What a difference a day makes. Yesterday, the temperature was in the mid-eighties, and I had the air conditioner on as I wrote inside. Today, it’s 64F plus a periodic strong breeze. I’m back to writing on the porch, but this time I’m wearing a sweatshirt and my tea has long since gone cold.

Ah, well. The writing is coming, and that’s what counts.

For me, the #1000wordsofsummer 2022 challenge ends tomorrow. I honestly didn’t think I’d make it this year, especially given everything that’s happened in the past three weeks, but here I am, closing in on the finish line. I’ve been surprised and pleased at the new direction my book has taken as I’ve made myself sit down every day and keep writing. Granted, not every day’s 1,000 words has been work on the book, but most have.

There’s a moral in this story, and it’s the same one writers have been reciting since days of yore: butt in chair, pen on page (or fingers on keys). To put it another way, show up for the writing, and it’ll show up for you. I’m not saying every word will be a keeper, but one thing I’ve been reminded of in the past two weeks is that keeping the pump primed keeps the ideas flowing.

Tomorrow is my Day Fourteen, the last day of this challenge. I’d love to say I’ll keep writing my 1,000 words every day after that, but there’s a whole lot of editing to do as I figure out which chunks of the story are worth keeping and weaving into the whole. Maybe I’ll create my own challenge in July: Edit for an Hour Every Day, or something like it. We’ll see.