# How many words do you write a day?



## bookmasta (Aug 1, 2013)

I am deep in the final stages of finishing the first draft of a novel. My average has been about 4,000 words a day. When I'm not locking myself in my study to type, I typically get about 500 words done minimum per day. The most I have ever done in a single day is 9,000 when I was in the zone so to speak.


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## Tiamat (Aug 1, 2013)

I'm sort of a "slow and steady wins the race" sort of writer.  I shoot for 1,000 a day, but usually I come in a bit over that.  To give an example of an average week, we'll go with this week's writing ('cause I'm dorky and log it).

Monday:  1672 words
Tuesday: 1445 words
Wednesday: 1243 words

That's my week so far, and it is right around average for me.  I think the most I've ever done in a single day was around 4500 or so.


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## Sam (Aug 1, 2013)

Depends where I am in my WiP. I usually average around 2,000 a day, but when the finish line is in sight, that often skyrockets to around 10,000. 

The most I've ever written in one day is 20k.


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## Jeko (Aug 1, 2013)

More that a few, less than a lot. I never worry about the exact count myself.


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## OurJud (Aug 1, 2013)

At the moment it's somewhere between 0 and 50.


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## gmehl (Aug 1, 2013)

It varies a lot depending on the balance between research, editing and actual production, plus the business side of a couple of websites.  Some days it's wallowing in easy dialog and others it's spending way too much time fussing over narrative.  In order, I always do sketches (kind of like a musician practicing scales), I always edit with pencil on paper, I always work on a fiction project to a daily goal and then always on some non-fiction/web work, so it's a full day of moving multiple projects forward on some semblance of a schedule.   Total word count for the day?  Utterly no idea.

added thoughts........

Come to think of it, does the quantity or the quality count?  A world-class poet might have a really terrific day with a perfect 200 words; a producer of non-fiction text might think in terms of thousands before the first coffee break.  A successful novelist between projects might take a week or more just to think about the next book, and produce zero.  Do the paragraphs that succumb to the delete key count?  Does the word count go down because you edit out three useless paragraphs the next day?  Oh, my, the possibilities just boggle the mind! 

And further: what rate per hour?  A skilled writer with a ten-hour workday could produce a really big volume of material; a skilled writer with a day job, two kids and a dog might be able to focus for an hour before bedtime and be happy with a couple of hundred words.   I guess I'm grateful if I can honestly say I didn't waste my time!


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## Elowan (Aug 1, 2013)

Cadence said:


> More that a few, less than a lot. I never worry about the exact count myself.



Ditto.  I just write.  Thinking about anything else puts me off my game.


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## WechtleinUns (Aug 1, 2013)

All of you guys are excellent writers, to be so consistent. I have trouble finishing the things that I write, in that I often trash the work when the finish line is in sight. Either that, or I will enter super procastination mode. Granted, this is less of a problem with shorter works, but a real pain with longer works of fiction.


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## Elowan (Aug 1, 2013)

WechtleinUns said:


> All of you guys are excellent writers, to be so consistent. I have trouble finishing the things that I write, in that I often trash the work when the finish line is in sight. Either that, or I will enter super procastination mode. Granted, this is less of a problem with shorter works, but a real pain with longer works of fiction.



Amen bro!  Now if there was a cure for *that* affliction ...


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## J Anfinson (Aug 1, 2013)

I'm horrible. Some days, nothing. Other days, 4000. It just depends on if I can find the groove or not. I try to make myself do 500 just to write something, but even that doesn't always happen.


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## Cicada (Aug 1, 2013)

WechtleinUns said:


> I have trouble finishing the things that I write, in that I often trash the work when the finish line is in sight. Either that, or I will enter super procastination mode.



Oh, man, how similar I am to this. I have gained a handful of larger projects currently at the 20-30k word mark because once I get to a standstill in the piece I get distracted and move on to other ideas. I thought that by writing short stories on a week by week basis I could cure this inconsistency, yet now I find myself doing all of the above! I'll get a few pages to one story, move on to another, move back to one of my larger pieces, and then make a short story that (in the end) I feel needed more attention throughout.

