I’m just now getting in a routine after reading Pressfield’s “The War of Art” and getting on a night shift routine. I’ve written and completed more short stories in the past 3 months than I have in the past 3 years. Reading Pressfield I’m like, “oh shit, this IS what it feels like to write.”
2 90 minute sessions and only 2 90 minute sessions in my days off tend to generate 1-2 k words of varying quality.
My problem know is figuring out how much to edit and when to just move on.
That's great, George! Sometimes having a shorter writing window makes you more productive. Victor LaValle said he wrote The Changeling in 1-hour chunks, while swapping parenting duties with his wife for their newborn.
Somedays I edit more and some days I write more. I just try to make sure I move forward a little each day. It's easy to get lost in editing labyrinths.
I started out with 60 minutes. But I wake up at about 3pm even on my days off. I don’t write until midnight and can take my 2 year old a good 4-5 hours. Everything you’re saying here rings true but I’m coming at it from a perspective of someone who hasn’t been published (or has a token publication... but in a now pro-market).
My goal for this year is to get more rejection slips than any other year. I know I’ll be publishable, eventually, once I work out 2nd draft issues and figure out how to effectively engage with my particular voice.. which is in utero.
I look forward to following your content. I check your publication history and you’ve published at a lot of magazines I’m submitting to (Beneath Ceaseless Skies is about to get hit with a story called “Harbolt” whose genre I can’t really define).
Cal Newport says your “deep” work maxes out at about 4 hours per day, diminishing returns after that. 2 90 minute sessions only on my days off is actually a bit ambitious at this point but if I don’t let it creep out longer, I don’t feel the fomo of social, etc.
I agree completely. Having written three books and about 200 papers on a wide range of subjects, I agree that establishing a routine is of the utmost importance.
However, just for the hell of it, I programmed my computer to count words as I wrote my last book (1996). I was both amazed and amused to find at the end that the final version contained only a little more tha 10% of the words I had actually written.
**this combined with Cal Newport’s “Deep Work” is really helping me.
Thanks for the recommendation. I found another book of Cal Newport here: http://www.stafforini.com/docs/Newport%20-%20So%20good%20they%20can't%20ignore%20you.pdf
I’m just now getting in a routine after reading Pressfield’s “The War of Art” and getting on a night shift routine. I’ve written and completed more short stories in the past 3 months than I have in the past 3 years. Reading Pressfield I’m like, “oh shit, this IS what it feels like to write.”
2 90 minute sessions and only 2 90 minute sessions in my days off tend to generate 1-2 k words of varying quality.
My problem know is figuring out how much to edit and when to just move on.
That's great, George! Sometimes having a shorter writing window makes you more productive. Victor LaValle said he wrote The Changeling in 1-hour chunks, while swapping parenting duties with his wife for their newborn.
Somedays I edit more and some days I write more. I just try to make sure I move forward a little each day. It's easy to get lost in editing labyrinths.
I started out with 60 minutes. But I wake up at about 3pm even on my days off. I don’t write until midnight and can take my 2 year old a good 4-5 hours. Everything you’re saying here rings true but I’m coming at it from a perspective of someone who hasn’t been published (or has a token publication... but in a now pro-market).
My goal for this year is to get more rejection slips than any other year. I know I’ll be publishable, eventually, once I work out 2nd draft issues and figure out how to effectively engage with my particular voice.. which is in utero.
I look forward to following your content. I check your publication history and you’ve published at a lot of magazines I’m submitting to (Beneath Ceaseless Skies is about to get hit with a story called “Harbolt” whose genre I can’t really define).
Cal Newport says your “deep” work maxes out at about 4 hours per day, diminishing returns after that. 2 90 minute sessions only on my days off is actually a bit ambitious at this point but if I don’t let it creep out longer, I don’t feel the fomo of social, etc.
I consistently trade “now” and know” even though I know the difference.
I agree completely. Having written three books and about 200 papers on a wide range of subjects, I agree that establishing a routine is of the utmost importance.
However, just for the hell of it, I programmed my computer to count words as I wrote my last book (1996). I was both amazed and amused to find at the end that the final version contained only a little more tha 10% of the words I had actually written.
Thanks again.