The problem with having a new release (or two, in my case) is that it’s hard to concentrate on other things. I’m working on a short story this week, and trying to soak in the spirit of Rilke, Rumi, and Borges – clearing my mind of other projects that have been vying for my time. Poetry cleans the palate of my mind. Everyone needs a reset button. Sometimes just waking up and seeing a brand new day in front of you is enough.
Holly Lisle sent out her newsletter the other day, and there was this gem, something I’ve been trying to do as well (and finding it quite useful):
I’m doing a consistent 250-500 words five nights a week. If you’ve been with me for a while, you’ve discovered that my usual novel pace is around 1500 words per day, and that I have on more occasions than I care to remember run at 3000 words per day—the sort of speed that makes a whole lot of writers think “I could never do that.”
Thing is, you don’t have to.
I’m already over 20,000 words just doing my casual amble. And I’m having a wonderful time with the writing.
I realized late last week that writing THIS way, with consistent small word counts, is the perfect way for folks who have never finished a book before to discover that they can.
And because I’m in this for the very long haul (I estimate DTD will run around 250,000 words in first draft and may expand to 300,000 words) I’m going to be the ideal pace rabbit for writers who need a bit of a boost to sit down and write regularly, but who look at the real grind of regular high word counts and the high pressure that goes with them and shudder.
It’s like Bill Murray in What About Bob?: “Baby step to four o’clock. Baby step to four o’clock.”
So, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to baby step my way to four o’clock, as well—and discover what kinds of words the day will bring.