This is my second time participating in ROW80. While I didn’t quite manage to achieve all my goals for the last Round, it did get me to be more creative.
I also know what to expect now and how it all works, so without further ado, here’s my List of Goals for the first Round of Words in 2015!
Master of Arts Studies
- Complete course “Psychology of Communication” by February 5 with all outstanding assignments handed in.
- Complete course “Cross-Cultural Communication” by February 19 with all outstanding papers handed in
- Start course “Persuasion” once the other courses have been graded
- Study at least 4 hours per day during the week
- Study at least 8 hours per day on the weekend
Writing
- Write a short story or poem every day (part of my 2015 New Year’s Resolutions)
- Update this blog 2x a week for ROW80
- Post 1 Study Tip, 1 Story Prompt, 1 Setting Inspiration and 1 Character Inspiration and 1 Life Hack per week on this blog
Creativity
- Wreck half of my Wreck This Journal
As you can see, my studies need to take priority. The modules are relatively short, and assignments tend to be no more than 3 pages double-spaced, but that’s still quite a few papers to write as I got distracted by my job, family situation and SAD lately.
However, I am paying too much in tuition fees to fail or quit, so I really need to get into the distance learning mindset, pronto! The one thing I’ve learned so far is that I much prefer lectures and actually speaking to professors. I miss my old university and profs, I really do!
The writing should be easy, as it is part of my personal challenge to write something every day. So far this year I have written a fan fiction, and instead of a short story per day, I’ve written a chapter.
They are fairly short (around 600 words each), but I have written something.
I am using Pinterest to collect all sorts of Life Hacks, Study & College Survival Tips, Story Prompts, as well as Setting and Character Inspiration pictures. Currently, I’m setting up a posting schedule so I will post one of each every week. They will most likely just be the picture and a link back to source and/or Pinterest, so it doesn’t require too much work on my part (as I have studying to be getting on with, see above). Hopefully some of the tips and prompts come in handy for you.
As for the Creativity factor, I figured making a start on my Wreck This Journal would be a good idea. It’ll live in my handbag, so I can do several of the pages while out and about. I’ll also try and use it as a study break, because it really DOES help to draw a picture and doodle a bit or throw it against the wall to crack the spine after reading eBooks for 2 hours and trying to summarise them in layman’s terms.
So, these are my goals. What are yours?
I hope to see you around the Blogosphere during this Round of Words! Good luck!
Add yourself to the list of ROWers.
Study. Read. Write. 
I am also working on writing more creatively and doing more poetry this year. I have no pending studies, but can imagine they could inspire your writing.
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Unfortunately, my studies don’t really inspire my writing, at least not yet. It’s all a bit dry and it’s taking me time to get back into the whole scientific journal and academia speak thing.
Good luck with writing more creatively! 🙂
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Those sound like some nice goals. Good luck with your studies.
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Thank you very much! I can use some luck, lol. Good luck to you as well for this round of ROW80!
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I fell completely flat during the last round and have decided to bow out this time. Maybe I’ll be brave enough in round 2! I like the varied goals and the fact you’ve prioritised. Good luck 🙂
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Thank you. It’s a shame you bowed out this round but I hope to still see you around! This time I had to prioritise, despite the fact that I’d rather just be writing. 9 more months of studying and then hopefully I can write to my heart’s content again! x 🙂
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That’s great news and a wonderful treat at the end of your educational goals 😀 I’ll be around to cheer you on x
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Good luck! I’m attempting 500 words per day, with hopes of completing my WIP by June 30, 2015. And I am trying to be more creative this year, as well. I like that journal you mentioned; I also like the ICAD {Index Card a Day} Challenge. I can send you a link to it if you’re interested in the prompts. We can do this!
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Thank you and good luck to you as well! I’ve never heard of the ICAD and I’d be very interested in the link!
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Here are a few links from Daisy Yellow, which is one of my favorite creativity sites. Hope you find something you can use & enjoy!
“Why index cards? We use index cards specifically because they are cheap, not precious, and definitely “not” the perfect substrate. They are abundant, and thus we do not hesitate to pitch them when the work turns into a catastrophe. The freedom to take chances in your creative work, and the constraint of very basic paper…. part of the challenge. Each individual index card creation represents a conscious choice by one person to do one creative thing over the course of one typical day.
The 2015 Challenge Starts June 1, 2015.”
http://daisyyellowart.com/icad/icad-faq.html
Until ICAD officially begins again, I’ve been using following this: “Prompt60 is a new series of journaling prompts that will challenge you with sparks, ideas & quotes. My goal with this series is to inspire and gently nudge to do something creative in your journal.”
http://daisyyellowart.com/vividlife/prompt60.html
Some decent prompts are here as well:
“Daily Paper Prompt: A series of 67 techniques-based creative prompts that can be worked at your own pace and interpreted on paper of any size, from index cards to full pages in your journal to loose pieces of cardboard”
http://daisyyellow.squarespace.com/icad/daily-paper-prompt-the-index.html
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Wow, thank you for all the links! I’ll be sure to check them out, though I might have to delay that particular challenge as I should be writing on my Master Thesis by then!
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Nice to meet you. I complete my bachelors of liberal arts online which worked out well since I don’t have time for sitting in a classroom. Keep going and will cheer you on to completion. Pinterest is fun for collecting picture for stories, a visual collage to spark the imagination. Good luck with your studies and writing. See you round the virtual watercooler.
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Hi Robin, nice to meet you as well! How did you stay focused on your studies? I’m having a really hard time sitting down and actually studying on my own, I’ve been used to classrooms, lectures and well-defined homework all my life but my current situation doesn’t allow for me to take classes on-campus. If you’ve got any tips for a first-time distance-learning student please let me know!
Pinterest is great, I agree! There are so many creative people out there with tips/tricks and inspiration to draw from.
Good luck to you as well. See you around! 🙂
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I had to schedule my time, taking into account class deadlines and making sure I didn’t wait until the last minute to do the work. I don’t know if your online classes have a discussion group, but it helped keep me on track knowing other student were relying on feedback. I would reward myself, saying okay have to read this much or write this paper, then I can do the Internet or read for fun. It also helped getting up earlier in the morning before my guys and having quiet time in which to do the work. I was also motivated and took classes really interested me. Lots of literature and art courses. If or when decide to go for my masters, it will be online. My motivation was to finish my degree, but enjoy it in the process, even if it was hard work. Hope this helps.
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