So after a day or so of trying the free Write or Die web app, I broke down and bought the desktop version. Best $10 I ever spent. I cannot believe how much this tool motivates me and keeps me on task! I have used this tool for 6 days so far, and have written 12,000 words in a little under 6 hours total writing timing. For those of you keeping track, that’s about 2,000 words a day in 1 hour.
That might not seem like a lot to some, but for me, that’s huge. It’s something I don’t think I ever would have been able to accomplish without this app. Those 12,000 words are about 11,500 more than I wrote the entirety of last year.
I am a very goal-oriented person, and so I think my favorite part of this app is the progress bar at the top of the screen that tells me how fast I’m typing in comparison to how much time I have left on the clock. It helps me know when to pick up the pace, and when I’m doing really well. This app has also helped me squash my inner editor. I don’t edit when I write anymore because that flashing red screen gives me severe anxiety. Instead as I type, I keep reminding myself, “I can edit crap to sound good later but I can’t do anything if I don’t have something written down.” As an interesting side-note, back in my hay-day of typing speed, I averaged 135 wpm. Now when I am transcribing something, I am a little bit slower, but I still can do about 90 wpm. My average speed while writing? 40 wpm.
Apparently it takes more effort to think and type than to just type. Who knew?
So here’s my plug for Write or Die…GO BUY IT!!! Or at least check out the free web app and see how you like it. You can find it here: http://writeordie.com/. Best $10 you’ll ever spend, promise. Geez, Dr. Wicked should be paying me for this endorsement or something.
But really, all I can do is thank him for helping me to finally write again.