Last month, we heard from over a dozen authors who shared with us their writing routines. Or lack thereof. If there is one clear take-away, it is that there is no one right way to write. Perhaps not even one right way for each person.
When I started to realize that I identified with both the structured writers and the less structured ones, I began to ask myself some hard questions. Am I really as structured in writing as I think I am? If I were, wouldn’t I get more work done? If I tried more unstructured writing methods, would I be more successful?
The advice “learn what works for you” has never seemed more apropos. Because the advice I’ve been giving myself is not really working.
I’m a logical thinker in many ways. I worked in various areas of accounting and finance for close to fifteen years. I love playing with numbers, planning trips, and working with budgets – just for fun. So when I started to get serious about writing, I applied the same techniques to writing that brought me success in accounting. While sometimes everything aligns so that I’m producing massive amounts of work for a while, it doesn’t last. I finish books, but not with a routine or regularity that I can build a writing career on. At least, not according to conventional wisdom.
Which says to me that my routine is not working. More specifically, the way I think about routines and how to choose one for writing is not working.
Today is the first day of class in my Master of Arts in Creative Writing degree. (Yay!) A very good day to re-think routines. I’m going to go back over last month’s guest blogs and highlight the areas that made me stop and think, “Yes! I get that!” Many of those moments popped up when I was reading about the less-structured writers. A bit of a shocker really.
Maybe my creative brain is trying to tell me that the structure I’m trying to impose on my writing is simply not a good fit. Maybe if I listen carefully, I will hear my brain suggesting some new ideas. I can’t wait to see how this year turns out compared to what I expected when I made my 2010 goals.
What about you? Did you have any ah-ha moments while reading any of the Author Crush blogs? Have you found that the routine you find successful in other areas of your life is or is not successful in your writing life?
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Welcome to the chaotic side of creativity, Kitty! (Care to join us, Shonna?)
As I alluded to on Monday, my biggest ah-ha moments were when I realized I COULD trust myself to find the best routine that worked for ME, no matter how non-traditional, illogical and chaotic it appeared. I just had to stop comparing my way of working with some unrealistic ideal of what is “right” and do what works.
Kitty, I think you and I are very similar when it comes to setting our writing routines and, like you, the authors who had more relaxed routines really struck me. So much, in fact, that I decided to relax my routines as well. For the past few weeks, instead of forcing myself to write when I didn’t feel like it or pushing myself to reach a certain word count, I write when I feel ready to write and for only as long as I feel good doing it. I’m not writing nearly as much as I was but I have noticed that when I do write, the quality of the writing is so much better. Before, it was like stringing words together but now, with the lack of pressure, I have time to really get into the mind of the characters and I think the emotion of the story is coming through so much better.
Thank you all so much for hosting such an inspiring group of authors last month! I love this blog! You three are amazing.
As with Stephanie, I think I learned that I need to trust what works for me. That’s not to say I can’t or shouldn’t take from what works for others. I just shouldn’t expect a “magic bullet”, the sole process that I can mimic and achieve success.
Daily word counts don’t work for me. Neither do weekly ones. I’m working now on developing more of a discipline around writing a minimum number of times per week, given the hustle and bustle of my life.
I got “a-ha”s from a number of last month’s pieces. I think it would be smart to do as you’re doing and to write them all down in one place and see what they shape into, and how they might influence my writing process.
Stephanie, I get scared when you say things like that! LOL! But it does look like I’m going to be trying some new things that are more like you.
Stormy, I totally hear you! I feel better about my writing and want to do more of it when it sounds “good” to me, and just forcing words onto a page doesn’t fuel the joy that leads to “good” writing. For me, at least. You and I will have to stay in touch about this during the rest of the year.
Patricia, you and I will have to see if we come up with some of the same ideas as we go through last month’s pieces.
Good to hear from you all! I’m off to do a TON of homework from my first day of class!!
It’ll be interesting to see if school makes you MORE structured. Something about having a deadline!
[...] I like reminding myself how to keep my spirits up like in An Antidote to Discouragement. I got a lot out of writing through my thoughts and feelings on expectations versus reality in Satisfaction Guaranteed. And after a great Author Crush Month, I spent some time trying to figure out if I had A Routine That Doesn’t Fit. [...]
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