Sunday, November 23, 2008

The weekend . . .

. . . did not - thankfully - stop the words from flowing. Did I spend as much time writing as I should have? Heck, no! Do I ever spend as much time writing as I should? That would be - heck no, again! I write when I write, and do the best that I can.

There was a time - the project I'm currently searching for an agent - when I wrote with a driving obsession. I could think of nothing else except the project. I kept a pad of paper with me in the car. I jotted down notes at stop signs and stop lights. I emailed myself twenty times during the day. I rushed home from work so I could write. I spent virtually all day on Saturday and Sunday writing. I lost weight because I barely ate at night. I neglected my poor partner. I'm surprised our relationship survived the two week period in which I - as Lynn Behler commented - banged out the 50,000 word rough draft. That was probably the best writing experience of my life. I miss that passion, the drive, the all consuming obsession that highlighted the days and nights that - ultimately - led to some of the best writing (at least in my personal opinion) I have ever done, and might ever do.

Oh, what am I saying. I continue to write brilliantly. Sorry, but I'm the only one currently available to pat myself on the back. If I don't have confidence in my writing, how can I expect an agent to have confidence in my writing? I'm not, however, one of those writers (people) who believes I can do no wrong. I can write crap with the best of 'em!!! In fact, I've written my share of crap. It happens!

So, advice for new/experienced writers - write when you write and don't stress about (okay, I know, my recent blog posts don't support this) when you don't write. Not everybody is a "write everyday" writer. Some people (myself included) are "write when you write" writers. I'm just saying . . .

S

2 comments:

Makita Jazzqueen said...

Thanks 4 this post, I really appreciate the advice. = )
That is something I would like to happen to me, to write and write and write, but I still have't gotten the writing fever so far. Well, maybe once, when I wrote down the structure and a bit of my novel...
Congratulations for your work!
Hope the writing doesn't stop! = )

Scott said...

Makita - you're welcome. I once read a bio of an author who stated that she was not one of those "write every day" kind of writers. In fact, she stated that during some weeks of the writing process, she might only write one paragraph per week. Still, she persevered and ended up publishing her first (of many) novels.

Writing every day is for some people Writing every other day is for some people. Writing when the mood strikes me, is how I write. We are all different. We all do things differently. Write when you write, try not to stress when you don't write, and just enjoy the sublime adventure of writing.