Write nonstop for twenty-four hours? What will emerge?
Prior to this endeavor, the longest duration of time for which I’ve sustained focus on a single composition has been around six hours, probably less, and that experience stands out as a transformational one. I am very eager to write for 24 solid hours.
This Saturday, Dave Roe and I will be taking action according to the following rules and regulations:
Write for 24 hours, by longhand or on a computer.
Write/type at the rate of one letter per second or faster . This is the required minimum rate, not a required mean that would be calculated over the entire 24-hour period.
A 15-minute break after hours three, six, eight, ten, twelve, fourteen, sixteen, and each hour thereafter until hour 24 is reached.
Technically, having breaks means it isn’t truly nonstop, but it’s close enough to count. These 15-minute breaks make it all feel very doable, and add up to 3.5 hours.
Are you interested in learning several strategies for organizing the material produced during a writing marathon? Sign up for a Writing Immersion course. You can get started tomorrow by selecting an on-demand course at the bottom of the page.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Wow to this. You should post selections of what resulted!
Two surprises:
1. Default mode, myth and fable-telling.
2. The first 20 minutes were the most difficult. Hours 2 through 11 flew by.
The day of the marathon was magic: inhabiting the imaginative landscape.