The Writer's Porch--Friday

How many words a day do you write?

Yesterday, I babbled about Stephen King’s On Writing. His opinion is if you are serious about writing, you will write 2000 words a day. (That’s 10 pages). He writes, “I like to get ten pages a day, which amounts to 2,000 words. That’s 180,000 words over a three month span, a goodish length for a book—something in which the reader can get happily lost, if the tale is done well and stays fresh.” Sounds great, doesn’t it?

My problem with writing 2000 words a day is this—when do you answer email, promote books, do laundry, etc.? Of course, I am assuming that Stephen King has plenty of paid help to do the menial tasks each day. But for those of us who live our lives as struggling artists, then I think the advice of 2000 words a day is flawed.

Honestly, I would be thrilled if I could write 2000 words every other day! But the writing life, the business side, prohibits hours of dedication to the craft. MAYBE someday, but for now I try not to pressure myself into scribbling just to reach a certain word count.

I tend to try to set completion dates for projects. For example, if I need to write a chapter I will give myself a two-week deadline. I might not work on it every day, but I will have it done by my own personal deadline. This way I have the flexibility without the stress. This works for me. What works for you?

Keep the Heart-Print Faith,

Susanne