Confucius Say
Everyone is familiar with Aesop's fable about the tortoise and the hare. I tell my kids all the time, (and I actually believe this dad-ism), slow and steady wins the race. I have a million snail jokes that all conclude with basically the same punchline: it does not matter how slowly you go as long as you don't stop. There are several cliches that more or less say the same thing, and I've found that this advice applies universally, in all aspects of life. Hell, it even applies to sex. But since this blog is a writing blog, I'm going to try to keep it limited to that scope.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again, I do not enjoy writing. It is a difficult process for me, and I'm going to go out on a limb and assume that, if it's difficult for me, it's difficult for others as well. Here's the thing, though. Writing a novel is not a race. There isn't a prize for getting to the end first. The only prize is finishing. Which means, all you have to do when you sit down at the computer is inch forward. That's all.
Let me say that again.
All you have to do when you sit down at the computer is inch forward. It doesn't have to be perfect. It doesn't even have to be good. It just has to be. If it's on the page, it can be fixed. If it's in your head and not on the page, it cannot be fixed, it cannot be published, it cannot be read, and it has no power to inspire, to entertain, or to change the world.
Up to this point, this blog post is 275 words long. That's two short paragraphs. Not many words at all. If you write just 275 words per day, you could still take two days off each week and write a 70,000 word novel this year. And in case you didn't know it, writing a novel is a serious accomplishment.
As I tell my children, slow and steady wins the race. If you have never written a novel, and there's a story rattling around in your head, sit down and write. If you're a writer struggling with writer's block, sit down and write. If you don't know if there's a story rattling around in your head, but you've always fancied the life of a writer, sit down and write, and I can tell you by experience, your desire to write will grow the more you do it.
As the cliche states: the journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step. Here's another: the scariest moment is always just before you start. And just in case you can't figure out how to start your novel, try this cliche on for size: it was a dark and stormy night.
That's a terrible opening for a novel, but you can always change it later.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again, I do not enjoy writing. It is a difficult process for me, and I'm going to go out on a limb and assume that, if it's difficult for me, it's difficult for others as well. Here's the thing, though. Writing a novel is not a race. There isn't a prize for getting to the end first. The only prize is finishing. Which means, all you have to do when you sit down at the computer is inch forward. That's all.
Let me say that again.
All you have to do when you sit down at the computer is inch forward. It doesn't have to be perfect. It doesn't even have to be good. It just has to be. If it's on the page, it can be fixed. If it's in your head and not on the page, it cannot be fixed, it cannot be published, it cannot be read, and it has no power to inspire, to entertain, or to change the world.
Up to this point, this blog post is 275 words long. That's two short paragraphs. Not many words at all. If you write just 275 words per day, you could still take two days off each week and write a 70,000 word novel this year. And in case you didn't know it, writing a novel is a serious accomplishment.
As I tell my children, slow and steady wins the race. If you have never written a novel, and there's a story rattling around in your head, sit down and write. If you're a writer struggling with writer's block, sit down and write. If you don't know if there's a story rattling around in your head, but you've always fancied the life of a writer, sit down and write, and I can tell you by experience, your desire to write will grow the more you do it.
As the cliche states: the journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step. Here's another: the scariest moment is always just before you start. And just in case you can't figure out how to start your novel, try this cliche on for size: it was a dark and stormy night.
That's a terrible opening for a novel, but you can always change it later.
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