I wrote 1000 words today. Maybe that doesn’t seem like a huge deal or much of an accomplishment to some, but for me, this is the first time I’ve gotten 1000 words out of me in months. I mean, months. Even though dredging those 1000 words from deep within was like pulling out my tonsils (which I actually had removed in 2006), I did it.

The pandemic has turned life upside down, around, and inside out. We don’t know which way is up or down. We’re just trying to live. I mean, five and a half months of virtually no school (unorganized home schooling and last-minute online instruction doesn’t quite count for me–sorry, not sorry) for my kids has meant they are home. All. The. Time.

My writing has suffered as a result. At first, I told myself I’d take a month off back in March. I never thought COVID-19 would last this long. Now, it seems like fool’s hope to think the pandemic will be over before I finish my next book. Plus, my current project, a modern-day romance called The Apple of Erin’s Eye, stands at 88k words and isn’t finished. Yet. I’m aiming to be done at 100k.

So, I’ve grappled and fought with writing for the better part of four months. I’ve gotten words down on the page when and where I can. Because it’s important. Because I need to. It’s as essential as breathing that a writer writes. So, I’ve committed to write 1000 words per day now that school is back in session.

I was inspired by https://1000wordsofsummer.substack.com/. My good friend and fellow writer, Kelly, wrote about it on her blog: https://kellygriffiths.wordpress.com/2020/08/18/1000-words-of-summer/. If you’re a writer, consider joining Kelly and me in this quest. Even if the official 1000 Words of Summer is over, writing 1000 words per day is a good goal to have. You owe it to yourself, especially during a pandemic. The world may be in turmoil around us, but we can create our own world and, well, turmoil.