“When you write a book, you spend day after day scanning and identifying the trees. When you’re done, you have to step back and look at the forest.”

―Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

Before delving into our novel writing course, let's establish some writing goals. Setting clear and achievable objectives will help guide your progress and keep you on track over the six weeks. Whether your goal is to start writing a novel, improve your writing skills, or gain a deeper understanding of the craft, defining your intentions will give you focus and motivation.

Throughout The Unbearable Lightness of Novel Writing course, you'll learn the essential elements of novel writing, including character development, plot structure, setting, and dialogue. By setting specific goals such as drafting a chapter of your novel, or creating a character profile, you can measure your progress and ensure you're moving in a direction that feels good for you.

Setting writing goals will also enable you to track your growth and celebrate your achievements along the way.

By establishing writing goals for the course, you're taking the first step towards honing your skills as a writer. Whether you aspire to write a bestselling novel, explore new genres, or just explore your writer’s voice, setting clear objectives will pave the way for a positive experience. Challenge yourself, learn new techniques, and push your boundaries as a writer. Your goals will help guide you.

How to set writing goals

Writing goals get a bad rap, especially when we over-commit and say we'll write 1,500 words a day. When we don't meet the unrealistic goals we set for ourselves then it makes us not want to touch goals with a 10-foot pole. Yet, as my grandma used to say, "Don't throw out the baby with the bathwater, dear." Hopefully, she never literally did that with my dad! In other words, perhaps it's not the goals that are the problem but the scope.

If we're realistic about what we can accomplish, then goals can help to identify what we want, and create a plan to achieve it.

Without goals, we lose track of time or lose focus—and never finish the book we’ve dreamed of writing. It stands to reason then that part of our success should be not only planning to write a novel, but also outlining the steps to complete it.

Setting goals that will incrementally lead you to complete your novel, such as allotting daily word or page counts, will help to make your writing project much more manageable.

Setting effective writing goals starts with being specific and realistic about what you want to achieve. Rather than vague goals like "write better," focus on concrete, measurable targets such as "write for 20 minutes daily" or "complete one chapter per week."

Good writing goals should challenge you without being overwhelming. Also, breaking them into smaller steps tends to work best.

When writing goals are too big they become overwhelming, and when you push yourself to achieve unreasonable goals you can become frustrated. You may even feel that writing is joyless at this point. Try not to go down that road as it leads to No-Fun Street.

For example, think about what might be reasonable for you to achieve in one month. What about two months? Pace yourself as you consider what's going on in your life over the next few months. Write it down as that will help to cement it in your consciousness.

Where to start:

• For a 4,000-word novel goal, I'd suggest breaking this into manageable weekly targets such as 250-300 words per week.
• Begin with what excites you most about your story rather than feeling pressured to start at the absolute beginning.
• You might choose to write a pivotal scene, develop a character through dialogue, or explore the setting that's been keeping you awake at night.
• What if you don’t have an idea in mind? You can choose to free write and see what comes up. What’s been on your mind lately? What puzzle would you like to solve?
• Get a notebook (if you like writing stuff down) and record what you’d like to work on each week.

Novel planning

I'd also recommend spending this first week doing some light novel planning. This might be jotting down your main character's key traits, the core or central theme of your novel, or even just a few scenes you now you need to include. The goal isn't to plot everything perfectly but to have enough direction to start writing.

You can also create daily habits such as carving out a time or times each week (preferably at the same time) to work on your novel, then put it in your calendar. Some writers choose early in the morning before work and before the rest of the house wakes up. Some like to write late at night. See what works best for you.

Set it as an alert on your phone so you remember to do it. Try to treat this date with yourself as important as other commitments in your life. You can do it!

These first 4,000 words are about exploration and discovery, not committing to a final version. Getting your story down where you can begin to shape it. Focus on what lights you up about your story; that’s the way to harness its (and your) energy!

“Freedom is choosing your responsibility. It’s not having no responsibilities; it’s choosing the ones you want.” 

—Toni Morrison

The skinny

Consider both process goals (like developing a daily writing habit) and product goals (like finishing a specific piece). Track your progress and be willing to adjust your goals as you learn more about your writing process and pace.

• Consistency often matters more than intensity.
• Writing a little each day typically produces better results than sporadic marathon sessions. Although everyone has a different style of writing.
• Most importantly, celebrate small victories along the way!
• Building momentum and confidence is just as valuable as meeting your final deadline.

Finally...

The more you focus on your writing during the next six weeks, the more enjoyable this course will be and the more you'll learn as a result. This means spending time thinking about your character's motivations, plot, voice, and story structure. It means not only sitting down to write but also immersing yourself in the topic of writing, through videos, podcasts, generative exercises... You can easily do this by dipping into the Activities, Exercises & Resources section at the end of each week's lesson.