No doubt some of you are getting ready for NaNoWriMo, aka National Novel Writing Month, an annual challenge beginning November 1 that aims to get writers on the page consistently, producing 50,000 new words in a short month complicated for many by holidays and holiday prep. (More about NaNoWriMo here.) The process uses simple tools — scheduling, tracking, goal-setting, and accountability. Plus, prizes. So through November, my Saturday quotes will focus on some element of process and commitment. You’re on your own for the prizes.

“I still have a writing session every day. It’s another thing that organizes your mind. The coffee goes here. The pad goes here. The notes go here. My writing technique is just: You can’t do anything else. You don’t have to write, but you can’t do anything else. The writing is such an ordeal. That sustains me.”
– Jerry Seinfeld in a 2020 interview with the New York Times, quoted by media coach Dan Blank in his 9/17/21 newsletter