Today begins my third year of writing and posting one 250-word essay per week. Because each is exactly 250 words long, the math is easy: 2 years x 52 weeks/year x 250 words/week = 26,000 words.*
That adds up to a respectable novella’s-worth of whatever’s on my mind. As I wrote a year ago, when I only had half as many pieces under my belt, each may be a bite-sized appetizer but they add up to a surprisingly robust meal.
As probably one of the few who read all three thick volumes of Mark Twain’s autobiography (honestly a bit of a slog), I appreciated that he structured it as a series of short essays he dictated to his secretary. Some were anecdotes from his life and times, others were reflections on random current affairs that caught his eye. His notion, as he explained in the introduction, was that a reader would get to know him much better that way than they would through a dry recitation of biographical dates and events.
I didn’t set out to do likewise, but it has occurred to me that my 250-word pieces cumulatively serve the same purpose. I try to space out the topics so I don’t post two pieces in a row on comics, or writing, or science, or pop culture, or memoir, or whatever. But sooner or later, everything I know and care about will make an appearance.
It’s an exercise I’d recommend to any writer—or, really, anyone. Thanks for reading!
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* I also did one post promoting the release of my newest book, the Mom’s Cancer Anniversary Edition, but I don’t count those 164 words. Also, footnotes (like this one) don’t count. My house, my rules.
PLEASE SUBSCRIBE! I am sharing these little "250 Words On" essays via Substack, which will email a new one to your In Box every Tuesday morning. Just follow this link and enter your email address. It's free, and I promise to never use your address for evil purposes.
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