How many people have you met who’ve said that they intend on writing a book in their lifetime? Storytelling is innate in our human nature; everyone with a pulse has something they’re excited to share. Acting on that desire is the difficult part.
How many people do you know who have a regular writing schedule? I would venture to guess that you would give a significantly smaller number in response to this question than the first. How many people do you know who have finished writing the first draft of a novel? Unless you have connections in the industry, you can probably count them on one hand.
If everyone wants to write a novel, why have so few of us done it? Well, writing takes time and willpower. And having effort to spare on personal endeavors is a high privilege. If you’re working 40 hours a week, keeping up with housework, regularly exercising, and maintaining a social life, is it even possible to find the time to write? The answer is yes, and I’ll show you how.
Even if you don’t have so many responsibilities, writing a book is hard. When you write, you bare your soul. Your thoughts move from your brain, down your arms, into the pen, and onto paper. What if people think that those thoughts are silly? What if you make an awful job of it? The written word feels more permanent than the spoken one, so mustn’t you make sure each one is perfect? The answer is no, and I’ll show you why.
Get serious about finishing your novel.
Over a month ago, I wrote an article containing tips for fledgling novelists. In that piece, I concerned myself with sharing information on how to improve in the craft. However, there’s no more surefire way to improve than by writing. In this piece, I intend purely on increasing your writing output.
The more you write, the more you separate yourself from the “I’ll eventually write a book” majority. Okay, but this is much easier said than done. Where do you find the time and willpower to write?
Think of writing as going to the gym. When you finally get that gym membership, you’re feeling stoked. You always wanted to have a six-pack and massive biceps, and now, you’re making it happen. You have an amazing session, maybe two, maybe nine. But around week three, you start to taper off. The allure of doing thirty minutes on the elliptical and crunches before a full day of work diminishes.
What are your options? You can stop going to the gym, or you can continue to go despite the fact that you’re not feeling inspired.
This is exactly how your writing practice will feel. No matter what, you’re going to have periods of time where you just aren’t feeling it. You may feel great while writing the first 30k words of your novel, but now you have 50k more to go, and you’re losing steam. Here is where habit and persistence come into play. When you hit that wall, you have to keep going. You can’t sit around and wait for inspiration to strike again. Because when it does, it will probably come in the form of a new story. So you’ll scrap the manuscript you have going, and you’ll start something new that you never finish.
You need to finish a manuscript. In my experience, finishing my first (horrible) book was the biggest aid to my growth as a writer.
Find the time to write consistently.
But what if you don’t have the time to write every morning, even if you possess the stick-to-itiveness? That’s okay. You’re a busy person. But I’m absolutely certain that with some restructuring, you can find at least some time to write. Maybe not every day, but at least weekly. What if you cut out your two-hour TV binge session on Sunday? Can you, instead of spending thirty minutes on your phone every night before bed, spend that time writing? What if you frontload your chores, so you have a chunk of time at the end of the week?
The trick here is that any amount of time is enough to write a book, as long as you’re consistent. Let’s do some math. Obviously, writing isn’t always as dry and calculable as this, but bear with me. Say you take my advice, and you find two hours at the end of every week. In those two hours, you average 500 words/hour. So you write 1000 words a week.
A year from now, you will have a 52k-word novel.
“A whole year to finish my novel?” you might ask, exasperated. “That’s way too long!” Well, if you can’t find more time (or write faster), that’s how long it will take. So start now. Otherwise, this time next year, you’ll have exactly as much as you had this time last year. Zip.
Writing faster isn’t a bad option. You can increase your average amount of words per hour by brainstorming before your writing sessions. If you have some rote tasks to complete during the week, use that time to think about your story. Say these plotting sessions increase your writing output to 1000 words/hour. Now, you can finish your book in six months.
But don’t sweat the imperfections.
Time isn’t always the issue. Sometimes, it’s the mental struggle. The feeling that your words won’t be good enough. That your book is progressing poorly. The dark night of the soul.
Remember this: editing a page full of words is a lot easier than editing a blank one.
If you finish your first draft a year from now, pop a bottle of champagne and celebrate. Then, a few months later, reread it. At that point, you can confront how awful it is. But all that work wasn’t for naught. Now, you have a broken story on the page. That’s a whole lot better than having a perfect story in your head. You can fix a broken story on paper. You can’t share a perfect story if you never articulate it.
If you can find a little time to write, use it to the fullest. If you’re holding back from writing because you want everything to be perfect, trust in the revision process. Your story will never be perfect. But it can be written. Your actions decide whether or not your novel ever makes it to paper.
The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago. The second best time is now.
– AJG
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