The Friends & Members of 750 Words

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The ability to delete old entries is something I am very interested in.

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Probably someone has already suggested this: actual badges. Like Girl Scout badges. I would totally buy them. Come to think of it, I’d probably buy a mug with a phoenix on it to celebrate 100 days. Or some stickers. Or…? Seems like there could be some cute merch opportunities here. Would I march around wearing a sash sporting my 750 Words badges? Would I ceremoniously don my Sash Of Writerly Achievement before commencing that day’s words? Sadly, both of these are possible. Certainly I’d put a circular “flock” sticker on my car’s bumper. Happy writing, all!

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Got my Phoenix today and I am so pleased! The discipline of making time to write every day has spilled over into other areas of my life. Writing everyday also helps me to think of myself as “a writer”, and I hope adopting that identity will encourage me to finish various writing projects I’ve had on the drawing board for a long time. I’m so glad I learned about 750 words! Thank you for this great site!

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Perhaps knowing which words triggered specific emotions or feelings.

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I’ve shared this site with five different people since I found it 22 days ago. I’m amazed at how well it works, suddenly I have no problem finding the motivation and discipline to get on the page every single day! Thank you Buster.

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It has helped me to make a habit of writing. Also, I volunteer for the Center for Women and Families. Through this activity I have worked with youth who like to write. I suggested to youth groups to use this site and help children become better writers and more expressive. You should look into offering special setups for Troubled Youth Homes. This would be a good safe, secure site that could help many. Writing is so cathartic and helps us to really digest the things that are going on around us. Thank you for this site and glad to be a Patron here!!

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Reflecting is important; you already know that. Here’s why I use 750words for mine:

750words facilitates my reflections. The use of a computer instead of a traditional pen and paper makes the writing process easier for me.

750words protects my reflections. I feel safe writing whatever I want on 750words. There is no way I’ll accidentally push “send” or “publish” and share my feelings with those who aren’t supposed to see them.

750words encourages my reflections. I have a visual cue on how successful I’ve been. I can earn badges, which can seem silly and trivial, but are actually quite motivating. I get a little “congratulations” every time I finish.

Try it. You’ll like it.

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750 Words, 750 Days. I can’t say that it hasn’t been a struggle it has, and on more than one occasion I came pretty close to plain forgetting but I have managed to write 750 Words for 750 Days and I am pretty happy with that.

It would not be right to let the day pass without doing something to mark it, hence my patronage and my little note.

Thanks Buster for a great site with a simple premise and an idea excellently executed.

I don’t know what comes next 1,000,000 words or 1,000 days but I will keep writing and maybe I will reach both…

Regards

Ken McCarthy

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I do not trust Paypal and would like to be able to just use my credit card to “patronify”
I love this site and have been writing here faithfully for the last thirteen months. I hate the idea of not being a patron. Why only one way of donating?

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I’ve passed the thirty day albatross and now it’s time for my second try for the phoenix. I’m over 40 days in and it seems like there’s no more little steps on the way. Once I get the phoenix, it will be another long spate of writing until Iget another badge—is there an interim step?

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Perhaps everyone who does pages everyday already knows this but I have found that for me the most effective way to do my pages is to do them first thing in the morning before I have my shower and before others begin to stir and demand my attention in my house. Even if I don’t always manage the crack of dawn thing, it does so help me to organize my jumbled thoughts and accomplish more of what I want to each day to do my pages before I am dressed. Then it is done and I have no more panic at moments to midnight as to whether I have done my pages. It is almost a habit with me now like brushing my teeth and I fell great to have the discipline of doing this daily. It helps me to be confident that I can change other things about myself.That said I don’t want to jinx it… It gives me as Toni Morrison might say “a peace/piece of my mind”.

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Hello. My name is Nancy. I’m a writing addict… and this site is a great way to encourage that! Today I worked through a bit of angst, planned my day, challenged a long-held philosophy AND spent a few paragraphs listening in (and writing for) a new character as she talked about change in her life. Not bad for 1200 words!

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Don’t be like me and write every single for the entire month and then on the last day – forget to write until 12:30am!!! Yes, I missed my Wall of Awesomeness and the Turquoise Horse by less than an hour. :-P

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Just because I’ve hit 500 days doesn’t mean I’m done. I’m just beginning my journey. Let’s see if I can go for 1000 days in a row!

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Unable to complete this month due to internet issues, but will work for next month and will not stop writing.

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More badges for total number of words and for the streak. Please!

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750 words has definitely helped me clear my mind and help me focus on what I need to for the day. I can’t believe I actually hit 500 days in a row! At first, I think the effects were more dramatic, now they are more subtle. But just the fact that I have stuck with the writing this long testifies that if I can do this for 500 days in a row, one day at a time, what else can I do!

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750words has made me realize that I am more disciplined that I thought I could be, transforming the negative chatter in my head into and I can do attitude.
750words allows me, each morning, to sort out my thoughts and I stay focused on the task at hand during the rest of my day, be it writing, gardening, cooking or quilting. It is a wonderful tool that has helped me recover and reclaim the love for writing and the commitment to my work.
Thanks!

