I don’t know about you, but I’ve sometimes wished I could write more in a day. I mean I have stories that are waiting to be written, novels that need finished, and readers begging for another book!

Last month was a writing month for me. Not only did I write more in a month than I ever thought I’d write, but I set new records for how many words I got written in a day. But how did I do that?

Here are some tips I discovered that helped me be able to write several 4k word days, as well as a 5k day. (My usual daily writing average is between 1-2k words.)

1. Start Early – I don’t write well in the mornings. My best writing times are late afternoon and in the evening, but I decided to write something in the mornings anyway, even if it was only 10-20 minutes. And those words added up.
   
   
2. Sprint Now and Then – Since I don’t write well in the mornings, I decided I’d try a sprint or two. That really helped me get some words in. Most of the time I didn’t end up with a record number of words for a sprint, but every little bit helped.
   
   
3. Use Your Odd Minutes – Do you have 15 minutes to write? Or maybe only 10? Go write! Even a hundred words here and there can add up and get you more words than if you had just scrolled through Pinterest or social media instead.
   
   
4. Switch Up Your Story – If you are focusing on just one story, you might run into the problem of a story dragging because you are rushing it so quickly. Be willing to set it aside and pick up another story, or maybe even start a new short story. Sometimes I just wrote a scene from a story prompt or described a picture. It keeps the words coming, but let’s you have some different scenery.
   
   
5. Give Up Something Else – For me to set new records, I had to give up some time reading, or doing this or that and write instead. What are you willing to give up to write more words?
   
   
6. Take Breaks – Seriously, take breaks! Go for a walk, build some legos, eat a snack, fold some laundry, get some fresh air, do something that doesn’t involve written words. It doesn’t have to be a long break, even 15-20 minutes is good. Then come back. Your brain will thank you.

But just remember, don’t try to set your goal too high. If you are only writing an average of 200 words a day, don’t aim for 5k right from the start. Writing is like a muscle, you don’t want to overdo it and then not be able to write for days. But you also don’t want to push yourself at all or you’ll never learn to write more.

What about you? Have you ever set new writing records for yourself that you didn’t think you’d ever reach? Do you have any other tips on how to get more words written? Do you ever set daily writing goals for yourself?