Jeff Goins says to write 500 words every day for 31 days. But what do I write about? I think I will write about writing. Writing as a creative process, writing for children, writing to write; it really doesn’t matter as long as I write, right?
So, here I am with this awesome computer and a blank sheet in front of me. This really isn’t scary at all. I am writing on my MacBook Pro using “Pages” and it’s cool, I notice there is an automatic word count at the bottom of the page. Well no worries as to how will I know when I have hit 500 words.
What exactly is 500 words? Is it enough to fill a picture book? Is it enough to write a short article? It definitely is not a book unless it is one of those very miniature books with large print.
Writing can actually help calm the overactive mind. By putting down on the page all those crazy thoughts that swirl around inside of us, we are able to focus for this one moment and just stick to now. The present moment. A Buddhist with a word processor. Nice.
Truth is, I would like to write for children. There are a lot of things that are not taught in school that are necessary to make it on this awesome planet. One of those is listening. Throughout school we are taught how to get our point across through writing, speaking, drawing. We are never taught how to effectively listen. Like those exercises we did with reading, the teacher instead of having the students read a passage and then give a report as to what it was about, have the teacher read a passage or just converse to the students and then ask them to write a report on what they heard. Did they listen well? Did they get the point of the conversation?
Yesterday I read The Polar Express once again. What an awesome book. That book is 32 years old and I never tire of reading it. That is the kind of writing I want to do. Writing that captures a person’s mind. I actually cried when I read it for the umpteenth time yesterday. Go figure that a 32 year old book could do that. Chris Van Allsburg didn’t just write that book either, he also illustrated it. The illustrations are so awesome, they capture the reader and draw her into the story. No matter what age one is, that book brings us back to the child we once were. Full of curiosity and wonder at the world around us.
I have never had a problem getting lost in a good book. Letting the printed word take me away to another world. I have read books that once read, I wished they hadn’t ended. Almost mourning that the story is done and then wondering what to do with myself now that the book was closed. How could I go on?
Right there, in that last paragraph, at the word “on”, I just hit 500 words. Can you imagine? According to WordPress, a blog post should at least be 300 words. So the question is now answered; what exactly is 500 words? It is this. It is what I just wrote.
