The Friends & Members of 750 Words

1 cup

I have been away for a bit but I’ve been paying my dues while I was away…I’m going to use these letters I’ve earned to request that the title font be changed… what happened??

1 cup

I pull some of the data and manually add it to a google spreadsheet to track word counts, time actually written, and stuff like that. There is a ton of amazing stats that 750words provides writers.

I can actually get some of the data using IMPORTXML and IMPORTHTML functions from the shareable page like this https://750words.com/entries/share/8039156

But it would be nice to have it in a table or list format so that it could be pulled automatically to populate my spreadsheets for me.

I’m no programmer, so I don’t know exactly how it would work, but I think just having an easily identifiable info on a list (somewhat like the monthly stats page at https://750words.com/statistics/2018/11) would be amazing.

1 cup

I am a troubled write, I start then I stop and after a time start again… Well, I just started again today and it’s absolutely awesome! I completely forgot how good it actually feels when I write. Being in one of my more depressive streeks at the moment, does not help, but I think and hope I will be able to get myself out of it in time. So I would say if you are currently in a downer, give it a try – just WRITE and see what happens when you do it. It can help to rediscover some amazing things and better coping mechanisms. Let’s all continue to write together! Blessed Be x

4 cups

750 words has been the magical, motivational, and nonjudgmental place that always gets me writing again. thank you.

5 cups

Just want to say Thanks for running the site! I have a lifetime membership but I find writing every day has been so useful to me, I wanted to add a little financial support as well.

1 cup

750 Words has seen me through the end of my teenage years, through leaving home for the first time and through my first full-time job. I owe you many more cups of coffee for the years I’ve been using it (although I might have to start paying for them when aforementioned job starts paying a little more…)

1 cup

Woo hoo! I did NANOWRIMO and wrote a self-help book about porn addiction! Yay! Grateful for this site. Write even when you don’t feel like it.

1 cup

For years and years, I’ve wisted after doing Nanowrimo. I’ve gotten started, and stopped. I’ve given up. Too far behind. Too frustrated trying to write plot.

In the middle of October, I discovered 750words.com. I gave it a try. I got a ten day streak. I started pushing for Cheetah and Hamster.

11/29, I wound up at 50008 words for the month of November, all of it fiction. It’s not ‘a novel’, not remotely; I didn’t try to discipline myself to telling a story in order, but jumped all over writing scenes from various times and perspectives. But it could be a heck of a good start on one.

And I wrote 50,000 words of fiction in the month. (Plus whatever I write 11/30.)

That’s pretty awesome, and it feels good to know I can do it.

And I don’t think I would have without 750words.com

1 cup

What about the idea of… I dunno.. after 1M words, a badge? Or perhaps publishing badges?

