A Little Every Day
It’s tough for me to articulate goals at this point of my writing career. Maybe I’d be more successful if I could. A large portion of my writing day and overall success is the grind. I get up and work to complete the little bit I have planned for that day on various projects. In theory, each one is building toward some overall goal. In reality, everything I’m writing is some idea that floated to the top and I thought, that might be cool. Or a publisher told me they were looking for something in particular and offered me money to do it. I decided I was interested enough in their idea, their money, or some balance of the two to go for it and to stick with it. I’m writing a new zombie novella for that reason alone. Not much of a plan, I guess.
Writing IS the plan though. Telling another story is the goal. Sometimes that is the primary reward too, just the act. Even the shitty stories that don’t land the way I want are still an accomplishment. The next one or the one after that will be good. A couple more after that and I’ll accidentally write something great. It happens all the time.
So, my goal, as much as it can be explained in words, is to write a little more today. I’ll tell a little more of the story. My most successful approach at getting a story completed and into the hands of readers is to write a little bit a lot of times. I’ve done it the other way too. I get too close to a deadline and I write a lot a few times in a row. The consistent progress, especially on bigger projects, works better for me though.
Some days, life only gives you time for a little bit of progress in a day. It can happen from full schedules, physical limitations, or any number of other factors between yourself and all the free time you ever wanted. My plan accounts for that though. I’ll use that little bit and sneak my way to a finished novel over and over again.
Here are some things you might be interested in:
The Irony of Dying on Your Birthday
by Jay Wilburn
I wrote this post seven years ago after some research on the most likely days to die. It turns out the odds are against you on your birthday …
“Throwing a Shadow”
by Jay Wilburn
John Orman became the oldest man in the world 61 years ago …
Curse of the Ratman is now unleashed!
For the first time in paperback, Curse of the Ratman is out now from Madness Heart Press. I feel confident in saying this is the greatest story of a rat-filled human skin monster chasing down a cursed family for revenge over broken promises set in the late 1970s ever written. See for yourself! Get it, read it, love it!
Thanks, Everybody
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