WHAT CAN KEEP YOU WRITING?

{This image was only used on the 1940 edition of FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS.

It was common (and allowed by the copyright office) to change things such as the preface, foreword, and dust jacket when renewing a book.

If the old book cover was not renewed along with the book, it fell into the public domain.}

“It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.”
― Ernest Hemingway

WHAT CAN KEEP YOU WRITING EVERY DAY

“A bus station is where a bus stops. A train station is where a train stops. On my desk, I have a work station….” ― William Faulkner

You are a writer because you write – not because you want to write.

An Olympic champion trains every day.  If you wish the Gold Medal of being published, you must be like that Olympian champion in dedication and zeal.

Factors such as writer's block or hectic schedules can make it difficult for you to find time to write every day.

More than building discipline, writing every day does …

1) It Boosts Your Creativity.

Exercising your creative muscle will allow it to be stronger than ever before.  Ideas will pop up from out of nowhere. Anything from a Yahoo news item to a picture will inspire you.

2) It Increases Your Confidence.

Running from a fear only gives it a greater hold on you.  Good writers do not rely on inspiration to help them overcome these fears. They rely on themselves.

By digging whether the earth is soft or it is stone is the way the hole gets dug.

3) It enables you to experiment with your writing ability.

Stretch your writing muscles by trying something different. If your time is limited, try writing a poem or a song.

4) It Helps Overcome Perfectionism.

Episodes of "poor writing" are not wasted moments. Instead, the very fact that you are writing anything at all is a reminder that you are willing to write even when your creativity is at ebb tide.

You are writing, even if what you write will remain hidden on your hard drive. Don't let perfectionism get in the way of building writing muscles!

5) It Combats Writer's Block.

I've heard many tips on beating writer's block, and here are a few:

Read articles on writing.

     I read one article on writing every day, usually on the Internet. I then write down my own version of the article, my thoughts on it, or an email to the writer about how the post helped me.

Freewrite.

     Just sit down and write anything that comes to mind. Describe the room you are in, the building, the clothes you are wearing, today's weather, or that perfect comeback you thought of three hours too late.

A LAST WORD FROM THE MASTER: NEIL GAIMAN –

http://www.neilgaiman.com/p/FAQs/Advice_to_Authors

How does one get published? How do you do it? You do it.

You write.

You finish what you write.

Sooner or later, if you don't give up and you have some measurable amount of ability or talent or luck, you get published.

On the whole, anything that gets you writing and keeps you writing is a good thing. Anything that stops you writing is a bad thing. If you find your writers group stopping you from writing, then drop it.

The other thing I'd suggest is Use The Web.

Use it for anything you can - writers groups, feedback, networking, finding out how things work, getting published. It exists: take advantage of it.

The main rule of writing is that if you do it with enough assurance and confidence, you’re allowed to do whatever you like.

(That may be a rule for life as well as for writing. But it’s definitely true for writing.)

So write your story as it needs to be written. Write it honestly, and tell it as best you can. I'm not sure that there are any other rules. Not ones that matter.