Thirty days to get your book out of your head.
One prompt a day, built for nonfiction. A word goal you set. A tracker that lives in your browser, with no account. At the end you have a habit, a working outline, and real pages of your draft.
- 30 daily prompts
- 0 accounts or emails needed
Show up, write, log it. Then do it again tomorrow.
Most nonfiction books stall for the same reason: the writing never becomes a habit. The challenge fixes the habit first and gives every day a job, so you never sit down wondering what to write.
Pick a start date and a daily goal
500 words a day is a sensible default with a full-time job. Set less if your days are full; the point is to show up every day, not to hit a big number once.
Open the tracker each day
It shows that day's prompt: what to write, why it matters now, and a tip. Write first, then log your words.
Keep the chain going
Missed a day? Pick up with the next prompt. Do not double up. The tracker shows your days and your streak, and nobody else sees them.
Day 30: decide what is next
On day 29 you reverse outline what you wrote. On day 30 you plan the next 30 days, with a clear list of what the draft still needs.
Every day has a job
Week 1: Find the book
Why you are writing it, who it is for, what you promise them, a working outline, and a bank of stories to draw on.
See the prompts → Days 8 to 14Week 2: Build the spine
A first draft of the introduction, then the opening chapters, so the book has a shape you can feel.
See the prompts → Days 15 to 21Week 3: Write the middle
The middle chapters, the client stories, and the chapter you have been putting off.
See the prompts → Days 22 to 30Finish the thirty
More chapters, a draft of the conclusion, a reverse outline of everything so far, and a plan for the next 30 days.
See the prompts →Help for the days it is hard
How to write a book with no experience: where to start, and the first week
Never written a book? For nonfiction you need a subject, a reader and a daily habit, not a writing degree. Where to start, five first-timer mistakes, week one.
Read →Five weekly writing schedules you can copy, for the 30 days and after
Five ready-made weekly writing schedules for busy professionals, with times, places and weekly word totals, plus travel weeks and what changes after day 30.
Read →How long does it take to write a book?
Work it out from your words a day: a table for 30,000 to 60,000-word drafts, chapter deadlines, and the editing time after.
Read →How long should a chapter be?
Words and pages per chapter, what fills a 4,000-word chapter, how many chapters a nonfiction book has, and when a chapter is too short or too long.
Read →How to set a daily word count goal you will actually keep
Set a daily writing goal from two real numbers: the time you have and your measured pace. Includes a pace test, a worked example and a minimum viable day.
Read →How to build a daily writing routine around a full-time job
A practical writing routine for busy professionals: when to write, where, a two-minute start ritual, what to do with your phone and how to track it.
Read →Stuck on your nonfiction draft? Find the real cause, then fix it
Writer's block on a nonfiction book has a specific cause: no clear point, a missing story, the wrong reader or perfectionism. How to tell which, and the fix.
Read →Missed a day (or a week) of writing? Here is how to restart
What to do when you miss a day or a week of your writing challenge: never double up, follow the restart rule, shrink the task and get back to the draft.
Read →A NaNoWriMo alternative for nonfiction: run November as a first-draft month
NaNoWriMo was built for novels. How a nonfiction author can run November as a first-draft month: a goal you can keep, four weekly jobs and a free tracker.
Read →From people who help authors finish books
The First Draft Challenge is made by Scribe Media, a book writing and publishing company in Austin, Texas that has published more than 3,000 books. Scribe sells writing and publishing services. The challenge is for people who want to write their book themselves, and it is free. Read about the challenge.
Common questions
Will I finish my book in 30 days?
Probably not, and that is fine. The challenge is 30 days of writing in a row, which builds the habit and puts a real share of the draft on the page. At 500 words a day, 30 days is about 15,000 words. What you do after day 30 is in the after-the-challenge guide.
Is the challenge free?
Yes. The prompts, the guides and the tracker are free, with no sign-up. Your progress stays in your browser. The challenge is made by Scribe Media, a book writing and publishing company, and it says so.
Do I need an outline before I start?
No. Week 1 builds one with you: your reason for writing, your reader, your promise and a working list of chapters, while you still write every day. If you already have an outline, use week 1 to test it and start drafting sooner. Never written a book before? Read where a first-time author should start.
When can I start?
Any day. The tracker counts from the start date you pick, so there is no group start date to wait for. Many people start on a Monday so the weeks line up with the calendar.
What if I miss a day?
Write the next day's prompt the next day, and do not double up. One missed day does not end the challenge; trying to catch up usually does. Read what to do when you miss a day.