Word Sprints? What Do They Do For You?

Word sprints? You may ask yourself what there are and why we do them. Well, They are timed times where you try and get as many words as you can. Allotted times vary depending on who is running them. Check out our ‘Sprint Schedule’ tab for groups that do them. They are on Twitter, so if you don’t have an account, get one!

Why we run word sprints is more difficult to answer. There are many reasons. 

1. Motivation. This is a biggie. Many of us need a push to get our fingers moving. 
2. They remind us to write. Many groups do sprints at specific times. It keeps us from straying to Facebook or e-mails. 
3. You get to meet peoples that write too.
4. You have the ability to ask for help form others that know what you might need rather than staring at the post wondering what the heck you are talking about. 
5. It helps with 'Time Management'
6. Most of all it’s FUN!

Themes? What are they?

Themes are basically just that, themes. Some sprints will have them. Once in awhile I will. I usually do rodeo or fill the bucket with wordies. Others will do ones significant to them.

Why themes?

It’s simple it gets you more motivated if you have a reason to write. If you’re asked to fill a bucket of words, you are more likely to push yourself a bit harder.

Prompts?

Prompts are suggestions for added text to your WIP(work in progress). Like add someone eating, storms, etc. You are not required to use them. They are there to help only. Like I said suggestions.

Who Sprints?

Writers! Many unpublished and published authors do sprints. Some do them with groups or among their friends. You can find them with hashtags. Click our ‘Hashtags’ tab for all of them.

How long are the word sprints?

The length of word sprints depends on who is running them. Hashtags and the GO! post will tell you. Most are 30 minutes though. I run some 1k1hr (1000 words in an hour). Then of course there is our 10k Writathon. For more about that click our ‘10k Writathon’ tab.

In short, if you need motivation or just want to have fun; join in with any of the sprinting groups. Join us @GetWordies on Twitter. Follow here for helpful information and fun things!