Comments on: Why We Write http://barbarawklaser.mysterynovelist.com/2004/10/26/why-we-write/ musings, thoughts, and writings of Barbara W. Klaser Fri, 05 Sep 2008 21:56:13 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=1.5.3-beta1 Comment on Why We Write by: Marie Bernhart http://barbarawklaser.mysterynovelist.com/2004/10/26/why-we-write/#comment-2997 Fri, 05 May 2006 19:28:49 +0000 http://barbarawklaser.mysterynovelist.com/2004/10/26/why-we-write/#comment-2997 The important thing is discipline. One day of writing, one day off, etc. The important thing is discipline. One day of writing, one day off, etc.

]]> Comment on Why We Write by: Peter http://barbarawklaser.mysterynovelist.com/2004/10/26/why-we-write/#comment-191 Mon, 15 Nov 2004 14:45:04 +0000 http://barbarawklaser.mysterynovelist.com/2004/10/26/why-we-write/#comment-191 Thank you for sharing your experiences. I think that your marriage analogy is a good one - you need a similar commitment to a novel as to a spouse. I look forward to the day when I can say "today is a writing day". Thank you for sharing your experiences. I think that your marriage analogy is a good one - you need a similar commitment to a novel as to a spouse.

I look forward to the day when I can say “today is a writing day”.

]]> Comment on Why We Write by: Barbara http://barbarawklaser.mysterynovelist.com/2004/10/26/why-we-write/#comment-181 Sun, 14 Nov 2004 20:09:32 +0000 http://barbarawklaser.mysterynovelist.com/2004/10/26/why-we-write/#comment-181 Though I write nearly every day, I don't write fiction every day. I try to schedule four hours a day, four to five days a week for fiction. On a good writing day, in four hours I can generate anywhere from nothing up to 2,500 words. Trust me, most days don't achieve that 2,500 mark, and when they do that's "rough" writing, it's not the finished product, which can take much longer to hone and polish. I also spend time researching, mulling over ideas, plot elements, and so forth. Those activities, while productive, don't produce words, only the potential for them. When I wrote "Today is a writing day," it was an expression of contentment and gratitude for a day I could spend writing fiction if I wished. It's what I love to do, and the freedom of time to do it is a gift. For 27 years, off and on, I managed to fit my writing into evenings after work, weekends, and even some vacations. There were times I gave up in disgust. I've only in the past year had the freedom to spend my weekdays writing. This is due to early retirement from my former career, not because my writing is supporting me. I get discouraged, I get lazy, I get distracted, I find things that are more "fun" to do. I'm often still discouraged by the simple fact that writing fiction doesn't pay. It's taken me five novels--two of them self-published, three of them never published--to come to this conclusion. Writing fiction doesn't pay. But writing fiction is something I love and continue to do. As for sticking with it, an idea for a novel is infatuation. Sometimes it sticks and sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes all we have is a character, setting, or scene, not really enough for a novel. I have a file drawer full of first and second chapters of novels that fizzled out. I don't consider them necessarily failures, since I learned from the writing, and I may even go back one day and finish some of them. I currently have three major projects and several smaller ones in work, though I'm focusing on one at the moment. A good novel idea is like a marriage, which goes through its honeymoon phase, then settles into something slightly less passionate, but still has enough of the right qualities to not only help you stay with it, but to hold your interest by simply being with you day and night. The characters take on a life of their own. They have needs you must fill. <a href="http://shadowsfall.mysterynovelist.com/chapters/shadowsfall1.html"><strong><em>Shadows Fall</em></strong></a> was like that for me. I conceived the idea many years before I started serious work on it. I'd given up on writing, at one point, but eventually realized I couldn't quit until I wrote that book. I consider it my best work so far. Though I write nearly every day, I don’t write fiction every day. I try to schedule four hours a day, four to five days a week for fiction. On a good writing day, in four hours I can generate anywhere from nothing up to 2,500 words. Trust me, most days don’t achieve that 2,500 mark, and when they do that’s “rough” writing, it’s not the finished product, which can take much longer to hone and polish. I also spend time researching, mulling over ideas, plot elements, and so forth. Those activities, while productive, don’t produce words, only the potential for them.

When I wrote “Today is a writing day,” it was an expression of contentment and gratitude for a day I could spend writing fiction if I wished. It’s what I love to do, and the freedom of time to do it is a gift. For 27 years, off and on, I managed to fit my writing into evenings after work, weekends, and even some vacations. There were times I gave up in disgust. I’ve only in the past year had the freedom to spend my weekdays writing. This is due to early retirement from my former career, not because my writing is supporting me.

I get discouraged, I get lazy, I get distracted, I find things that are more “fun” to do. I’m often still discouraged by the simple fact that writing fiction doesn’t pay. It’s taken me five novels–two of them self-published, three of them never published–to come to this conclusion. Writing fiction doesn’t pay. But writing fiction is something I love and continue to do.

As for sticking with it, an idea for a novel is infatuation. Sometimes it sticks and sometimes it doesn’t. Sometimes all we have is a character, setting, or scene, not really enough for a novel. I have a file drawer full of first and second chapters of novels that fizzled out. I don’t consider them necessarily failures, since I learned from the writing, and I may even go back one day and finish some of them. I currently have three major projects and several smaller ones in work, though I’m focusing on one at the moment.

A good novel idea is like a marriage, which goes through its honeymoon phase, then settles into something slightly less passionate, but still has enough of the right qualities to not only help you stay with it, but to hold your interest by simply being with you day and night. The characters take on a life of their own. They have needs you must fill. Shadows Fall was like that for me. I conceived the idea many years before I started serious work on it. I’d given up on writing, at one point, but eventually realized I couldn’t quit until I wrote that book. I consider it my best work so far.

]]> Comment on Why We Write by: Peter http://barbarawklaser.mysterynovelist.com/2004/10/26/why-we-write/#comment-177 Sat, 13 Nov 2004 23:16:35 +0000 http://barbarawklaser.mysterynovelist.com/2004/10/26/why-we-write/#comment-177 I found the phrase "today is a writing day" odd. Isn't almost every day a writing day for you? How often do you sit down and write? For how long? Approximately how many words/pages do you turn out a week? I've found that the most difficult part of writing for me is sticking to it. It's kind of like going to the gym - you start out really enthusiastic, and for the first week or so you make the time for it. However, as time goes on, it becomes harder to stick with. Other things compete for the same time slot, and it always seems like writing time is the first to give. Have you experienced the same? I found the phrase “today is a writing day” odd. Isn’t almost every day a writing day for you? How often do you sit down and write? For how long? Approximately how many words/pages do you turn out a week?

I’ve found that the most difficult part of writing for me is sticking to it. It’s kind of like going to the gym - you start out really enthusiastic, and for the first week or so you make the time for it. However, as time goes on, it becomes harder to stick with. Other things compete for the same time slot, and it always seems like writing time is the first to give. Have you experienced the same?

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