Do you really need to write every day? - Page 2

AlexGrama · 02-16-2012, 12:44 PM

Good to know.

William F · 02-16-2012, 04:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlexGrama

I guess you have enough time to spare, don't you?

All righty then.

AlexGrama · 02-16-2012, 05:25 PM

You just quote the most awesome actor.

sphinxkarado · 02-17-2012, 04:18 PM

There are days when I just like to take my mind out for a walk, so to speak. This is where we commune with the Angels, or, our muse. I find that these are most productive...I will have a novel in process, a screenplay or a short-film project juggling...Walking the mind helps.

AlexGrama · 02-17-2012, 04:43 PM

You lost my interest and your self-esteem at : "Angels". Come on...

frahse · 02-20-2012, 09:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlexGrama

You lost my interest and your self-esteem at : "Angels". Come on...

You may not like the idea of an "Angel" mental construct, but it is no different from sitting in the park, a giant library, or being at the shore and using the ambiance to inspire you. Likewise a whip wielding boss may get the job done. If it works, it is "good!"

AlexGrama · 02-22-2012, 06:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frahse

You may not like the idea of an "Angel" mental construct, but it is no different from sitting in the park, a giant library, or being at the shore and using the ambiance to inspire you. Likewise a whip wielding boss may get the job done. If it works, it is "good!"

We shall meet on the bridge of Khazad-Dum.

davidwfleming · 02-27-2012, 08:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sphinxkarado

There are days when I just like to take my mind out for a walk, so to speak. This is where we commune with the Angels, or, our muse. I find that these are most productive...I will have a novel in process, a screenplay or a short-film project juggling...Walking the mind helps.

I find that exercise such as jogging or lifting weights helps me come up with new ideas. I've always felt that writers of today have been wrongly led to believe that writing a certain amount of words will make one magically into a writer. I think this belief was unfortunately set in motion by Ray Bradbury and his famous "million words of unpublishable prose".

So now, everywhere we look, there are writers pumping out prose. And in writing circles I've seen people submitting stories with the same mistakes each week. It's not enough to just write every day. Writers have to constantly push the envelope of what they are capable of. [Like not ending on a preposition or using a sentence fragment

]

frahse · 02-28-2012, 03:17 PM

Off hand, I can't remember the quote, but the essence of the meaning goes like this:

~~ I am filled/consumed with life ... It overflows me ~~

Be involved, do a lot of things, go a lot of places but take time to reflect.

Don't be a "one trick pony."

Deidre Blue · 03-08-2012, 06:11 PM

I really really really should write everyday, at least for a little while. I am the world's WORST procrastinator, lol. Funny enough, though, I never used to have a problem writing in a journal daily when I was younger. Maybe I should go back to doing that. Is there any rule on what kind of writing you need to do daily? Does journal writing count as much as working on a manuscript? :-/

frahse · 03-09-2012, 02:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Deidre Blue

I really really really should write everyday, at least for a little while. I am the world's WORST procrastinator, lol. Funny enough, though, I never used to have a problem writing in a journal daily when I was younger. Maybe I should go back to doing that. Is there any rule on what kind of writing you need to do daily? Does journal writing count as much as working on a manuscript? :-/

If I might make a suggestion,

in your journal, ALSO write about the things you would like to say in a story, in a book, or an article, and the goals you have for your writing, and your very dreams.

The best of luck to you.

WordsWithDani · 03-11-2012, 05:16 AM

I've always Word open and whenever I have the inspiration I type something down. On the flip side, however, if I just finished a project or it's a holiday or something, I just go "that's it, not getting writing done today''. If you force it, it's going to be bad.

morriss003 · 03-15-2012, 05:15 PM

I could write every day, but I don't. For one thing, I am retired and I don't need to. I have other things going on in my life and sometimes those are more important.

I never really suffer from writers block, just a lack of desire to write that day. However, when I have decided to bear down and write, one of the easiest ways to get started is to set a goal for a number of words. I use 20 words. As I am writing the 20 words, I almost always find myself adding to those words. Sometimes this results in hundreds more words, sometimes thousands of more words.

I often start by editing the stuff that I recently wrote, but I don't worry about that, because I usually make the work better. I often get started on a work by writing late at night. Gradually, I begin writing sooner and sooner in the day. When I reach the point that I am writing in the morning, I know that I am getting very serious about that work.

Herbie Jackson · 03-15-2012, 08:48 PM

Simple answer is that you don't have to write every day.
For me writing should come from you when it wants to, not because you think you have to.
I have read enough over the years to tell the difference between a good book and a career writer.

gmw · 03-15-2012, 09:36 PM

I may not write every day, I still have to earn a living and it seems unlikely I will do that from writing even if I eventually get published, but I think about writing every day. Sometimes I think about the novels I am writing; sometimes I write about some event that's affected me; sometimes I get ideas for what I would like to write; sometimes I think about the mechanics of writing; and sometimes - when I want to get depressed - I read about trying to get published. (I still like pbooks and would very much like to get traditionally published - that seems almost like a dirty secret on this forum, hence the small font. )

One of the things that I wrote to myself when thinking about the mechanics of writing was that it was a self-fulfilling thing: that to write was to always write, but to not-write was to never write. It may just be my nature, but it seemed to me that if I put my writing up on the shelf for too long that it would stay up on the shelf and nothing more would happen. It's become a compulsion for me now, and while I now sleep a whole lot less than I used to, it's the way I feed my compulsion.

