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Freedom, or It's All About The Writing, Part 2
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Photo by duane_j courtesy of morguefile.com
Last week, in It's All About the Writing, Pt 1, I talked about some common writing advice given to aspiring authors, and answered a couple of questions that new writers often have. The first had to do with where to begin? Answer: at the beginning. The second, how? Answer: It doesn’t matter.
These questions and answers seem so common sense, but I can tell you, from personal experience and from lurking on writers’ loops, that many a newbie writer wastes time trying to divine the perfect responses to these very queries. By answering these and a few more questions, I hope to free some new writers up to do what’s most important: write.
So let’s continue. The next thing I’d like to address is the notion of having a writing schedule. Many writers purport the need for daily writing. They say, “Real writers write every day.” I say, “Phooey!”
Don’t get caught up in the “write every day” mantra. This notion is about developing discipline within the craft more than anything, although some might argue that a daily writing schedule somehow marks a purist, a true writer as opposed to an unskilled journeyman or dabbling imposter.
Truthfully, some writers need more discipline than others. If you are a full-time writer, then writing is your day job, and you should put in a full day’s work. If you’re writing part-time, as are many new writers, you may not have a “write every day” life.
I don’t. After struggling with this for a few years, I’ve finally made my peace with it.
Write when you can, but be deliberate about writing more often than not. If you can only write on weekends or every other Wednesday, then discipline in that vein. In between, think about your characters and plot, and scribble notes to yourself so you don’t lose any great ideas that pop up. When you sit down to write, as we hear in church, redeem the time. Make it count. Avoid distractions, and give yourself over fully to the writing process. It’s about priorities. If writing is important to you, then write.
What are your writing goals and how productively do you write? If you’re writing part-time and trying to become a full-time writer, you will need to write a lot. The more you write, the more you will have to sell. Not everything will find a publishing home, and it’s a numbers game, at least in part. Do you require many revisions before your writing is ready for other eyes? If so, you may need to write more frequently in order to produce as the desired volume of salable work.
What I’m really trying to convey here is that your writing career is your own. It’s not about comparing what you do to what anyone else does. The one thing I will say about writing more frequently, and daily is as good as it gets, is that the more you write, the better a writer you will become.
Now let’s address that oft quoted piece of writing wisdom, BICFOK, which translates to “butt in chair, fingers on keyboard”. It also touches on the writing schedule, but I’d like to use this phrase to examine the question of what tools a writer needs? Again, the pothole before you is huge. Don’t fall in and get trapped.
The latest, greatest newfangled electronic device is not required. One can write an entire novel longhand on pads of paper if that works best.
You can recite an entire novel into a voice recorder. You can scribble it on the back of napkins and Post-its. You can employ the top-selling writing software available. The point is to get the story out of your head and on to somewhere that it can be preserved and maybe eventually read.
The last thing a new writer might ask is, “Where do writers physically write? Do I need a preset writing space, an office?” Writers write anywhere. Write in an office. Write at the beach. Write sitting on a park bench. Write in the passenger seat of your car while the spouse races down the highway at breakneck speed, and your kids have an all-out brawl in the back seat. Write wherever you are inspired, and you have the tools or creativity to capture your words.
Again, these things may seem like common sense, but sometimes it’s good to hear the common sense thing said out loud. I hope new writers see that writing is a very flexible world. For some, this will be quite liberating. For others, I do understand, so much freedom might make it more intimidating, and even scary. Don’t let it. Take a deep breath, pick up a pen or turn on a computer, and allow the stories to flow.
Next, I’ll share a few pieces of writing advice that I think are particularly good for new writers.
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