The Value in Striving: Why Word Goals & Writing Routines Matter
As I get settled following our recent, big move, I’m reestablishing my daily routine, and a key part of that is the time I dedicate to writing. Also, with the year winding down, I’m starting to think about what’s been working about my habits that I want to make sure I carry over into 2026. A question that emerges is this: Just how important are my daily word goals? Perhaps more significant is a related question: What’s the value of even having a writing routine?
This year has been the first that I’ve been able to shape my weekdays around my writing projects, so it’s revealed more of who I can be as a creative and what it takes to be disciplined. But does it mean you’re not disciplined, if you don’t write every day? Does it mean you’ve failed for the day, if you didn’t reach your word count?
So much of what I read, in terms of writing advice from seasoned authors, is that you need to write every day. You need to figure out how to carve out a time and space for you and your words. Stephen King, at one point in his career, said he wrote 2,000 words a day (reports now say that, as he’s gotten older, it’s been cut down to 1,000 words), and I just read a book by my favorite historian who said he wrote four pages a day. Other authors have other targets they aim for. And I don’t think it’s wrong to give yourself benchmarks or trajectories. I have nothing against being consistently ambitious.
Something I’ve been reflecting on this entire year, though, is how best to balance motivation and energy, especially on days when I don’t hit my target. Whether that’s because life happens or the words just aren’t coming, there are just times when you’re not as productive creatively as you’d hoped you would be. That can be defeating and discouraging. That can make you double down on tomorrow. That can be no sweat off your back, if you’re more easy-going than I am.
Also, from a logistical point of view, most people simply don’t have as much time in the day as they want and/or need to always keep up with hobbies and side quests. Pretty much every day I have at least one moment where I simply sit and feel grateful for my situation. Not having to commute, work forty hours a week, and be exhausted from the work day while trying to maintain a house is beyond significant in affecting how I’m able to write as much as I’m able to.
Does that mean, though, that the average person with a full-time job and other responsibilities shouldn’t try to set word count goals or develop some sort of writing routine? No. It just boils down to each person learning what works best for them and striking a balance that is uniquely their own.
So, what is the value of having a writing routine and word goals?
Let’s start with the most obvious statement: Your story won’t get written, if you don’t write it. Doesn’t matter if you do that by adding 100 words a day or 1,000, the words have to be put down at some point. A spare half an hour in the morning is thirty minutes more than none. Even if the numbers feel small, contributions are still contributions. Isn’t it Jodi Picoult who’s credited with saying you can’t edit a blank page? You’ve got nothing to work with, if you never take time to fill up that page.
Completing a manuscript isn’t about speed, either. In theory, adopting a routine can help you finish projects faster because it’s about consistency of labor; however, it may still take a year, two, three to get your first draft out. A routine doesn’t mean you’ll never have writer’s block again or that plans don’t go haywire. So, don’t try to set up a routine because you think it means you’ll be cranking out a novel a month.
What’s important in committing to regular writing time is that you’re rising to a self-imposed challenge and telling yourself your aspirations are worth investing in. For a long time now, I’ve kept a quote on my Bulletin Board of InspirationTM that says, “You give life to what you give energy to.” Simple as that.
On an average day, there are countless demands put upon your energy, and your focus is pulled in a hundred different directions. You have to be wise in how you spend your energy because you’re only a finite human being. Because these things are true, you’re probably going to find, at least in the beginning, that establishing your routine may be a hard thing to do. And there’s value in that, too.
Sometimes we can really want to do something, but, when the steps to achieve that something appear too difficult, we back down. Even if that something is super important to us or going to make our lives better. Challenges aren’t always met with enthusiasm or willingness.
Sometimes we really need to do the thing, though. Sometimes we need to prove to ourselves that we can do hard things. That we can be self-disciplined. Implementing structure, whatever that looks like for you, doesn’t have to kill creativity or squash your ability to be spontaneous.
Ever since the pandemic and the days where many of us were working remotely, I’ve thought about all the intangible muscles we, as people, have. This idea was sparked by a conversation I had with a coworker upon returning to in-person work. We were at some office-wide lunch, chatting about how it’d been going adapting to weekdays surrounded by people, again. And she said, “You know, these last few months my social muscles have really atrophied, and it’s taking some time getting used to socializing like we used to.”
As an introvert, I understood that completely, and I’ve found myself, since then, reflecting on other ways my “muscles” might atrophy, if I don’t regularly exercise them. Focus is a big one. It’s pretty common knowledge that we’re living in a time when people’s attention spans have never been smaller, so putting my phone away while I write so I can buckle down and lock in means I’m building my focus “muscle.” In terms of wordsmithing and craft development, the more time I write means more time strengthening those skills. And the more I practice building positive, productive habits means I’m more equipped to give new things my best effort and recognize within myself the ability to attempt things without regard to success or failure. Trying things because the trying is good, no matter the results.
So, pick a word goal. Choose a time of day you think may work for your writing. See if you can hit your target—be consistent—for a week. Try two weeks. Tweak the number, adjust your timing, do what you can to keep going, as you learn what’s realistic and helpful for you.
A few reminders as you’re developing your writing habits:
You can never go wrong with setting timers on your phone to limit how long you can be on certain (read: distracting) apps; your phone can be a tool, if you use it right
There is no “right” way to be a writer, so your routine doesn’t have to look anything like what you may see others doing online
You can give yourself grace without giving up on consistency altogether; you’re still a human, there’s still going to be off days, and you can give tomorrow your best effort
If you have any other encouragement or advice for writers about setting goals or establishing routines, please feel free to comment here. I’ll catch ya back here next week, and, in the meantime, happy writing, friends!