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I have always considered myself a writer within, waiting for my big chance to write my novel, which would be based loosely on pieces of my semi interesting life. But a cool career, a complicated family life, and ever increasing international life, has allowed my procrastination habits to keep me from writing. All the while believing that one of these days, when life settles down, I will write.

But then, life settled down in a big bad way, almost coming to an end, with an accident and complications. I was down for months, and slow for many months more. And during the ensuing recovery, I realized that I couldn’t write then either.

Oh, what a poser I am. I only love to talk about writing, learn about writing, read what writers write. But write? I do nothing of the kind. Well, it was this self talk that sent me to my shelf of writing books, remembering Morning Pages, and then finding 750 Words. I tried it for awhile this summer, when I was at our home in the states, where I had a reliable internet connection and could plan my time, more or less. It was hard to get a streak going what with going to visit my family in the woods where internet was not set up for visitors and crazy busy visits from family where everyone comes at once because its only once a year we can do this now that we’re overseas.

Using 750 Words reminded me why I like to talk about writing, because I really do love to write, and I just need permission to do so, from myself. Writing my daily 750 words is like 20 minutes of yoga. Helps make the whole day go better. (but I don’t have a yoga habit either).

By mid-august, I had a multi-week writing streak going, and back to Asia I went, stopping off in Tokyo for a few days and then on to Shanghai. Where everything was going to be hard for awhile.

But, before I left the states, I signed up to be a Monthly Coffee Patron so I knew I would be back. A little trick I played on myself, as I know my issues. Here I am, back for more. Thank you, 750 Words.

My blog: http://tokyomurrays.typepad.com/

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I love this site, and last time I fell off at 82 days. One more badge could have really made a difference (smile). Well I’m back again. It’s only day 10 but it feels like I’m on to something beautiful… Thanks.

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I’ve loved having this site to motivate me to write every single day for 75 days. But I blew it last yesterday. Ironically, I spent the day writing for my copywriting client, so I can’t say I wasn’t writing. Ah, if only I could go back in time and…

Well, as promised, I’ve contributed like I said I would if I failed on the September challenge. But instead, I’ve become a patron, because I really believe I wouldn’t be writing every day if this site didn’t exist! :)

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My experience with a Monthly Challenge inspired me to begin using 750words.com with my college freshmen writing courses. This semester I’m requiring students to use the site and giving them credit for how often they write. It gets them writing, they can writing about whatever they wish, and I don’t have to give low grades to dying grandmothers. Further, the fact that each day simply counts as a day forces them to space out their entries. The “follow” feature allows me to see that they have written on a day and how long it took (so as to discourage cut and paste bombs) but the students are secure in knowing I can’t see what they’re writing.

I look forward to seeing how this idea pans out. I’ll be sure to report back in December.

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I have the daily reminder set to come every morning at 6am, but if I visit the site from any computer that isn’t my usual one, the email reminder resets and I don’t receive it anymore until I actually remember to go back myself and re-check the boxes to start getting it again. The newsletter box also gets unchecked if I sign in from a computer that isn’t my usual. I don’t know why this happens, but that’s why my cup goes to vote for this feature.

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750 words really and truly motivates me to write. Writing here does not just come “when inspiration strikes me”, it comes every day, or else I break your streak and that just isn’t fun. And since I write more, I am at least slightly more inspired. And I love that. I love being able to look at my “total words written” and go WOW! I almost never write that much. 3 pages a day is a new high for me, and I’m not sure I could do it without 750. I admit, once I break my streak I am more likely to blow off 750 words even more, but if I start writing, I commit to it. There has not been a day where I start writing and don’t get to 750. It’s less “oh yeah I wrote a page, that’s good when it comes to me!” now, and more “gotta be 750 or nothing.” Maybe I should at least try to squeeze in any words at all, even if I don’t get to 750, but in any case, this has gotten me to write a lot more than anything else. And for that, I gladly donated $4, so that I and others like me can write and keep on writing.

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Morning pages…

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I absolutely love 750 Words. I started using the site over a year ago on a whim when I stumbled across it aimlessly browsing the web, and have been amazed by how it helps me to clear my mind just by putting my thoughts on (digital) paper. Sometimes there are things in my head I would never know were there otherwise, and I find it hugely beneficial to see them there on the screen! Many, many thanks for a wonderful site.

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I get really frustrated with the daily statistics page. I write about a really upbeat day and it tells me that I am upset – or I mention the price of one item and it tells me that my main concern is money. I know – I know – it doesn’t matter – but I want to get hold of the screen sometimes and shake it. Still – it makes me take a look back at what I have written to make sure that I am not portraying emotions that I don’t even know I am feeling. And I get a kick out of it when the site manages to pick out from my words what I am really feeling.

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Occasionally, just for fun, I challenge myself to make a poem out the the words that are “most frequently used” — it’s a hilarious challenge that sometimes turns out in amazing ways. It would be great, if anyone else wanted to try it, if we had a place to share these odd poems.

Thank you, Buster, for creating this wonderful word sanctuary for us and keeping it running!