Writing Under Deadline
I'm not a journalist, but a technical writer, but it doesn't matter. We still write on deadline. Sometimes unrealistic deadlines, and others, very realistic but we procrastinate. It's the nature of the career. And it is very much like writing fiction. What other career can you write over 14 books in one calendar year?
It's true! Really. Have you read a user manual lately? The page count ranges from near 80 pages to over 350. In my career they've tended to be near the 100 page range. Add up those numbers and I am producing--officially--1400 pages of text. At least. And what better way to prep myself for being a novelist. That and the deadlines of course.
I've learned from many non-day-job-writer type friends that the motivation to continue a book they have started is hard. Or the fact that they have to rewrite a book at all is discouraging. Or, God Forbid, they get edits back and realize the entire last half of the book is crap. For me, well, I've been managing that life for years. I sit at a corporate desk routinely to write when I don't want to, under a tight deadline, and under the scrutiny of at least 30 people reading, reviewing, and correcting my text.
Does all of this sting? Sure. Does it hack away at my motivation. Of course. But do I let it stop me from moving forward? Hell no. And THAT is what it has taught me about my fiction novel writing.
Stories can always be fixed, tweaked, leveraged, reworked, and revised. Not everyone is going to like your voice/angle/style. And, most importantly, you really don't need motivation to get started, continue, or finish. Just do it.
It's true! Really. Have you read a user manual lately? The page count ranges from near 80 pages to over 350. In my career they've tended to be near the 100 page range. Add up those numbers and I am producing--officially--1400 pages of text. At least. And what better way to prep myself for being a novelist. That and the deadlines of course.
I've learned from many non-day-job-writer type friends that the motivation to continue a book they have started is hard. Or the fact that they have to rewrite a book at all is discouraging. Or, God Forbid, they get edits back and realize the entire last half of the book is crap. For me, well, I've been managing that life for years. I sit at a corporate desk routinely to write when I don't want to, under a tight deadline, and under the scrutiny of at least 30 people reading, reviewing, and correcting my text.
Does all of this sting? Sure. Does it hack away at my motivation. Of course. But do I let it stop me from moving forward? Hell no. And THAT is what it has taught me about my fiction novel writing.
Stories can always be fixed, tweaked, leveraged, reworked, and revised. Not everyone is going to like your voice/angle/style. And, most importantly, you really don't need motivation to get started, continue, or finish. Just do it.
Labels: writing
