivation to get something done. Even virtual things which mean nothing in the real world, are enough to get us going. Hence the popularity of computer games! People could be a Wii Tennis Champion in the virtual world... but it really means nothing in the real world... but someone it gets them coming back to play wii tennis in front of their television or computer. Kind of odd, isn't it? Yup... we will do the crazies things for the oddest of reasons. And we will not do the most sensible of things no matter how good the reason. Yeah... go figure that one out!
Funny how that works. We get into a routine and get comfortable with that, and then something comes along that upsets our apple cart and we need to regroup and readjust. I am missing my morning pages though. Of course, I probably could just open Word and type up a blank page storm for 750 words but it`s not quite the same thing. You see, on this 750 words site, you start to get a streak going if you don`t miss a day, and you get points and little badges. If I miss today, then I`m back to step one again. Silly little small things perhaps, but it just goes to show you that we humans do not need a lot of motivation to get something done. Even virtual things which mean nothing in the real world, are enough to get us going. Hence the popularity of computer games! People could be a Wii Tennis Champion in the virtual world... but it really means nothing in the real world... but someone it gets them coming back to play wii tennis in front of their television or computer. Kind of odd, isn't it? Yup... we will do the crazies things for the oddest of reasons. And we will not do the most sensible of things no matter how good the reason. Yeah... go figure that one out!
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Morning Pages
If you read any sort of meditation or writing or self-help type of stuff, most of them will tell you to journal. Now, when they say to journal, they don't mean necessarily having a coherent, it-has-to-make-sense type of journal. They're talking about just sitting down and writing whatever is there, complete with spelling mistakes and whatever else might come. Julia Cameron, author of The Artist's Way, recommends what she calls Morning Pages. They are 3 pages of long-hand writing to just get it all out on paper. Do it first thing in the morning when you're still groggy and not thinking clearly. Just get it all out of your system, all of the things you need to do today, all of your worries and concerns and fears. Just get it out.
Then, once that's done, you can get on with your day and the serious business of real writing (if that's what you want to do). So, I've done morning pages off and on, but they don't seem to always be consistent... or I don't seem to be consistent. In my surfing of the net the other day, I came across another option, which I like a lot. It's called 750 Words (http://750words.com/). Just sign up (you can use your Facebook account for this), and you're good to go. At 250 words/page, the guy figures that 750 words is 3 pages. So, you can just sit and type in 750 words and it'll save it for you (safely and securely). Over time, you get points (always a bonus!) and it will keep track of some stats for you. It's very easy to use and I am liking it a lot! (I think I said that already).
I like the fact that I can do this on the computer. I type way faster than I write long-hand and my fingers can actually keep up with my thoughts. Maybe others are purists about having to write it all on paper, but I like this idea. And so far (2 days into it), it's working for me!
So if you've tried Morning Pages and find yourself struggling with the whole paper thing, give this website a try!
Then, once that's done, you can get on with your day and the serious business of real writing (if that's what you want to do). So, I've done morning pages off and on, but they don't seem to always be consistent... or I don't seem to be consistent. In my surfing of the net the other day, I came across another option, which I like a lot. It's called 750 Words (http://750words.com/). Just sign up (you can use your Facebook account for this), and you're good to go. At 250 words/page, the guy figures that 750 words is 3 pages. So, you can just sit and type in 750 words and it'll save it for you (safely and securely). Over time, you get points (always a bonus!) and it will keep track of some stats for you. It's very easy to use and I am liking it a lot! (I think I said that already).
I like the fact that I can do this on the computer. I type way faster than I write long-hand and my fingers can actually keep up with my thoughts. Maybe others are purists about having to write it all on paper, but I like this idea. And so far (2 days into it), it's working for me!
So if you've tried Morning Pages and find yourself struggling with the whole paper thing, give this website a try!
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