This question always seemed to come up when I was attending writing conferences and workshops. Participants and fellow novice writers like myself directed it to the workshop leaders, published authors. The answers the authors offered were as varied as the authors themselves.
Some stated as Walter Mosley consistently declares that the writer must write everyday for no less than 2 hours. Others, like Chris Abani explain that depending on the genre in which you are crafting stories, the goal of writing every day for any amount of time is perhaps foolhardy.
And then there are those, like one of my MFA advisors at Goddard College, who quite astutely remind us if not make us aware that crafting one’s story or novel does not always include the actual sitting down and typing or writing of the story, but also includes thinking about the story.
Every writer must devote time for thinking about her or his work, and not in generalities, but the specifics of the plot and personalities of the characters. Gail Tsukiyama was the first author I heard make this point.
I’m sure many others adhere to this belief, but it was refreshing for me to hear a published author whom I respected and who was also the teacher of the workshop in which I was participating say that you might not get a chance to write every day, but try to set aside time to think about your novel each day.
Now years later and when having earned my MFA in Creative Writing and one book published, a collection of short stories, I lean on these words. My first novel, The House is due for publication in Fall 2009.
Do I write every day? Yes, but no on my novel, unless that is I am writing the rough draft or I am doing a 1st, 2nd or 3rd re-write, or when I am entering edits and making revisions as directed by my editor.
When working on one of those 4 or 5 tasks, yes, I have to write every day. In fact I want to. My goal when writing a first draft is to write at least 3 to 4 pages. I fear any thing that I write beyond that goal is incredibly horrible. Also I get tired.
I recently read that many seasoned authors, masters at this thing called writing fiction, deliberately do not write an exciting part that enters their mind when they are close to reaching their time limit, say 2 hours a day, or word limit for the day, for instance 1000 words, or their page limit, 3-4.
When nearing their daily goal, the leave off writing what has come to their mind to write. By doing so they amplify the anticipation and eagerness to write the next day.
I believe I will incorporate this as a tactic in my writing when beginning my new novel. Achieving and maintaining an even, steady pace when working towards a goal is not my forte.
Yet the farther I go into this writing life, my process of crafting fiction I am coming to see that writing is not a sprint, rather a marathon. Not only to the best stories come from those writers who adopt the mentality of marathon runners.
These writers who approach writing like a marathon I believe experience a greater amount of joy and in the end leave a substantive body of work, stories and novels they have written as their legacy.
What is your writing discipline?
How much thought do you give to your stories and novels?