Quite literally I call this "ADHD Writing" and have coined the term in my social circles to the point of some coworkers thinking I have a psych degree. :hopelessness:


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## Blade (Aug 1, 2013)

Elowan said:


> Ditto.  I just write.  Thinking about anything else puts me off my game.



:thumbr: I have to wonder if there would be such an interest in word counts if the writer had to stop and count the words themselves?:chargrined:


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## Tiamat (Aug 1, 2013)

Actually, for NaNoWriMo one year, I had jury duty and didn't want to bring my laptop to the courthouse with me every day.  Instead, I brought a notebook and actually did count the words the old fashioned way to make sure I was reaching my quota.  If I had to do that every day though--I think not.  Nothing like counting away, "1,642...1,643...1,644..."

"Hey, what'd you think of that last deposition?"

"Hmm?  Oh, I'm surprised the doctor didn't fall asleep while he was giving it, honestly."

"...one thousand six hundred and...uh...CRAP!"


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## Skodt (Aug 1, 2013)

^My brother marks a note on his paper every five hundred words. He is odd about his notebook and pen. Myself on the other try for around 4k a day when I am in the groove of my story. I try to never have a day under 2k. The most I have ever wrote is 38k in one day. It was a 15 hr writing day. It was the center of my piece and I was having to much fun to stop.


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## Jeko (Aug 2, 2013)

I usually draft on paper, and I word-count the old fashioned way if I have to. I write the cumulative frequency of words in the margin to keep track.


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## Myers (Aug 2, 2013)

I don't count words with any regularity. A watched pot never boils.


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## BreakingMyself (Aug 2, 2013)

I don't really count til I'm finished with the whole piece. I'd hazard a guess at 500-1000 a day, but not every day, sometimes not even every week. 

I write to enjoy it, not to work at it. So I generally write how much I want, when I want.


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## Blade (Aug 2, 2013)

Tiamat said:


> "...one thousand six hundred and...uh...CRAP!"



:grief:

I have never had a go at word counting myself.:smug: Sounds easy enough though and I must say this thread has awoken a little interest in the topic. If I could type properly I might be more inclined to get involved but as it is I handwrite a lot with no counter.:apologetic:


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## WriteAboutCreativeWriting (Aug 4, 2013)

After reading multiple writing books and watching YouTube videos, I find that writing about 2,000-4,000 words a week is a decent amount. That's the range that I use myself when I write my novels. I find that this is the best because it allows me to skip a day of writing but still stay on track. You may have more time to write, or be a faster writer, so it all depends on your own habits on writing.


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## Tiamat (Aug 5, 2013)

Actually, I've found that a weekly quota works best for me to, but I keep it to a schedule.  I shoot for 1,000 words a day, Monday through Friday, so 5,000 words a week.  Usually I exceed 5,000 on Thursday and take a long weekend.  It allows me to not feel guilty or behind schedule if something comes up and I have to skip a night of writing.


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## philistine (Aug 5, 2013)

I tend to meticulous proof, write and rewrite as I go along, so sheer numbers are never really a chief concern whilst I'm going at it. I'd say anything from 300 to 2,000 is my average, with any deviation being rare.

A question to those who are putting down 5,000 or more a day: how much of that do you end up scrapping? It's been about three months since I started my third- and what is hopefully- final draft, and I've managed to put down a solid, proofed, in my opinion- flawless, 30,000 words. As stated above, my daily word count isn't that great; and yet I see guys who put down twice, even thrice the amount, yet are still trudging along with their WiP after several years. Why is that?

Granted, the novel I'm working on is fairly short (I estimate it'll hit 55-60,000 words at most), though I expect to be finished midway through winter.


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## Sam (Aug 5, 2013)

philistine said:


> A question to those who are putting down 5,000 or more a day: how much of that do you end up scrapping?



Little to none. 

This is something that perplexes me. Some people see large numbers of words per day and automatically assume that the writer(s) forgot everything they've ever known about the written word, went off on a tangent about fluffy kittens, and ended up have 5,000 words of nonsensical gibberish. 

