Like most writers, I've had some great writing weeks this year ... and some terrible writing weeks.
But until the start of September, I'd only had one week in the whole of 2025 where I broke the 7,000 word barrier with my fiction
writing.
In the first week of September, I hit that 7,000 word target ... even though I didn't get started till the Wednesday.
In the second week of September, I made it to over 7,000 words again.
I wrote 14,289 words in 12 days.
And if you want to get your novel finished fast ... I thought you'd like to hear how.
Just over two weeks ago, I launched my six-week novel writers' group.
Along with the other writers in that group, I shared an overall goal (to finish the draft of my novel) and a week-by-week goal (to write 7,000
words per week).
Each Sunday evening, I let the group know how I got on.
So even when I was feeling tired yesterday afternoon, I was determined to get a final 500 words written so that I could cross the 7,000 word line for the week.
Accountability is incredibly powerful.
Knowing that someone else is going to notice – and care – how your writing's going can push you to make the time, even when life feels busy.
A not-insignificant
number of my 14,289 words were written in 10 minute writing bursts, in between household chores and kid activities and the rest of life. It's not my favourite way to write ... but little by little, the words really do add up.
It also helps that I've got a finish line in sight. The six-week group runs for (as you might expect) six weeks. I'm not trying to write 7,000 words a week
forever. Just for six weeks.
If you're struggling to write as much as you want, how could you add in some accountability, over a short, focused span of time?
You could do that with a friend or family member – ideally, someone who's also a writer – or by
sharing your goal on social media.
For extra accountability and support, though, I wanted to share a couple of options that I have available.
Option #1: Writers' Cafe
My online community for writers, Writers' Cafe, currently costs $10/month (the price is going up to $20/month at the end of September).
You could join Writers' Cafe and
commit to sharing a weekly writing target in our Monday check-ins for one month. Struggling to make time to write? Put one (or more!) of our weekly live writing hours on your calendar for a huge focus & support boost.
Your first month is a trial period, so if you feel that the Cafe doesn't work for you, then just let me know and I'll refund you in full.
Option #2: Novel Writers' Group
My novel writers' group is a small, focused
group to make massive progress on your novel in just six weeks. We're opening up for another round soon, and you can join the waiting list here.
We
each set and share our own goal for the six weeks, and also share our weekly targets, so the novel writers' group is ideal if you want to get a hefty chunk of your novel written in a short space of time.
I lead our weekly private call and I'm always on hand in our private forum space too to support you with making big strides towards "The End" of your novel.
Whether you opt for one of my groups, or find a different source of accountability, I hope you can make great progress with a little support from others. :-)
Happy writing,
Ali
P.S. Places for the next round of the novel writers' group will be offered to the waiting list first. If I fill the group from the waiting list, I won't be making any places available more widely ... so make sure you're on the waiting list if you're interested:
Six Week Novel Writers' Group Details & Waiting List
If you missed last week's blog
post, here it is:
How to Name a Character: Four Key Considerations (and Why They Matter)
