by Kathleen Nolan
You’ve probably heard of “hot girl summer” on social media, but we’re officially declaring summer 2022 Hot Writer Summer! Hot Writer Summer is about working toward your writing goals while taking care of yourself and keeping your love for writing alive. It’s about making time to write and work on our passion projects. It’s about finding supportive communities of fellow writers who inspire and motivate you. It’s about making plans to achieve our writing goals— big and small!
Here are some tips and tricks to make the most of your Hot Writer Summer:
- Set achievable short-term writing goals to make way for big ones!
Make goals for yourself that make sense with your schedule and writing
preferences. You know what your strengths and weaknesses are— use that knowledge to your advantage! For example, if you’re a night owl, don’t try to force yourself to get up at 6 a.m. to write 2,000 words! This will only cause frustration and burnout. Set goals that you believe you can achieve. You can still challenge yourself without adding too much to your plate.
If you have a full-time job outside of writing, don’t try to force yourself to write for four hours on weekdays. Try setting aside one or two hours a day that you can focus on writing, and dedicate more time to it on weekends. If your goal is to turn writing from a hobby into a career, check out freelance content writing jobs or volunteer as a submission reader for a literary magazine. Taking small steps will help you get a better pulse on the literary community, and what you want your role to look like.
- Find a “happy place” to write.
Whether it’s a coffee shop, a library, your bedroom, or outside in the fresh air,
find a place that sparks both your creativity and your focus. Writing in a comfortable environment can do wonders for your work!
- Find a writing buddy or group!
Don’t be afraid to share your work, even if you don’t think it’s “ready.” We all
have to start somewhere! One of the best ways to gauge your progress is to have a
fresh set of eyes look at your work. You know your work backwards and forwards. You’ve read it so many times that it can be difficult to know what works for your audience and what doesn’t.
We know that this is much easier said than done— sharing your writing with a stranger is intimidating, and sometimes, sharing it with a friend is even more daunting. Whether it’s someone you’re close with or someone you’ve never met, find someone you trust to give you honest and constructive feedback.
Not to plug ourselves, but we’re plugging ourselves. Paged is designed to help you discover the supportive writing community that you need! If you’re looking for a writing group, a dedicated writing buddy, or a one-time beta reader, all you have to do is start a discussion or reach out to another writer on Paged.
- Write a little bit every day.
Even if it’s only one page. Even if you think it’s terrible. Even if you can’t think of
anything to write. Put something down on paper or a Google doc or a napkin. Sometimes you have to write a lot of crap before you find that perfect paragraph or sentence or phrase. Consistency is key!
- Submit, submit, submit!
Even if your email inbox is full of rejections, keep trying. The right publication is out there! Paged can help you with that too. Our Publications and Submission Opportunities search features are designed to show you the best places to send your writing. Use Paged’s expansive database of publications, contests, fellowships, grants, and more to find the best home for your work.
Whether you’re submitting to 10 places or 100, we’ve got you covered. If you’re curious about how to use the Submission opportunities search, check out a tutorial HERE!
- Make time for life outside of writing!
It’s summer! Make sure you take care of yourself. As much as you love writing,
make sure you spend some time each day away from your desk. Get a breath of
fresh air, call up a friend, work out, take a nap— whatever you like to do to reset
your brain!
We may be a month into Hot Writer Summer, but there is still plenty of time to make your goals a reality. If you have any helpful tips that you think we missed, share them on the Paged app so that other writers can have a Hot Writer Summer too! Happy writing!