Write-ins are events designed to gather people together for dedicated writing time (though of course, people can do other writerly things). Sometimes they are silent events, sometimes there are games - it depends on the mood of the group and the ambitions of the host. Here’s some examples of games you can play!
Word War - A timed competition where writers see who can write the most words within a time limit. Wars can be anywhere from 5 minutes to 30 minutes.
In-Person Tips: Bring a fun, physical timer so everyone can see how much time is left and hear it ring. If you’re using your phone or laptop, turn on the volume just enough that writers can hear, and don’t forget to announce start and stop.
Virtual Tips: If you are on video, start your digital timer, say a YouTube video, and share your screen so everyone is aware of it. For extra fun, consider themed virtual races like those on Online Stopwatch where writers can pick who they think will win. On some text-based platforms like Discord, chatbots can run word wars for you, and will even count results and declare a winner.
Word War Variation - Grow A Garden
For situations where you want to be less competitive, have ranges of words written (or edited) represent items in a garden. For example, after a 10-minute word war people who write 100-200 words plant a rose, 201-300 a lily, and 301-400 a violet. What does that resulting garden look like? This version is easy to adapt to any theme.
Box O’ Doom – A word count challenge tool where writers have to write a random number of words within a certain amount of time, ranging from the whole write-in or a specific word war. Anyone who hits their goal wins!
In-Person Tip: Write a bunch of word counts on paper, popsicle sticks, or something else and stick them in a decorative container. Try to develop different levels of goals - low, med, high - and label them by color or different boxes.
Virtual Tip: Use a random number generator, or build your own via a tool like Perchance. The picking of numbers should be public to encourage community spirit.
Huzzah Balls - Celebratory balls thrown in the air, similar to confetti but less messy. When someone wins a game or meets a goal, they throw the ball into the air with a ‘Huzzah!’. Other authors are encouraged to cheer and celebrate the success. The host should explain the concept and bring something to throw, but it’s up to individual writers to do it.
In-Person Tip: Create something soft to throw. Examples are crumpled up newsbaper balls, covered in tissue paper with streaming ribbons. Stuffed socks with googly eyes. A butterfly plushie.
Virtual Tip: With nothing to throw, have writers shout ‘Huzzah!’ either into the chat or on audio in a call.
Word Crawl - An adventure game that provides writers mini challenges to help make writing fun and break down large goals into smaller ones. Instructions are usually created beforehand and can be shared virtually or via a printout. They can also be unique per write-in, or reused throughout the year. There are a few variations:
Mini Quests: Lacking a storyline, these luck-based crawls use dice rolls or coin flips to determine action.
Full Quests: A series of writing tasks built around a basic storyline, with the author-character’s actions based on luck, how the performed on previous tasks, or that specific tests. Examples are travelling, with writing tasks having to be completed to move on to the next location, or a D&D style quest run by a host at a write-in, with word war winners or collective word counts deciding the next task.
Acknowledgments
This guide was originally adapted from Pomegranate's_Guide_for_Hosting_Write-Ins by samcadams and NewMexicoKid, and further adjusted to include virtual tips by
