Tuesday, October 19, 2010

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Techie Tuesday: 750words.com

I consider myself a low-maintenance gal.  I would say I am easy to please when it comes to demands that I make.  But there are a few things that make my day a lot better.  750words.com is one of those things.

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A friend recommended Julia Cameron’s The Artist's Way a few years ago to me.  Cameron suggests using morning pages, which involves writing 3 pages of stream-of-consciousness prose, so that your day can be more productive.  There are no rules to the type of writing it must include.  It can be as mundane as the details of everyday life, or it can be the most beautiful poem you’ve ever created.  You can use it for prayer.  There are really no rules for the morning pages.  You can read more about them here

I began writing my morning pages in a notebook, pouring out my thoughts onto 3 single-spaced college-ruled pages a day as quickly as possible. I thought my hand would fall off after those 3 pages.  Apparently, I should have bought a smaller notebook.  It took me nearly an hour the first day. I got a little faster through the first week, but my penmanship was sloppy, my hand wasn’t feeling any better, and the kids were impatient.  I jumped ship a little after 2 weeks, and my morning rendezvous with my morning pages came to an end.

Surfing around on Twitter several weeks ago, I read a tweet that mentioned morning pages and 750words.com.  I checked it out, and renewed my dedication to the ritual that same day. I’ve been hooked ever since.

The creator of the site, Buster Benson, created a tool to allow people to write their morning pages online in a secure manner, without too many bells and whistles to distract them from the task.  Three pages of typed prose is approximately 750 words, hence the name.

The best part about it is that I can type so much faster than I can write. I can reach my 3 pages usually in 15 minutes, depending on my thoughts and interruptions. 

The site features some customization, exporting and searching days, and motivational online “badges” to help keep you on the wagon.  The only missing piece right now is universal mobile access, but I believe that will come in the future.  (I wrecked all my streaks last month because I went on vacation and couldn’t save the pages I’d written on my pda to the site.)

The site is free, but accepts donations from “patrons” (those who want to help Buster cover the cost of maintaining the site fees he must pay monthly by donating $4 a month).

If I can accomplish writing my 750 words while drinking my vanilla coffee in the mornings, the rest of my day feels much better.  Apparently, countless other people feel the same way, as Benson had to switch servers today because of the increased traffic the site was receiving. 

Thanks, Buster Benson, for making my morning pages an enjoyable daily ritual.

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