Writing Innings

WHAT THIS GAME IS ALL ABOUT

It's no secret that people tend to procrastinate writing. That's why there exist quite a few apps to gamify writing, where users are presented with a comprehensive collection of their writing statistics, like word count, words typed per minute, longest writing streaks, and so on. And gamification has been a real boon for the procrastinating mind.

But personally, I didn't find these writing statistics motivating enough because they seemed to state the obvious. How much does a word count of 300 really mean? This was when I decided to map my writing process onto another marathon-ish event - playing a cricket innings. In cricket, statistics are important, and it's easy to get crazy about them.

I had been working on a cricket game, and I decided to modify it for creating my own writing gamification app.

The rules are simple: write at least 10 more words, and you get a single. 30 new words give you three runs. A longer stretch of writing, and you get more value for the shot.

The left panel shows the game area, where a new ball is bowled every 30 seconds. Depending on his new word count, the appropriate number of runs is added to his match stats. It's highly satisfying to see a fast bowler running in, and then playing a shot to him, one which is a result of your own hard work.

The right panel also shows the player's career stats, with a match ending whenever the player closes/refreshes the tab. This further lends the app its motivational aspect. It lets you know if you are the Sachin Tendulkar of writing or the Virat Kohli.