I think I’ve been stressing over writing novels too much lately. Grace Elliot recently did a guest post for gaining readership. One of the things she speaks about is cranking out enough novels to gain a larger audience. Similar thoughts have been on my mind a lot. So much that they were becoming destructive.
Normally, I’m the type of writer that can sit down for an hour and crank out one or two chapters, occasionally three. My speed is nice and the quality often follows, though I make enough mistakes to drive an editor mad. In summary, I can write fast. But I haven’t had that level of speed recently. I lost my passion.
Because I decided that I’d never let writing feel like a job, I decided to take a break. I watched anime, practiced my guitar, and relaxed.
After a week or so, this was really working. I was able to plan Book 3 of my Barcode Series. But I still couldn’t write the chapters quickly. Just yesterday, my wife and I were getting ready to watch a movie–we finally signed up for Netflix–but before she came in the room, something hit me.
I can’t write quickly because something’s wrong with the story. It’s not good enough. Trash it.
The words swooped in on me like Batman. Though I couldn’t imagine letting go of something I had planned for quite some time, the advice was solid. Though I already have two chapters written, I decided that letting it go would be my best bet. I want something fresh that inspires me instead of forcing myself to write like an academic paper.
With this new motivation, the circuits in my brain started tinkering. The new story is nearly complete in my mind and I feel passion burning inside of me again. All this came about because of the break.
Now I know how important it is to relax.
Yay!! I’m glad circuits in your brain have started tinkering. Hoorah!! I wish you more relaxation and amazing enjoyable flowing ideas, so you can continue to hone your gift of being a quick and effective writer. Awesome sauce!