Like you, Philistine, I'm a perfectionist: I proof as I go along (I don't rewrite unless absolutely necessary) but I also type at 115 words per minute or 7,000 words an hour. Considering that I spend upwards of three hours a day writing, and taking into account proofing as I go, five thousand words of decent prose per day is highly doable.


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## philistine (Aug 5, 2013)

Sam said:


> Little to none.
> 
> This is something that perplexes me. Some people see large numbers of words per day and automatically assume that the writer(s) forgot everything they've ever known about the written word, went off on a tangent about fluffy kittens, and ended up have 5,000 words of nonsensical gibberish.
> 
> Like you, Philistine, I'm a perfectionist: I proof as I go along (I don't rewrite unless absolutely necessary) but I also type at 115 words per minute or 7,000 words an hour. Considering that I spend upwards of three hours a day writing, and taking into account proofing as I go, five thousand words of decent prose per day is highly doable.



I'm not in disbelief at all at the numbers being shown; it just doesn't make a lot of sense when someone is, say, working on a 120,000 word epic fantasy novel, supposedly types several thousand words a day, and yet has been grinding the work out for several years. That either means one or two things: that the writer has a lot of downtime in between their periods of writing, or that they end up deleting a lot of the text they put down. The numbers fail to add up, otherwise.


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## Elowan (Aug 5, 2013)

I write, not count.


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## Jeko (Aug 5, 2013)

> That either means one or two things: that the writer has a lot of downtime in between their periods of writing, or that they end up deleting a lot of the text they put down. The numbers fail to add up, otherwise.



I do the latter myself. A 500-word piece of flash fiction usually ends up having over 5,000 words written for it until I'm happy with it.


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## Motley (Aug 5, 2013)

I aim for 2,000 decent words put together in reasonable order. I edit as I go too.

This is my job, so I make goalposts.


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## Sam (Aug 5, 2013)

Elowan said:


> I write, not count.



I write and count.


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## Sam (Aug 5, 2013)

philistine said:


> I'm not in disbelief at all at the numbers being shown; it just doesn't make a lot of sense when someone is, say, working on a 120,000 word epic fantasy novel, supposedly types several thousand words a day, and yet has been grinding the work out for several years. That either means one or two things: that the writer has a lot of downtime in between their periods of writing, or that they end up deleting a lot of the text they put down. The numbers fail to add up, otherwise.



It could be their first attempt at a novel; it could be the inability to satisfy their inner perfectionist; or it could be large periods of downtime. It took eighteen months to finish my first novel at 145,000 words. Much of it is down to staying power and discipline. Until they start working on a novel, most people don't know how much effort and drive it takes to reach the end. Some become disillusioned with the novel and either discard it completely or put it on the back-burner for years. Others find that the story doesn't hold their interest any longer. 

There are many reasons for why someone would grind out thousands of words and ultimately spend years on a 120,000-word novel.


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## Accentuated atmosphere (Aug 5, 2013)

You catch me between furious writing sessions. I have been fairly busy today. On average I aim for a grand of words a day but if I'm really in the swing of things, like today, I can churn out upwards of 14,000 words. It takes time. I reread and edit and evaluate and other words that have meanings until I am totally satisfied. Back to my first point, I went from 53,600 words to 66,000 words today and I am still writing. I can sleep when I am dead.


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## Elowan (Aug 5, 2013)

Sam said:


> I write and count. What's your point?



Mine?  I just write.  I don't concern myself with *counting* my daily word output.

But then I'm not a writer by profession though I have a few published works.


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## Sam (Aug 5, 2013)

My apologies. Having re-read my comment, it comes across rather harsh. What I meant to say was: The whole 'watched pot never boils' cliche has never really been a problem for me. I like to set myself daily and weekly goals, and word-count is the gauge for that.


