Summary

The web content outlines a 31-day writing challenge, emphasizing the use of a writing log and a tool called FRED for tracking daily writing progress and goals.

Abstract

The article discusses the "31-Day Ninja Writing Challenge 2019: Day Four," where participants are encouraged to maintain a writing log as part of the FRED (Folder for Reaching the End of Your Draft) system. This log serves as a straightforward record of daily writing activities, including time spent writing, tasks completed, and reading progress. The author, Shaunta Grimes, shares personal experiences and the benefits of using a writing log, such as accountability, professionalism, and a visual representation of progress. The challenge also includes reading ten minutes each day and encourages participants to join a Facebook group for community support. Additionally, the article provides links to resources like "The Plotting Workshop" and "The Writer Binder" to further assist writers in their journey.

Opinions

Keeping a writing log is highly beneficial for writers, providing a sense of professionalism and serving as a visual reminder of progress.
The FRED system is a valuable tool for writers, helping them to stay accountable and organized with their writing goals.
A writing log is not for journaling or creative writing but for maintaining a record of work done, without critique or judgment.
Reading logs can also be beneficial, tracking titles and pages read, which can be particularly motivating for writers.
The author finds it satisfying to review past log entries to see the evolution of their writing career and the development of their projects.
The writing log and FRED system are part of a self-directed approach to managing one's writing business, even with external editors and publishing deadlines.
The challenge encourages daily writing and reading habits, emphasizing that consistent effort leads to significant progress.
Community support through social media platforms, like a dedicated Facebook group, is recommended for additional motivation and accountability.
The article promotes the use of additional resources, such as "The Writer Binder," to support writers in their craft throughout the year.

Challenge Yourself to Keep a Writing Log

31-Day Ninja Writing Challenge 2019: Day Four

Day Three’s challenge was to get your FRED all printed out and ready to go and to make a tiny daily goal to track.

Today, you can start using the other half of this awesome tool. The writing log.

(If you don’t have your FRED, read about him below.)

The Folder for Reaching the End of Your Draft (Or: My Magic Friend)

Meet FRED: My Favorite Writing Accountability Partner.

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There are a lot of things I love about keeping a writing log. It feels professional. It reminds me that I’m the boss of this little professional-writer business. It is a visual reminder of how a daily writing habit adds up to significant amounts of progress.

Your log isn’t about journaling or creative writing. It’s just a straight-forward record of work.

I wrote more about keeping a writing log in this post:

How to Keep a Writing Log (and Why You Should)

A few minutes a day can make all the difference.

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After you give yourself a gold star on your FRED for meeting your goal, jot down how you spent your writing time for the day.

If you want to, you can keep a reading log as well. If you know an elementary school student, chances are they can show you an example. Just the title of the book and how many pages you read.

Here’s an example from my own log from the first semester of my MFA program.

Worked 30 minutes on The Undergrounders revision to omniscient. TPW assignment 9, Milk. Read A Separate Peace, to page 37.

No critique or judgement. Just a running log of writing everyday and reading intensely.

I can see from this log entry that on that date, I was revising a book called The Undergrounders and plotting one called Milk. I wasn’t working on drafting anything. And I was reading John Knowles A Separate Peace.

Just reading that back now instantly reminds me of A) a story I love and would like to get back to some day, B) a revision I did not enjoy and that threw me off that story for almost two years now, and C) how much I loved A Separate Peace.

I can also see that I started to plot my current work in progress back then — TPW stands for The Plotting Workshop.

The Plotting Workshop*

The Plotting Workshop

* The Plotting Workshopninja-writers.teachable.com

If I read further into my log, I can see that I plotted Milk, but didn’t write it then. I switched to a different story, which turned into the novel I sold last summer. Now Milk is my work-in-progress. I find it highly satisfying to be able to flip through my notes and see how my career is coming together.

The point of FRED and the writing log is accountability — to yourself and your work. Chances are that you have a writing community, but that your work itself is pretty solitary.

I have an editor at a major publishing house, but I am still responsible for making sure I manage my time so that I can meet my deadlines. I’m still the boss of my writing business, and my writing log helps me take it seriously.

Don’t forget that The Writer Binder has a whole year’s worth of FREDs and writing logs, plus more than 200 pages of other tools to help you.

ASSIGNMENT FOUR:

Pull out your FRED and start logging your writing and reading. Keep it up every day in May. This shouldn’t take more than a minute or so a day.

Don’t forget to read and write ten minutes each today.

Come check in with Facebook today.

Take a look at The Writer Binder if you haven’t yet.

You can find all of the posts in this challenge here:

31 Days of Ninja Writing Challenges: 2019

Spend the next month kicking ass!

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Shaunta Grimes is a writer and teacher. She is an out-of-place Nevadan living in Northwestern PA with her husband, three superstar kids, two dementia patients, a good friend, Alfred the cat, and a yellow rescue dog named Maybelline Scout. Her newest novel is The Astonishing Maybe, published in March 2019 by Feiwel and Friends. She’s on Twitter @shauntagrimes and is the original Ninja Writer.