Word Counts and Lifestyles and Advice, Oh My!

2 days in and 10K words breached, let's make one thing clear: I literally have no other life.

My life consists of simple choices and sacrifices.  I do not have a 9-5. I do raise my nephews while living with a dad that is cool with me pursuing my dreams.  He has seen my work and has faith in it. I am expected to earn my keep, but I ultimately have a lot of choices and no deadlines that I don't impose on myself.  I am a slave driver and my muse only encourages it. I have the ability to dedicate all of my waking hours to writing or illustrating, my two big projects this month.

That being said, I have a different view to add to the mix.

You're probably getting all kinds of terrific advice on technical writing, drafting, time management and the like.  I've blogged such things before, so I'll try to be brief.  If you know me, you know it's a hard 'try.'

To start, ditch the technical for now.  First drafts are for ideas in your own voice, true enough, so you shouldn't be so worried about grammar and wording. Can't ditch the technical because you're hopelessly anal-retentive?  Me too!  And that bullshit about adding in ideas later when you missed them the first time around? Strike that too.  If you really can't make your goals AND be technical then it's good advice.  You can be corrective while drafting.  In fact, if i'm hung up on a scene and really stumped on what to do, I love to go back and revise my draft a little.  I've tried to just revise the whole dastardly first draft in one fell swoop and it's a cringe. Now I benefit from doing a little editing while I write.  I still do that broad sweep to make a second draft, but leaving a trail of notes is a no-go for me.

Take a walk.  Get lost. I don't typically have a choice here.  Every day I take my nephews to and from school and every walk ends up yielding a breakthrough in any uncertainty I'm facing where I stopped writing. It's a thing, so try it. It's particularly lucky that I have a reason to do it because I am not someone who can just walk for the benefit of walking.  Make excuses.  Lie to yourself.  Invent some stupidly convincing reason to do it.  It will save you time if you free your mind and if you're hugging your computers like I am, it's the forced break you need to not keel over and give those eyeballs a break.  Even if you're pressed for time, circle your block or something.  I guarantee a 5 minute detour is much better than a 15 minute squirm of uncertainty.

Type left handed.  Okay, now I'm just fucking with you.  Type with both hands or take a typing class.  You can really slam a word count if you just increase typing speed. A lot of people overlook this one because everybody does it, right? Negative.  I have a friend who still uses paper and pen.  It's probably Captain Obvious Sez advice to you, but there are still some writers intimidated by internet challenges due to having some unique challenges.  Give them a hand.  Or two.  Friends don't let friends one-finger type with two fully working hands.

Don't compete.  I think we all get a little caught up in word count from time to time.  Some of us thrive in competition.  I do not. I am writing a novel with the intent to share my art.  Sharing is caring and if I'm in a rush to look amazing, I'm probably making my writing pay the price. If you're not a competer, be a completer. And yes, my spellchecker says competer isn't a word, but it's fine wine with rhyme time, so it can kick rocks.

B-b-b-b-but you're going to burn out if you write too much.  Psh.  You know you, so don't buy into that.  I've been writing like a demon over the past three years in particular and I have never burnt out after a 15-17K weekend binge. Maybe because I don't feel like I could be doing something better, or my friends will hate me, or I won't feed my fish, or a million other scenarios that tend to freak people out.  This IS better.  My friends are my biggest fans. My fish have an auto-feeder. I'm not a million other people. Counter your excuses and embrace who you are as a writer.  If you do tend to burn out when you're asking yourself for too much, stop that. You don't get a failure badge or a walk of shame. If 300 words is all you got each day, pour your passion in and be proud of that. I guarantee I can not keep pounding out 5K every day. I do have other priorities. I'm not worried about it and you shouldn't be either.  Writing is only what you want it to be.

Feed the beast.  For me, inspiration comes from gaming, not from reading books.  Inspiration comes from articles and stumbled-on posts and the delightful weirdness I have passed on to my nephews. I don't have blocks-- I have cups to fill.  If writing is your only cup, then start a different story.  Blog.  They say not to watch your cursor blink. Okay, that sucks, but maybe watch your cursor blink.  It's not a source of dread for everyone.  Sometimes I like to listen to the clock on wall tick.  There's something about steady white noise that doesn't feel like the dreaded passage of time for me.  Sometimes it lulls me into the same trance that strikes inspirational gold on those walks I take.

Last of all, good luck.  Luck is that factor we can't control but just wish it to be on our side.  Ask your muse to bring some with her/him. And maybe some beer, wine, tea, or coffee while they're at it.

Keep writing!