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## gmehl (Aug 5, 2013)

Well, I for one am certainly impressed with some of these amazing achievements.  I think Sam mentioned his first book took 18 months (145,000 words) but now 5,000 _finished_ words a day is doable -- which means a book _every 29 days_!  Twelve books a year.  _Astonishing!_  That's really an incredible improvement in proficiency.  I spend about a year on each 100,000 word book, start to finish, which in a normal work week comes out to a crummy 420 word average net per day (240 days).  Guess I better crank it up!


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## Myers (Aug 5, 2013)

I carve a certain amount of time out of each day to write. I can only write so much in that allotted time, so there isn’t much point to setting goals based on word count. To me, writing something every day and making steady progress is what counts.


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## Sam (Aug 5, 2013)

gmehl said:


> Well, I for one am certainly impressed with some of these amazing achievements.  I think Sam mentioned his first book took 18 months (145,000 words) but now 5,000 _finished_ words a day is doable -- which means a book _every 29 days_!  Twelve books a year.  _Astonishing!_  That's really an incredible improvement in proficiency.  I spend about a year on each 100,000 word book, start to finish, which in a normal work week comes out to a crummy 420 word average net per day (240 days).  Guess I better crank it up!



I didn't say I write 5,000 words every day. I said that I have done it and it's doable. If you look at my first post, you'll see that I average 2,000 a day.

I've written a 250,000-word novel in five months.


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## Skodt (Aug 5, 2013)

I write about 4k a day. I have finished a 85k novel and a 66k novel this year. I have also took time in between to write 6 short stories, and I write poetry. So I have an array of work to show for my time spent.


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## dale (Aug 5, 2013)

not enough. whether it's 10 or 2500. not enough.


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## Elowan (Aug 5, 2013)

Sam said:


> ... What I meant to say was: The whole 'watched pot never boils' cliche has never really been a problem for me. I like to set myself daily and weekly goals, and word-count is the gauge for that.



I can relate to that since 'watched pots' ultimately come to a boil - at least in my experience.  But what I meant was that I get on with the writing and what results - many or few words - is still a step forward.

As goes that 'old' statement - _a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step_.

Just write.  Yes - a little self-discipline helps and that thousand mile journey would never be completed without more steps being taken but the number of steps taken each day only matters if one's in a hurry.  But it pays to watch where one steps and that may take time and the influence of RL may cause the number of those steps to vary each day not to mention - their direction.


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## gmehl (Aug 5, 2013)

Ah, Sam, okay, but still -- that's a most impressive achievement!  You and the others must really be carving up the market.  Well done


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## Apple Ice (Aug 6, 2013)

I'm impressed with how much you lot can right, well done. I'm very lazy, I don't write anything for aaaaages, then perhaps a chapter for something new. I have about 5 first chapters and all of those are for different stories. The furthest I've ever gotten is a bout 4 chapters in and then I realised my story needed so much more structure so I've had to shelf that for the time being. 

I plan to write properly one day


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## jedw31 (Aug 6, 2013)

Not nearly enough.


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## Elowan (Aug 6, 2013)

Apple Ice said:


> I'm impressed with how much you lot can right, well done. I'm very lazy, I don't write anything for aaaaages, then perhaps a chapter for something new. I have about 5 first chapters and all of those are for different stories. The furthest I've ever gotten is a bout 4 chapters in and then I realised my story needed so much more structure so I've had to shelf that for the time being.
> 
> I plan to write properly one day



I hear that.  I've been published 4 times and I still suffer from that 'malady'.


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## Apple Ice (Aug 6, 2013)

Elowan said:


> I hear that.  I've been published 4 times and I still suffer from that 'malady'.



About time I was addressed by my proper title. Thank you Sir, carry on.


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## Tirade (Aug 7, 2013)

I don't have much to draw on since I just started writing again, but for me I tend to spend a day or two plotting, planning, and generally figuring out how the next chapter is going to go. Then I'll splurt out an entire chapter at once (the main thing I'm writing is a serial with fairly short chapters, so only 1500-2000 words per chapter). Then the next day I'll edit it and add/subtract a bit. So overall, nothing for a day or two... then 1500-2000, then about 500-1000. Then the cycle starts again.


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