rewards

I've come to find that with life's challenges, sometimes a little reward is a necessary and wonderful thing. Whether it be a night out with friends after finishing that paper, a new book or CD for good grades (back in high school and before), a nice dinner when that job is finished and you get that promotion, etc.

So this evening, and probably for the following evenings, I'm instigating a reward system. A few of you know that I'm trying to finish the first draft of my novel before I leave for vacation, so I can use that time to do a thorough editing of it. But I'd really, really like to have the first draft complete.

However...things aren't quite going that way. Earlier this afternoon I spent much of my time checking email or whatnot and only writing a couple of words before getting re-distracted. The challenge: write at least another 1,000 words before I call it a night.

In my refrigerator, I have a bag of holiday M&Ms.* The reward: An M&M for every 100 words.

And you know what? In the last half hour, I've written over 500 words. I counted out about 10 M&Ms and have them sitting here next to me for relatively easy access. Of course I could steal another one, but then I'd have 9 left and that's not my goal.

Hmmmm...how many M&Ms, I mean words, do I want tomorrow evening?

*Yes, my M&Ms are in the refrigerator. I like my chocolate cold.