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02-16-2012, 12:44 PM	#16
AlexGrama Writer Posts: 275 Karma: 345042 Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: UK Device: Kindle Paperwhite, Nexus 7	Good to know.

02-16-2012, 05:25 PM	#18
AlexGrama Writer Posts: 275 Karma: 345042 Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: UK Device: Kindle Paperwhite, Nexus 7	You just quote the most awesome actor.

02-17-2012, 04:18 PM	#19
sphinxkarado Junior Member Posts: 5 Karma: 527100 Join Date: Feb 2012 Device: none	There are days when I just like to take my mind out for a walk, so to speak. This is where we commune with the Angels, or, our muse. I find that these are most productive...I will have a novel in process, a screenplay or a short-film project juggling...Walking the mind helps.

02-17-2012, 04:43 PM	#20
AlexGrama Writer Posts: 275 Karma: 345042 Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: UK Device: Kindle Paperwhite, Nexus 7	You lost my interest and your self-esteem at : "Angels". Come on...

02-28-2012, 03:17 PM	#24
frahse occasional author Posts: 2,315 Karma: 2064403292 Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Wandering God's glorious hills, valleys and plains. Device: A Franklin BI (before Internet) was the first. I still have it.	Off hand, I can't remember the quote, but the essence of the meaning goes like this: ~~ I am filled/consumed with life ... It overflows me ~~ Be involved, do a lot of things, go a lot of places but take time to reflect. Don't be a "one trick pony."

03-08-2012, 06:11 PM	#25
Deidre Blue caffeine freak Posts: 8 Karma: 368274 Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Dark Side of the Moon Device: Sony Pocket Reader	I really really really should write everyday, at least for a little while. I am the world's WORST procrastinator, lol. Funny enough, though, I never used to have a problem writing in a journal daily when I was younger. Maybe I should go back to doing that. Is there any rule on what kind of writing you need to do daily? Does journal writing count as much as working on a manuscript? :-/

03-11-2012, 05:16 AM	#27
WordsWithDani EatSunflowerSeedsEveryday Posts: 6 Karma: 59906 Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: The Netherlands Device: Kindle Fire	I've always Word open and whenever I have the inspiration I type something down. On the flip side, however, if I just finished a project or it's a holiday or something, I just go "that's it, not getting writing done today''. If you force it, it's going to be bad.

03-15-2012, 05:15 PM	#28
morriss003 Evangelist Posts: 438 Karma: 3409790 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Maui Device: kindle	I could write every day, but I don't. For one thing, I am retired and I don't need to. I have other things going on in my life and sometimes those are more important. I never really suffer from writers block, just a lack of desire to write that day. However, when I have decided to bear down and write, one of the easiest ways to get started is to set a goal for a number of words. I use 20 words. As I am writing the 20 words, I almost always find myself adding to those words. Sometimes this results in hundreds more words, sometimes thousands of more words. I often start by editing the stuff that I recently wrote, but I don't worry about that, because I usually make the work better. I often get started on a work by writing late at night. Gradually, I begin writing sooner and sooner in the day. When I reach the point that I am writing in the morning, I know that I am getting very serious about that work.

03-15-2012, 08:48 PM	#29
Herbie Jackson Member Posts: 11 Karma: 573752 Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Lincolnshire Device: kindle PC	Simple answer is that you don't have to write every day. For me writing should come from you when it wants to, not because you think you have to. I have read enough over the years to tell the difference between a good book and a career writer.

03-15-2012, 09:36 PM	#30
gmw cacoethes scribendi Posts: 5,818 Karma: 137770742 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Australia Device: Kobo Aura One & H2Ov2, Sony PRS-650	I may not write every day, I still have to earn a living and it seems unlikely I will do that from writing even if I eventually get published, but I think about writing every day. Sometimes I think about the novels I am writing; sometimes I write about some event that's affected me; sometimes I get ideas for what I would like to write; sometimes I think about the mechanics of writing; and sometimes - when I want to get depressed - I read about trying to get published. (I still like pbooks and would very much like to get traditionally published - that seems almost like a dirty secret on this forum, hence the small font. ) One of the things that I wrote to myself when thinking about the mechanics of writing was that it was a self-fulfilling thing: that to write was to always write, but to not-write was to never write. It may just be my nature, but it seemed to me that if I put my writing up on the shelf for too long that it would stay up on the shelf and nothing more would happen. It's become a compulsion for me now, and while I now sleep a whole lot less than I used to, it's the way I feed my compulsion.