A Writer's Commitment
I’m turning “Looking for Inspiration” into my quarterly blog. There’s gonna be four themes.
Continuing the theme of blog one, if you’ve got an interesting writing place, email me and tell me about it!
When my friend and I discovered that we were the only people in our now-defunct writing group who actually wanted to get published, we thought about putting out a joint short story collection. So, we decided to do it. We said we wanted to meet every weekend until it was done. After two weeks of not knowing where he was, I received an email from my buddy. He realized that while publishing his work was one of his lifelong goals, he told me that “’unfortunately life got in the way.”
This isn’t a personal attack at all. This guy will always be one of my best friends. However, the attitude that “things may get in the way” is absolutely the wrong fucking approach to the fiction-writing business. Anyone who desires to see their work in print will contend that writing, and the arts in general, aren’t like other businesses. Unfortunately, there are some who feel that the Arts aren’t necessary to society. Wouldn’t it be sad if there were no good books to read?!?! So, until you get good, you may not be able to turn writing into a career. What drives artists is not only our desire to produce work, but the desire to leave impressions on fans. There’s just one way to get your stuff written: establish a good steady daily writing routine!
Ah, Mordecai Richler always mentioned it in interviewers and it sounded wonderful. A good, steady daily writing routine. Where, yes, telephones won’t ring and nobody will persuade you to go shopping! Think about it: life can’t get in the way of writing. Writing must get in the way of life!!!
In the summer, my writing routine was three o’clock to five-thirty every afternoon. I gave myself from two to three to get to a cool writing place. Once three o’clock hit, I knew I had to start writing. I quickly learned an important tip. In the morning I’d review the previous day’s work so I could quickly “pick up” the story once three o’clock came. Wouldn’t you know it, summer developed as it should and I had a good chunk of part one of my novel done.
However, my winter writing routine didn’t inspire me at all. My computer was in my bedroom facing a wall. There was a time when I thought that computers belonged in bedrooms. But walls aren’t inspiring. So, I quickly went to Ikea, bought a corner desk and moved the computer into the living room. I now look out onto the back patio of my apartment. And now I look forward to writing in the winter at home. I still keep the same writing hours, three to six in the afternoon. The one major hurdle to writing on a home computer: MSN Messenger!!! Frig, you gotta turn this thing off. Scenes won’t get written if people keep asking you how your day is. Do a little thinking, you can come up with ways to inspire yourself anywhere!
© seanmillersstories 2007. all rights reserved.
