Preloading
Oprah's Book Club

The Writer's Contract

writing
Photo: Thinkstock
A. Contractor is required to do the following:

Write one (1) hour per day five (5) days per week.
Send an email to Mentor each day by 5:30 p.m. confirming that the daily milestone has been achieved.

B. During the hour of daily writing the contractor may:

Write fiction.
Write in his/her journal.
Sit there and think.

C. During the hour of daily writing the contractor may not:

Check email.
Surf the web.
Watch TV.
Answer the phone.
Do any work related to his/her day job.
Write a list of things to do.
Do anything on the current list of things to do.
Get out of the chair.
Do anything besides items 1, 2 and 3 in section B above. NO EXCEPTIONS.

D. Other Items

Contractor may select five (5) days grace period, AKA vacation, during which time he/she will not have to complete the hour of daily writing. When sending the daily email to the Mentor on these days, Contractor must write “Vacation (1)” meaning that the contractor has selected this day as one of his/her five (5) optional vacation days.

At the end of the Contract Period, Contractor will receive a report card grading the Contractor’s performance during the Contract Period. This grade will be based primarily on attendance, but other factors may weigh in as per the Mentor’s overall notion of the Contractor’s progress.

Contractor is encouraged to submit written items for publication, but is not required to do so. Administrative tasks such as preparing cover letters, addressing envelopes, researching literary magazines, tracking manuscripts, etc. are not to be included as part of the hour of daily writing.

Get the writer's contract here

More on Writing
Published 06/05/2012
You May Also Like
Which Fictional Character Would You Love to Meet?
What Oprah Knows for Sure About Reading Together
Oprah's Book Club
2 New Books Reveal Another Side of Langston Hughes
Oprah's Book Club
How Marisa Acocella Marchetto Thought Up Ann Tenna

View All Newsletters

Related Articles
How to Have Your Best Year Yet
The Habits of Highly Organized People
Martha Beck: How to Tap into the Right Side of Your Brain
Financial Resolutions
Things Every Woman Should Write Down
The One Thing Creative People Always Make Time For