33 Comments

Hi, where do I find the signup for the August mini…?

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I couldn't do the one you just finished as I was in a car driving eight hour days so I'm very happy about this!

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1,087 words and done on my delayed participation. I usually only find inspiration in a setting once I leave it, but this time I am writing about where we live, Amsterdam, and finding so much inspiration in my day to day walking around, uncovering a bit of the story as I revisit a part of the city, seeing my characters walking around with me, just a tour guide on their journey. I don't have a clear structure yet, but it's been so nice getting to know them, getting these glimpses of their life. Even if no one scene is complete, each of these moments tell me so much - about the tone of this story, too, which has surprised me, finding its own voice, different from my previous works yet so fitting for this moody, grey place and moody, grey woman. I'm looking forward to discovering more. Thanks for the nudge to get this idea out of my brain and onto paper before it languished in the maybe-someday pile for too long.

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Thanks for a great week of pep talks! I did this week low-key, sneaking in #1000words on a few essays and another book, crafting in the corners, but feeling the energy and community. ❤️

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Feb 13, 2022·edited Feb 13, 2022Liked by Jami Attenberg

This week was up and down for me - some days of amazing and productive work, some of slow and painful progress. But it kicked my ass into gear, which was exactly what I needed, by putting writing at the center of my consciousness. This has been a game-changing exercise for me. And as I sat down this morning to keep the ball rolling, I wanted to take a minute to thank you, Jami, for facilitating this exercise and giving me the impetus to start anew - and to keep going!

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Feb 13, 2022Liked by Jami Attenberg

It's early Sunday morning and it's snowing. I just read all of the comments from day 6 and I want to add my thanks for a stimulating and productive week of writing along with everyone. I'm a few thousand words away from completion of part two on my novel. This week I wrote 6,000+ words and I'm going to keep on moving forward with this momentum. Your memoir is on my nightstand and I can't wait to start. Thank you so much for all that you do for us. See you here in June. Happy Writing!

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Feb 13, 2022Liked by Jami Attenberg

1115 today. Deep, heavy stuff ... and yet, I still don't know what I am writing about. I'm fumbling around in the dark looking for a switch. Guess I have to trust that it will lead me somewhere, in some format. I think I need to read Bird by Bird again.

But only after I finish Jami's book, which I bought yesterday (along with three other books that I was not intending to buy, but oh well ... they're books, not bottles of gin). Thank you, Jami. I really hope I can continue this project, whatever it is, and find some thread that will start to unravel the yarn ball.

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Feb 13, 2022Liked by Jami Attenberg

1102 today, and 7698 overall (and I'm feeling especially proud of myself for not adding two more meaningless words to get to a nicer final number). Today, I did some journaling using tips from Lisa Cron's STORY GENIUS, and I think it gave me some clarity for the project over all. So that was nice.

But what was really, really nice was this whole week. I have three kids under 5, and I teach high school English. I am very tired all the time, but I want to take my writing and my writerly dreams seriously, even if it means staying up and working late. So thank you all for this—for forcing me to take myself seriously again. I've loved it.

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I can’t believe today is the last day! I got to 1100 yesterday and 980ish tonight. I fleshed out two chapters and played around with a third. I really loved the accountability and community around how we make our art ritual and daily practice. I truly enjoyed writing alongside everyone. Till next time…..

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Feb 13, 2022·edited Feb 13, 2022Liked by Jami Attenberg

I never thought I would change the course of my book today, because my book has so many "courses" already, but you know what? I did. I surprised myself with an idea that added a nice fanciful element of fantasy that was missing, and that is actually quite true to character (both to me as an individual full of "unrealistic" ideas, and to what I guess is turning out to be something very first-generation American from South America. A little bit of magical reality. Why the hell not. Our family is rife with it.

So, just sketching that out, getting out down without refining it too much (must go back and correct some inconsistencies of tense), I did 1150 words. Thank you for that nudge.

*I didn't realize this was the last day, and everyone was totaling up their words. So, my grand total seems to be 17,774. So grateful for this week. Honestly, there were at least three nights I thought I was going to go to bed not having written anything, but thinking about this space made me try.

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Feb 13, 2022Liked by Jami Attenberg

I DID IT. It was hard and I can't believe this week is already over but I DID IT. 6,075 words. And I'm so excited for tomorrow, because I'm going to keep coming back.

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Feb 13, 2022·edited Feb 13, 2022Liked by Jami Attenberg

Wait... what? We're done? Can't we keep going? I hit 5K for the week which is short of the goal, I know. But! I have been stuck on that essay for so long and during the last several days I was able to bust through the roadblock. Thank you so much for this opportunity that has made such a huge difference.

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Feb 12, 2022Liked by Jami Attenberg

777 words. I wrote a fast and dirty sex scene I wasn't expecting (catching up with the group, I guess!). I'll probably come back to this in a couple of hours--and as soon as I type that, I'm thinking, yep, that's right. You'll keep coming back until you're done. Thanks so much for this week, it's been great.

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1066 that started with a shitty dream, but morphed into the bones of an essay about the horror of playing Monopoly with my mother and her embezzler girlfriend. Nice to be surprised. Finished your book this week, Jami, and absolutely loved it! I'll be getting a copy for my god-daughter who just graduated with a creative writing major. Thanks for creating the best cheering squad of writers ever!

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1053 and done! Grand total for the week: 8074. This was really fun! I am thinking we will do the big two-week #1000wordsofsummer extravaganza starting June 4, so hope to see y'all then!

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Feb 12, 2022Liked by Jami Attenberg

Finished my edits for the day! It's always a comfort to reread things I've written and see that, actually, they're not so bad. Thank you so much for this space. <3

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