“If you write one story, it may be bad; if you write a hundred, you have the odds in your favor.” ~ Edgar Rice Burroughs
Writing Routines
“If you write one story, it may be bad; if you write a hundred, you have the odds in your favor.” ~ Edgar Rice Burroughs
The age-old writing advice: write as often as you can. Where you can. When you can.
I was talking to my local writing group friends the other day and it dawned on me that I write in snatches. At the time, I hadn’t thought much about how and when I write.
But it is important, I realize now, to be aware of this, because then it is possible to improve the routine for a better quantity and quality of writing.
I wake up first thing in the morning and write for ten minutes before I freshen up. Dream journal, whatever.
I write while waiting for a cab I have called. Write while waiting for the pasta to boil. Write a post based on writing prompts.
I do sit down and write an hour or so every once in a while, a few times a week, and usually get an average of 4000 words written a week. So, I have learned not to complain.
I know I haven’t yet made it to the stage of discipline where I sit down and write every single day at a particular place. My favourite writing days are those when I get a lot done in snatches, finish a story, for example, or do a series of writing exercises.
I’m getting a few short stories published in Antologies here and there, but I wonder if my sort of writing routine would be any good for longer stretches of work. Since most of the girls on this blog are novel-writers, prolific ones at that, I’m curious. Is it possible to write a novel in snatches?
How do you write? How often? What is your writing routine?
1 Comment so far
Leave a comment
It’s good you’re able to write in snatches. It makes me think of soldiers who learn to take cat naps whenever someone isn’t shooting at them.
I need a long time to sort of rev up the engines, so in a two hour writing period, half of that will consist of me goofing off. But in a ten hour writing period, only a tenth of that will be goofing off. Hence the longer I can write in one session, the better.
Unfortunately, I seldom have that time anymore. I need to learn to write in snatches.
Tara Maya´s last [type] ..Pirates and Gladiators
[Reply]
By Tara Maya on 07.21.10 12:55 am | Permalink
Leave a comment
Line and paragraph breaks automatic, e-mail address never displayed, HTML allowed:
<a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>