Ask the Author: Mike O'Brien
Answered Questions (2)
Mike O'Brien
No, only writer’s groups and poetry reading.
Mike O'Brien
I just sit down and pour it out, like this... I just write whatever comes into my head, as quickly as I can, without bothering too much about grammar, puncuation or spelling. I just write about anything. I like to give myself a target of at least one thousand words. I go back and edit later, I just work to that target.
Yes most of it is crap. More than likely, but I just keep going, exercising that writing muscle in my brain.. Most of it may well be crap, but every now and then there will are little gems. Sweet corn in the shit, I call them. Those little nuggets of goodness can be expanded on later, but I don't worry about that when I'm aim for that thousand words.
Actually, I started with aiming for three hundred words and gradually realised that I needed to do more, it became easier, almost necessary to write more. And eventually a thousand became my comfortable number. I make sure that I do a thousand a day, but when I'm in the zone, I allow myself to do as many as I want. Sometimes in two or three sittings.
It's like training to run. You just do it. You may not get far at first, you may not do it with any style, it might hurt, but you set yourself a target, and make sure that you do it, and eventually, it becomes very natural.
Yes most of it is crap. More than likely, but I just keep going, exercising that writing muscle in my brain.. Most of it may well be crap, but every now and then there will are little gems. Sweet corn in the shit, I call them. Those little nuggets of goodness can be expanded on later, but I don't worry about that when I'm aim for that thousand words.
Actually, I started with aiming for three hundred words and gradually realised that I needed to do more, it became easier, almost necessary to write more. And eventually a thousand became my comfortable number. I make sure that I do a thousand a day, but when I'm in the zone, I allow myself to do as many as I want. Sometimes in two or three sittings.
It's like training to run. You just do it. You may not get far at first, you may not do it with any style, it might hurt, but you set yourself a target, and make sure that you do it, and eventually, it becomes very natural.
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