First, let me say that publishing one’s writing can be a soul changing experience that exposes the writer to harsh criticism and/or lavish praise. At least, that is how it is for me as a writer. Whether you are a teacher blogger or a contemporary novel writer, the act of going public is about bearing your soul to others. Writing in a public way such as this makes you vulnerable.
But there’s a lot to be said for not going public, and just writing for yourself. The kind of writing I’m referring to here is the kind most often found in journals. Although I’ve always kept a journal of one kind or another, I’m rediscovering this kind of cathartic writing to help see me through difficult personal and professional situations. You could say it has become my main morning ritual. It cleanses my soul and allows me to go deeper than I might when I publish a post; the private writing is just for me and I can say anything I want to without feeling judged.
So, thanks to Stacey’s post about a site called 750 words, on her blog (Two Writing Teachers http://twowritingteachers.wordpress.com/2011/10/13/750-words/), I am now on a 14-day streak! That means that I have been writing a minimum of 750 words for the 14th day in a row. It feels good to be doing this every morning when I first wake up. It’s my brain dump for the day. At first, I found that I was writing in a stream of consciousness style only but over time I’ve discovered that this kind of writing allows me to solve problems on paper that had been bothering me when I went to sleep and were still nudging at me when I woke up. I feel so much better at the end of my 750 words. I often write over 800 and I could probably keep going but I have to set a time limit otherwise I might be late for work every morning!
Sometimes, I’ve had to write my 750 words by hand and then typed them into the website later because I’m on a daily writing challenge this month.
So far, so good.
So far, so good that I’m writing every day about whatever comes into my mind at the moment.
So far, so good that I’m working out thorny problems through my writing.
So far, so good that I’m not censoring myself and no one else is censoring me either.
So far, so good that I have challenged myself to keep going whether or not I want to.
So far, so good that I’ve seen the positive effects that writing things down as they surface in my head, first thing in the morning, has on the rest of my day.
Elisa Waingort 
Good for you and the 750 words a day…I may have to try it next. I tried the NaNoWriMo, but at over 1600 words a day, it was too much.
Isn't it funny, though, that once you start writing every day, it seems to get easier?
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Hi Deb,
Yes, 1600 words a day would be too much for me right now, as well unless I was on vacation or had a flexible work schedule. Of course, I could write half of the 1600 words in the morning and then the rest sometime during the day but that might be hard at times. I want to be successful at this and the 750 words work well for me. Otherwise, I'd give up too quickly.
Yes, it is so wonderful to write every morning now. It does get easier. For now, I am keeping my morning writing to personal, journal style writing but even that is crossing over into other arenas, such as school issues or concerns. I guess because those are things that are often on my mind when I wake up in the morning. Regards!
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I love that you are doing more and more with your writing and are feeling as if it's worth it! I've had my students commit to 20-30 minutes a day in the past & most felt it really helped them in a variety of ways, sort of like the 'brain dump' you mentioned. I keep hearing about this 750 words from several of you. I do write, but some days are more possible than others. Thanks for the openness in your post.
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Hi Linda,
I hear you about time to write. I was worried about that, too but once I started and realized the benefits that were accruing, so to speak, it became easier and easier to keep up with it. It has truly become one of my most important morning routines.
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