1 cup

There is something to be said about the legendary writers. The ones that drank and drugged themselves to death or killed themselves. People idolize them because their lives are romanticized but they would never have needed to medicate or commit suicide if they were somewhat satisfied with their lives. I’m not saying a writer should not have some sense of suffering and struggle, these are the things that good writing is about because it is part and partial of what life is all about. But if you look into these writers’ lives, you’ll find things that aren’t part of the romantic picture the legends and movies tell us. You’ll see people like Thompson who was a prolific writer and participant in the new journalism movement whose life, though portrayed as glamorous, were full of self-depreciation. Thompson was a failed hippie, stuck in his past and unable to take his brand of suffering into the new world. This is unfortunate as Tom Waits once said, “Bad writing is ruining our suffering”…or something like that. With the loss of these types of writers, we lost the works they could have put out, the works that could have changed the landscape of literature. Instead of having more Thompson, Hemingway, et al, to choose from, we have more space on the shelves for Rowling, Sparks, Koontz, et al. I suppose those types of book have their place, but we lack the writers that have something to say and say it instead of wrapping it in wizards and war. Then we have guys like Cornell and Bourdain, cut down in what I think was their prime of their creative existences. Cornell was the quintessential musician and artist. He was constantly evolving and trying out new methods and styles. His music had something to say, something most people could relate to in some sense. And Bourdain. He wasn’t that good of a writer, but he had a vision of representing chefs and the kitchen world in general through books, comics, TV shows, etc. yet also teaching us all something about other cultures, both here and abroad.
I used to want to be one of these types. Drunk, drugged, miserable, staring at a typewriter obsessing over creating the next un-creatable work. Filled with passion and love and suffering and hate. But to what end? It didn’t work, at least not for me. Those that I looked to as muses faded away, the words died, and I threw passion away, burned love at the stake and poured icy water upon hate and suffering. So, what is left? Does a person have any creativity left with these things jettisoned into deep space? You’re damn right they do. I set these feelings aside, embraced a more stoic mindset and stopped looking to people to validate me and be muses, that my mind is free, a muse in and of itself, free of the desire to please another, hate something, wallow in suffering for sufferings sake, and since doing so, I have written more than I have in the past year in just a few months. Varying works that wander all over the literary map. I have explored different techniques and styles and have collected a group of infant children that I will nurture and grow into a family of my own creation in due time. In my time.
I can channel the creative spirits of Hemingway and Thompson and Thoreau and Hawthorne, those taken from us by time or by their own hand. I can learn from them and pass on what they intended for the world through my own works. I may never be as prolific as these, but if you look at the books that have been coming out lately, I don’t have too. What I do have to do is keep writing, even if nothing ever gets published and all I have to show for my work is a pile of rejection letters. What is a rejection letter but proof that someone, even if it was just one person, read the work rejected? Someone read my work! This excites me. Oh, sure, some other people have read some of my work, but by and large they skim over it, give some watery comments and that’s the end of it. No real discussion is had, no real criticism. The passion for good writing is rare. You can’t call yourself a writer if you don’t write and if you don’t read. We have to do both of these things even if we have jobs, families and/or other responsibilities. The world needs writers. It needs us to create and to live and keep creating and keep living. Seven Hundred Fifty words at a time, we can change the world and leave our mark in ink and not blood. Keep writing.

7 cups

750words.com has helped keep me alive. I am in the one month challenge, hit one million words this month on the site, and when so much of life is changing, I have my words and my writing practice for stability and sanity. It’s my rock! I’m intending to write a novel, though I’m happy to just have continued my streak and been able to make and hit what I already have this month. With about 2500 more words then I will make the 50,000 word goal, and it builds confidence and helps me understand the past, create the future, and be with right now better, so it’s good for habit building and neural pathways. Yay for everyone who makes and uses this site. In honor of officially adopting my dog Liv today, who I am writing about a lot, even though she sighs or leaves the room at the sound of this keyboard, which is obscenely loud, here are all my cups of patronage! xo

1 cup

Jo Ann Beard says that it is super important to write every day. When I took her classes I knew she was right but I fought against her advice, to my own detriment. She used to say that even when you don’t want to write you should, and you should just write “me no want to” over and over again until an idea comes to you (she also made it clear that if ALL you wrote was “me no want to”, it was okay, too). I couldn’t get behind the “me no want to” but this site does it for me. I hate to break streaks and I love to earn badges and I love to see my data when the writing is done. This site makes me write every day. It’s my “me no want to” and it works.

7 cups

I think that it should be in particular for things like the hamster badge or cheetah badge, but more of them. Also, there could be badges like 500 pages (assuming you write in Arial 14) etc.

1 cup

This has been the most amazing website ever! It truly is a blessing that I have a safe place to write down my thoughts knowing no one else will be able to see them.

3 cups

Not only does 750 Words help my mental state, and clarifies my thinking, but Kellianne is also a savior of much anguish, as well. I love this site, I love the people who support it, and there aren’t enough words in the English language to express my gratitude! Thank you!!!

2 cups

I have been ill this week and struggling to write a research proposal for my Masters dissertation and in the mixed up days of delirium I missed a day of writing! I was on a 177 day streak and, whilst it’s not as impressive as some of the others’ I’ve seen on here, I was really proud of that. I’m excited to get back on the horse though and try and beat my personal best! This site is amazing and without it I would never have kept writing for 177 days in a row in the first place so thank you so much!

