Who Needs Sleep?

"Why do you stay up so late and write?"

I won't tell you who asked me that, but I live with her and she's married to me.  That's the only hint you get.

And it's an excellent question, with multiple answers.  I'll tell you the answer I gave her, but first here are some other valid responses:

• It's fun
  
• When it's working, creating stories is better than reading stories
  
• So I don't forget how to do it
  
• Because it's the only way to keep the voices at bay

All those and more would have had truth to them.  But here's the real answer, and the one I gave her:

"It's my job."

I work in Information Technology.  At best I figure I have forty years left before the technology passes me by, or the robots take over.  Without other marketable skills, where would that leave us?

I have to practice.  I have to improve.  I have to write.

In all seriousness, I love writing.  The goal is to be read, and earn enough that I can tell people "I'm a professional writer," without displaying that nervous facial tick I get when I lie.

And the dream?  To eventually make it my primary (only) source of income, and on my own terms.  (My own terms being that it's my decision and not that of the Robot Masters.  May they function forever.)

Work Ethic

There's something to be said for a work ethic when it comes to writing.  And that something is this, "You need one."

I'm tempted to season this post with tons of quotes from famous authors.  It's late though, and I'm about 150 words shy of my daily word count quota.

(Hmm.  What does it say that I'm blogging about work ethic at midnight, when I haven't finished my work yet?  Nothing I hope.  After all, I'm on a break.)

Sometimes I'm convinced that I'm breaking through the walls of creativity and good storytelling, that I'm arriving.  Other times I'm certain that I'm a hack with no future in writing beyond these self delusions.  Both of these attitudes overcome me several times daily.

The attitude I most need to confront is the first.  And I've found the cure for it is to write.  It's been a lousy weekend for writing.  No excuses here, I simply haven't written as much as I needed to.  When that happens, the negative feelings prevail.

So tonight I finally had a chance to get to work.  The temptation to watch something on Netflix, or read, or even sleep nearly won.  But I'd barely written anything today, and most of that was- never mind what most of it was actually.

So I wrote.  It felt good.  It felt right.  I became convinced that I had broken through the walls.. blah.. blah.. blah.

You get better by writing.  Are my short stories and novels getting better?  I hope so.  I think so.  But they never will if I don't have the work ethic.

So keep writing.

Word Count and Dean Wesley Smith

Dean Wesley Smith's Writing in Public blog fascinates me.

I'd taken to heart the necessity of writing each day.  Also, I'd already figured out the need to simply "write the next line,"  as Dean has said multiple times.

Over the last several weeks I've focused on that.  Travel, work and family have limited my opportunities, but there is never going to be a time when that is not true.  Not unless my career gets to a point where the writing is the only work, and that's years away (if it ever happens.)

Some of my days have included massive (for me) word output.  I figured I was doing much more than I actually was.  Yesterday I decided it was time to take a look at Dean's website.  I've enjoyed his novels in the past, and his advice on writing.  It thrilled me to see the new daily word count feature he is writing.

It settled my internal debate on whether or nor to track my daily count.  I was able to figure out what I'd done for the entire month.  On average- 400 words a day.  That's pretty far away from where I want to be, although it is substantially better than my previous sporadic attempts at writing.

So I'll keep tracking and I'll get the average up.  Thanks Dean.

Here is the link that feature on his website.

http://www.deanwesleysmith.com/?page_id=9659