Eighty authors participated in TAA’s six-week Summer 2020 Writing Gym, which was held July 20-August 31. The gym included templates for tracking writing time and developing a six-week workout plan, a TAA Writing Gym-branded writing journal, weekly inspirational emails, 6 on-demand writing classes, several writing stations that allowed participants to target specific writing areas, and a Facebook Group for networking with other gym members.

In a survey sent out after the close of the summer gym, the majority of respondents gave the gym 5 stars, and rated features like the Facebook Group and Writing Classes as Very High Quality or Quality. “I loved the writing gym. It helped me get on track with my writing. The videos and short articles helped me with goal setting, organization, writing tips, etc. I highly recommend participating in the writing gym,” said Leslie Koberna. Most respondents said they averaged 2-4 days per week of writing while participating in the gym. Said Koberna: “Most of the time, I averaged 4 days a week, but the last two weeks I worked 6 days a week on my writing:).”

The majority of respondents said they would sign up for the gym again, and plan to continue using the Time Tracking Template, the Workout Plan, and the Writing Journal beyond the six weeks.

“This is the first time I’ve participated in this process. It was a great introduction to me and helped me see the value and importance of having a scheduled time to write,” said Esperanza De La Vega.

“A key to writing is being organized and using resources. This gym did more than help me write, it helped me get organized, track my efforts and manage my work. That created more mental space to do the actual writing,” said Nicole Dillard.

“The TAA Writing Gym helped me form do-able strategies to write, collaborate, and organize. I finished two manuscripts, said goodbye to two cumbersome projects, collaborated with a partner on another, rewrote some poorly-written assignments, and drafted a chapter outline. I blocked (mostly) dedicated time into my schedule for writing and hope I can continue this practice. I appreciated this series and felt it was helpful. Thank you again,” said Tina Fletcher.

Thank you to all of the gym members who took the time to respond to the survey. We will be using your feedback to improve future writing gyms.