TIPS & TRICKS FOR ONC2023: CELEBRATING MILESTONES

Welcome to The WriMo Blog where I share my monthly writing goals, project progress, and more! Today's post is all about celebrating your little wins so you appreciate the bigger win. If this interests you, keep reading! I think this is the perfect topic while we wait for the Round 1 results.

During ONC2022, I chose a reward for reaching the 20,000 milestone. I was writing a book about a young woman receiving pearls as a gift from a little Lark, who was actually the prince of the kingdom. My reward was a pearl necklace. I had a minor reaction to the type of metal in the necklace chain, but I love my necklace. I have it hanging on a little hook next to my calendar and it reminds me daily that I accomplished a major goal.

I later saw a video of an awesome young woman talking about how she celebrates her little goals while trying to reach her ultimate goal. It clicked and I have since started implementing the method to my own reward system. So here are a few things you can do, and this is just a starting point, to celebrate your writing goals!

REMEMBER: You are in charge of how you choose to celebrate your achievements. This list is just to help trigger happy thoughts.

1) TREAT YOURSELF! This can literally mean anything; take yourself out for a special lunch/dinner. Buy a new piece of clothing or jewelry. Something that can be used often and serve as a reminder of your achievement. As I mentioned before, I bought myself a pearl necklace. Maybe your reward can be something that reminds you of the story you wrote.

2) Print a copy of your story! Many authors/writers agree that no matter what state your story is in, you should print your book. Whether that is through Staples or Office Depot; Amazon’s KDP, Lulu, IngramSpark, Barnes & Noble. You can even print it from the safety of your own home. I will be honest, I didn’t get to print my ONC2022 novella because I couldn’t at the time, but I still highly recommend this type of reward.

3) Make yourself a certificate! Whether you choose to mark each milestone or your completion of your novella, a certificate is something you can frame and have forever. While I was waiting for the Round 3 results during ONC2022, I bought a package of certificates and made one out for each milestone I’d achieved. And I filled a fourth one to show that I had completed the book and dated it the day I submitted my 20,000 words milestone.

4) For each milestone, ONC-set or personal, do a dance! I am going to try and link the video I saw on this, because this is how that writer celebrated her milestones. For every 5-10,000 words she met, she did a short “whoo!” dance.

Now, there are definitely a bunch of things you can do to celebrate your milestones. This list is only of things I’ve done or plan to do. If you have ideas or things you like doing to celebrate milestones, comment below! I’d love to know!

That’s all for this post. Thank you for stopping in. Check out the rest of my ONC2023 Tips & Tricks series, because I think there is something everyone. Stay safe, and stay awesome. See you in the funny papers!