Intro
Writing can be tough sometimes, we all know that. Sometimes, just staring at a blank screen or just write for a few hours isn't going to cut it. Sometimes you know what you want to write, but there is no motivation left, and the thought of needing to spend hours on writing leaves us drained.
A few years ago, I discovered something that changed my whole writing process into something more fun. Through NaNoWriMo, I discovered Word Crawls, and it helped me win two years in a row. The thought of needing to write 1667 words every single day dragged me down because it felt like a lot. With the word crawls, I did just a few challenges, and I already had 2000 words before I even knew it.
So, let's dive in to my favorite tool for writing: Word Crawls.
What Are Word Crawls?
Of course, this is the biggest question that needs to be answered if you've never heard of Word Crawls before. Word Crawls are themed writing challenges, written by other members of the writing community. The themes can range from using a simple card deck, to an immersive story of all seven years of Harry Potter. I have even found one that does not only challenge you to write, but also let's you clean the house in the mean time. Everything is broken up into small challenges, with a bit of themed flavor in it.
An example from a Disney themed Word Crawl that you can find here.
The sun is rising over the savanna. The presentation of Simba will start in 10 minutes. You'll have to sprint!
Ten minutes. Just set a timer for ten minutes and start writing to do this challenge. You don't need to worry about the word count or what you write about, it is simply writing for ten minutes.
Examples of challenges within the word crawl
They put a lot of challenges within the word crawls, not just the same ones, which is what makes it even more fun. Some challenges you will be able to find:
- Fifty Headed Hydra: Write 500 words in 5 minutes
- Sprint X amount of words: Write a certain amount of words as fast as you can
- Write X amount of words in X amount of minutes: Pretty self-explanatory, just set a timer and try to write the amount of words that they give you.
- 3 digit challenge: Take the last 3 numbers from your total word count and write that (for example if you have 4578 words, you have to write 578 words etc)
- Write to the nearest thousand: Self explanatory, just write until you are at a thousand mark (e.g 1000, 2000, 3000 etc)
Do remember to not take these challenges too seriously. I have never been able to write 500 words in 5 minutes, I can do 250 if I write really fast, but that is not the point. They are to get you back into the writing spirit. A few of these simple challenges and you will have your goal done before you know it.
My Favorite Word Crawls
Sadly, the website of NaNoWriMo does not exist anymore, but there is a wikkipedia page that has a lot of word crawls saved. You can find it right here. Here are some examples of my favorites or ones that I'd still want to do.
- Cinderella Word Crawl
- Disney Crawl
- Extreme Harry Potter Crawl 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
These are a few I want to get done someday, but there are a lot of other challenges you can do, so feel free to have a look at the list.
Conclusion
While I know Word Crawls are not for everyone, they have been a life saver for me when I want to write or win NaNoWriMo. So... Have you ever done any word crawls, or are you planning on it now that you know of them? What are some of your favorite challenges? Any other writing challenges that keep you motivated? Share it for the others in the comments, we can learn from each other!
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