Tag: word count

It’s Done

Jon

At the end 2020, I set a goal to write two novels in 2021. As of yesterday, I’m halfway there. Now, to be clear, I finished the rough draft. That means I have at least one revision before getting it to my developmental editor/ wife, and then at least one revision after that based on her notes, and then a proofread after that. There’s no publishing contract or anything like that.

That said, the raw act of creation is finished. Now it’s time to refine.

I wrote an average of just over two thousand words a day over thirty-eight days. That’s a fair amount of words. I know authors that push out a lot more in a day, but I also know a number that create far fewer words. I’m pretty content with that output, particularly since it’s Lent.

See, I’m a pastor in my day job, and the time between Ash Wednesday (February 17 this year) and Easter (April 4 this year) are literally twice as busy as normal. I purposely decided to attempt writing the rough draft in Lent, figuring that if I could write a rough draft then, well, I could probably write a rough draft anytime!

Now, how did I do it? How could I write so much, create so much, in such a busy time?

Continue reading “It’s Done” →

A Writer Without Words

Jon

Between vertigo and breaking a molar in half, I’ve hit a few roadblocks in working on yon novel. It’s interesting, though, when pain helps and when it hinders.

See, I suffer from depression. It paralyzes me when it hits. I can’t get out of bed. I can’t deal with people. Any kind of social interaction drains me. My hollow heart swallows any emotion; only desperation claws its way out of that shaft.

Yet, when I’m feeling down, that’s when I often do some of my best writing. I spill that desperation onto the page. Black feelings become dark jottings become anxiety-ridden fictions.

Look, depression sucks. I don’t recommend you look into renting space in the depression apartments. But at least for me, I’ve been able to harness those dark times, even while combating them through self-care and medication.

But for about the last week, I’ve been able to do little-to-no writing. Why? Oh, vertigo. Continue reading “A Writer Without Words” →

Going on a Sprint

Jon

Sometimes you just need more words.

About five nights a week I’m able to set aside about an hour to write on average. And an hour of concentrated writing often nets me between 1000 and 1500 words. That’s not a terrible number of words, really.

But if I’m really trying to write, if I’m trying to produce things that people will pay me for, I need to up that word count dramatically. I’ve been attempting to do that by simply writing harder. Sometimes that works. I can get up to 1800 words in an hour.

But if I’m going to be tackling a novel in November (which is my plan), I’m going to need a lot more. Continue reading “Going on a Sprint” →

MOAR WRITING!

Jon

When I was in grade school, I wanted to be a writer. That desire has never left me. And I’ve succeeded. I’m a writer!

What makes a person a writer?

Writers write. That’s it. If I’m writing, I’ve succeeded as far as becoming a writer.

Now, becoming a full-time writer, where my writing supports me and my family? That’s another matter! I ain’t there yet by any means! Yes, I’ve gotten some “paying gigs,” but not enough to cover little things like food and rent.

I’ve started doing a lot more research into what it will take to go full-time, and I’ve learned a lot.

One of the big lessons is: You need to write a lot. Some people push out a novel every month. Now, I don’t think I have the ability to do that with quality, until/unless I am no longer a minister. Even then I’m dubious I could produce anything worth reading at that pace.

However, even if the goal is significantly less than a novel a month – say, a novel a quarter or twice a year – I still need to up my game. I need to be producing many more words on the page. Continue reading “MOAR WRITING!” →