25 cups

So, so Thankful for another year of writing every day on 750 Words! I messed up a streak of over 1300 days, but I was back as soon as I could be, and back at over 60 days in a row again. I don’t know what I would do without having this wonderful page in my life, so many, many thanks for making it possible and keeping everything running smoothly!

1 cup

Another metric indicating the level of distraction during writing.

How many times did another screen get opened?

1 cup

Hey – I’ve been using 750 for a few months now – is there a way to tag your work?
I.e., I’ve been focused on one story for the last few months but feel I need a bit of a break to try something new.

Would be great to be able to search on Tags that you could create.

Thanks.

1 cup

I used to write on 750 Words religiously. It was THE platform to keep me going. I am a researcher and writing scientific articles and books can be difficult to get into when you first sit down to write. Eventually, I felt like freewriting 750 Words every morning before starting work just wasn’t helping. I felt like I needed that time to get into the grind of research and technical writing.

Well, I’m back! I’m back because I’m newly on my own, my day job is steady, and I want to get back into a habit that does help, fiction or nonfiction, in a community of writers that want to encourage each other. Here’s to new beginnings!

5 cups

Those of you participating in National Novel Writing Month, keep writing! Words on the page, day after day. That’s the lesson of 750 Words.

20 cups

I love the simplicity of the current daily pages. No distractions to format, just me and my thoughts landing on the page. If I want to ‘juzz’ a bit of what I’ve written, I take it over to Word and format to my heart’s content.

Letting the words flow onto the page is the goal. While I understand the desire to format our daily pages, it is the concentration on content that makes my daily writing satisfying. Let’s keep things simple.

5 cups

It would feel much safer if the content was encrypted. Perhaps it could be timed in a way that the encryption takes place at midnight, when the text becomes ineditable anyway to enable the graphs, stats etc-features to work. Mobile Site would be great, too. Thanks for providing this great site.
Oh – yes. More badges. That would be awesome.

1 cup

What inspires me here is not so much I have found the ability and habit of spewing out words each day, but the ability to go back and read who I was long ago. In a way getting to know past self and as a uncomfortable introvert of low confidence, I can look back, read as an outsider may, and go, “wow” that was alright! There’s another person inside finally allowed to be free.

Cheers!

1 cup

I would ask for an Android app, but with a better mobile site, we would have viable options while mobile. However, with an app, would we be able to post offline, thus maintaining streaks even when we would be without internet access?

25 cups

I was over 300 days. I was participating in NaNoWriMo and I was on task with my word count to hit 50K by November 30. That ended on Saturday, November 10. Because that’s the day my Daddy died. He was 70. I’m 43. And now… now I have to try to write, because, how else am I going to face this day?

2 cups

So I fell off the streak after my first 111 days, to say I am beyond irritated with myself doesn’t even come close. There’s a but, though and it’s a good one. Normally I would spiral into a slump of despondency and would see no point in carrying on, but I’ve come back today and got right back on it because 750 words has become part of my life and has helped me grow. I now finally, finally get what Joan Didion said about writing to understand what you think. Thanks 750 Words – you’re stars!

1 cup

I am not writing a novel or a great blog post most days. I am just trying to get my thoughts in order. In that way this is the best 5 bucks I spend every month. I take a few minutes a day to make sure my brain is thinking what I want it to think and move onto a great day!

3 cups

750words reminds me that I am a writer. In 4 years of being here, I have yet to write my daily quota for a 30 day streak. I used to feel bad about this. But now I just let my membership be a reminder that this is where my heart belongs – communicating in the written word and other mediums. I work outside the home at a job that is increasing in responsibility and possibly will become a partnership. I have two 20-somethings that aren’t launched and struggling to support themselves. I am also the main caregiver for my fiance (7 nights, 4 days), basically the days I’m not at work. I’m always on the go, moving, doing, with no time to just STOP and SIT at my computer and WRITE. This moment is a rarity because I woke up ahead of my fiance which usually doesn’t happen. Sometimes when the day is done, I might have a few minutes that I can sit down, but I’m so exhausted, I just want my head to hit the pillow. 750 words reminds me that even when I don’t sit down at the keyboard regularly, I AM STILL A WRITER, and I WILL get these words onto paper eventually.