Word Count Tracking Tools

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Word Count Tracking Tools

January 25, 2013 by Carol Benedict

By now I expected to have several posts up, be well on my way to completing my contest submissions, and have the basement cleaned out. None of those things has happened yet and January is almost over. On the positive side, though, I’ve read several books, come up with some blog post topics, and worked on my novel.

For today I have a useful tidbit of information to share with those of you who like tools to keep track of your writing progress. Svenja Liv has 4 free awesome spreadsheet themes for keeping track of your word count goals. Although I’m not experienced with Excel, I was able to download the steampunk spreadsheet template and correctly enter my data with no problem. I also use her site to update my progress bar, which is located in my blog’s sidebar. I fill in my data on her site, then copy and paste it into the widget area of my blog. These tools don’t get the writing done, but they are a visual reminder to me of how far I’ve come, and how far I need to go.

EDIT FEB. 15, 2013 The link to Svenja Liv’s site is broken. Not sure when/if it will be available. If I find another source for tracking tools, I will post it here.

Are you making progress toward the goals you set for yourself? Do you use word count templates or tracking tools that you would recommend?

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Posted in Free Stuff, Miscellaneous, Writing Tips | Tagged free downloads, Goals, spreadsheets, tracking tools, word count, writing, writing tools | 7 Comments

7 Responses

on January 26, 2013 at 1:32 pm | Reply Laura Best

I’m actually quite happy with my present writing goals and I seem to be keeping pace wth them. I’ve never used a word count template or tracking tool, I just write down my count at the end of the day although I’ve never really kept track in the past.It does give a sense of accomplishment at the end of the day.
- on January 26, 2013 at 5:11 pm | Reply Carol Benedict
  
  Laura, you seem to accomplish a lot even without tracking tools. I’m still struggling with meeting my goals, so I’m hoping to improve my working habits by forcing myself to be more accountable. Keeping track on a daily basis will make me focus on my progress–or lack of it.
  
  I’ve been trying to catch up on my favorite blogs but haven’t taken time to comment. Congrats on finishing your second book!
  - on January 26, 2013 at 6:12 pm | Reply Laura Best
    
    Thanks, Carol.
on January 27, 2013 at 2:18 pm | Reply J. M. Strother

Good luck on your novel, Carol.
~jon
- on January 27, 2013 at 6:05 pm | Reply Carol Benedict
  
  Thanks, Jon. It’s going well–just not as quickly as I thought it would.
on January 28, 2013 at 10:26 am | Reply elizabeth

Loving that widget Carol. If that don’t keep you on track I don’t know what will. Good to see you posting again.
- on January 28, 2013 at 4:14 pm | Reply Carol Benedict
  
  Thanks, Elizabeth. I’m glad to be writing again. The widget may not actually help, but it looks pretty!