Find a writing buddy and do a 10-day Blitz



Years ago, I would meet a friend each morning before work to go for a walk and talk at a nearby high school track. We both wanted to exercise, but we had crazy, unpredictable work days. We figured out that we could exercise in the morning without interruptions. I rarely ever missed the walk because I knew she would be waiting for me and vice versa. We discovered that this bit of accountability was a powerful tool for success.

The support of a like-minded friend can go a long way towards meeting your goals, whether they’re fitness, business, or writing aspirations.

So I was intrigued when I read Suzanne Main’s blog post, A Whine, a Wine and Writer’s Nights, about her new writing buddy. All our competing projects, work, and family demands can easily eat through our day even with the best of intentions. So Main and her friend began meeting a couple times a week to write. They don’t critique, share work, or even talk much. Just write.

Scheduling time to write is good. But it’s one thing to schedule time on your calendar for writing, and another thing to have an appointment to write with a friend at a specific place and time.

As one more way to amplify our writing progress towards our goals, my blogging buddy Carol and I decided to set a campaign for ourselves that we’re calling the 10-Day Blitz. This is how it works:

1. First we set our “Blitz Goals.” We set parameters around our fitness, project, and writing 
goals (number of hours, pages, etc.) I’m even carrying a slip of paper in my pocket with my Blitz Goals on it.

2. Daily e-mail updates. Each day, we e-mail each other an update of what we accomplished the day before. It helps us review what went well and what didn’t so we can adjust.

In my next post, I’ll be writing about creating focused work sessions as a way to be more productive and how we’re using focused work stints in the 10-Day Blitz.

For more ideas, here are two more posts Carol and I have written about writing with a buddy.

Reach your goals quicker with a writing partner


Find writing success with a buddy (You’ll learn about the concept of the “body double”)