Finally, today, I decided to try out this service called 750 words. It basically encourages you to write 750 words everyday. The point is that writing regularly would release that (writer’s) block and help us get into habit of writing everyday.
I am trying it out and it looks good so far. I am using this first entry to write what I think about the service itself.
I first heard about this tool from lifehacker. At that time, my Internet connection wasn’t working properly and I couldn’t check it out immediately. I saved the link for later. When the Internet was working fine, the site wouldn’t load and I forgot all about it until today. So, I tried typing 750words.com in my browser and a nice introduction page loaded. I had already read about it in the lifehacker article, and so, I went ahead and clicked sign up or log in.
Now, 750words.com uses openid for accounts. It lists three providers you can use – Facebook, Google and Yahoo. It also warns you should always use the same provider to login. If you sign up using Google at first and then try to sign up using Facebook (or Yahoo), you would have a new account. I would love to see them allow more openid’s in a single account (something like stackoverflow). That way, you can choose whichever login method you want at any time without worries.
I login using my favorite provider and I am asked some information. I take particular care in entering the timezone. One click and I am now presented a blank screen with a small header and a smaller footer. I also see the cursor blinking in the middle of the page. I assume that I can start typing and I start with this article that you are reading right now. I notice a few things about the page. It has links to what you have written today, this month and for all eternity. It also shows the points I have accumulated. Since I am just starting out, it is a measly zero.
The text I am typing is automatically saved every minute or so. There are no buttons and the screen has very little that can distract you from writing. Even so, it is still difficult for someone like me to write 750 words a day. I don’t hate writing, I love it, as a matter of fact. It is just that that I lost habit of writing frequently and for fun after I joined college. It is unfortunate, I know, and I wish that wouldn’t have happened. Out of all my hobbies, I miss writing the most. Photography comes a close second because I still get to do that now and then. Writing has become very rare for me and I want to work on that.
There was a time when my essays were appreciated. I hope to get that time back soon. It is hard work, no doubt, with my schedule and real life (as it is called); but I miss writing and I want to try and get it back. I hope that I reach (at least) 750 words a day and I hope that those 750 words help me get out of my block.
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