My September 30 — Day Writing Challenge

Will writing and submitting an article a day make me a better writer?

What could be better than a 30-day challenge to implement a new habit?

I have used 30-day challenges in the past already, with great success. To get into a workout routine, experiment with different diets, and start getting up at 05:00 am.

So when I decided a few weeks ago to get serious about writing on Medium again, I was delighted to discover a publication dedicated to 30-day writing challenges.

You can read more about how to take part in the challenge in this article:

And here is the original challenge post from the creator of this 30-day Medium writing challenge:

After I pondered the idea for a few days, here is my pledge:

I commit to publishing 30 articles in 30 days on Medium.

I Modified The Challenge Slightly

I made the adaptation that I won’t be submitting to 30 different publications, though.

Because my biggest issue is actually the writing part, I will use this 30-day challenge to discipline myself and commit to writing every day.

The thought of researching new publications on top of the writing and submission process already overwhelms me, and I would stop the challenge before I even start.

But I will submit articles to publications where I am a writer but haven’t submitted articles to or haven’t submitted to for a while. And, I will apply as a writer for all the new publications I will fall in love with over the next 30 days.

What Are My Writing Goals?

My goals for this challenge are a mix of process goals and outcome goals. This strategy has served me well in my running pursuits. I also adopted this philosophy of goal setting in other areas of my life.

While process goals focus — as the name implies — on the process of completing all the necessary steps to progress in a project, outcome goals focus primarily on the end result.

For this 30-day writing challenge, I set the following goals:

Process Goals

1. Write Every Day

I will only have limited time on some days, but I will commit to writing at least 60 min per day after getting up.

For this, I will change my morning routine, which currently looks like this:

• get up and get coffee — ca. 10 minutes
• switch on Laptop, write a diary — ca. 15–20 minutes
• check emails, do some work — ca. 30–60 minutes
• run

My new morning routine will look like this:

• get up and get coffee — ca. 10 minutes
• write an article: 60–90 minutes
• run

Of course, I am not delusional and think I can accomplish my goal of writing and submitting 30 articles in 30 days by writing for only an hour a day. I can devote more time to this challenge on three days of the week, and on those, I will write more after my morning run.

2. Submit One Piece Of Writing Per Day To A Medium Publication

This might be the most challenging part of the challenge for me. I procrastinate on submitting articles because I fear my writing is not good enough.

By challenging myself to submit one piece of writing per day, I try to force my inner critic to quiet down a bit.

I hope to become more comfortable with hitting the “submit to publication” button.

3. Read 2–5 articles/day

When I first started writing on Medium last year, I connected with a few writers who I consider my writing friends now.

I love the community, and I want to engage more again, read more, and exchange creative ideas again.

I also want to support other writers and pledge to read and comment on at least 2–5 articles per day. I will clap too, of course, 😉

Outcome Goals

1. Have 25 Or More New Articles Published By The End Of This Challenge

The total count of published articles is lower than 30 on day 30 to make up for a few articles still being under review by the end of this challenge. However, I will have submitted 30 articles or more on day 30.

2. Have 10 New Poems (Or More) Published By The End Of This Challenge

Poetry was my first writing love, and I have neglected it too much in the past years. I would love to explore it more and develop my skills as a poet.

3. Increase Follower Count And Earnings

I didn’t set a specific target yet because it makes me anxious to target particular numbers.

Also, I don’t have the slightest idea of how many followers I could gain or dollars I could earn within one month of consistent publishing. So picking a number for each would be like playing the lottery — hit and miss.

Once I’ve established the habit of publishing consistently, I will be ready to set lofty goals.

I liken it to my running journey — for my first half-marathon race, I set myself the goal of not finishing last. I didn’t have a good enough idea of my capabilities.

Nowadays, I set time-based goals for every race because I am more knowledgeable about my body. Besides, I know more about the sport and how environmental conditions and racecourse can influence my results.

What Do I Expect?

I expect that the next 30 days will be a challenging but worthy experience.

I know from experience that the more I write, the more creative I seem to become. Ideas find their way towards me more quickly, and I write faster.

I hope my writing skills and my ability to stay focused on the writing task at hand will improve.

I expect to make new connections on Medium and find a few new friends along the way.

Most of all, however, I wish that I will finally feel more comfortable with saying, “I am a writer, too.”

I will update you on the results once the challenge is over 😉