Don't You Know About the Word Count?

How little is too little, how much is too muchness? #amwriting #writerwednesday #amwritingcontent #writerslife

Week 1

For six years, I've been writing this novel. I have had highs and lows, ups and downs, excitement and depletion. The common denominator has always been my fight with the word count.

How do you know when you have written enough on the lesser days versus the better days? They say to take it a day at a time, but surely there comes a point when you should write at least a chapter a day or more.

In darts, you get dartitis; in golf and gymnastics, you get the yips. In writing and in art in general, they call it a block. This is funny because, as Elizabeth Gilbert put it, you don't get a plumber block, do you?

Is there a burnout to suffer from many good days in a row? Is there a time when we stop counting altogether?

Well… I don't have the faintest idea to be Frank and Marie, darling!

After weeks of looking at my prologue during my fourth draft—Christ, it's probably fifth draft edits at this stage—I have finally reached 395 out of 2000 words. I have high hopes for this prologue, and for some reason, every morning, afternoon, and night, I would flip open the laptop, read it, and stare at it like my five-year-old stares at me when I'm telling her off—completely blank. There ain't nothing going through there. We are only waiting for the noise to stop so we can return to doing whatever we want!

And how long in just one day did it take me to make 2000 words in a prologue by writing 395 today? All day, yup. The whole day (taking away that I had a waxing appointment and a last-minute shop to do for a wedding this weekend). Within less than ten minutes, I have been able to muster up the exact words for this blog, and I'm not even halfway through yet.

But this has been a process for a few years now. I'll go like the clappers, sometimes even burn out, and have a few days of drooling over the keyboard; not so much of a social media scroll to use as an excuse for procrastination. I will sit and stare at the screen all day and night, pretending like I'm doing something when Shane comes home from work and start on the dishes and sticks on a couple of washes while I 'write' (he's fully aware by the way, so he's not being taken advantage of… too much, eek).

Some say they have no choice but to write. Day in and day out, write until they are pink in the thumbs and numb in the head. Sometimes, not in that order! Stephen King is said to keep going as if working nine to five hours daily. Write with the door closed for the first draft and open for the second, he would say, or something to that effect. Some writers refuse to write, hell, they even refuse to plot, until the creativity genius decides to show up, which I think is wrong, only if you want to be a successful author (then again, who am I to judge with a minuscule longlist achievement after six years, eh?).

The only answer I have that's been any good to me is to grit through the gruel of the blockages. Writing block is just another psychological defect of any marathon, including art. In darts, you get dartitis; in golf and gymnastics, you get the yips. In writing and art in general, they call it a block. This is funny because, as Elizabeth Gilbert put it, you don't get a plumber block, do you? You get the plumber to fix the block (I added that part in for cleverness).

Still, I feel the only formula that has ever gotten consistency out of me are little exercises (Note: we'll be going into more detail on writer's block next week as your word count may be stemming from it. But without too much overwhelm, we'll categorise them into sub-sections of each other; there'll be a lot of overlap for easier registration). Here's how I have been dealing with word count woes:

Start Small:

A line or a paragraph to start you off is perfectly fine. This is your first chapter, most likely, and that will change umpteen times before it is ready, so don't push too hard. Even if you want to experiment with the hook and/or first paragraph to reel the reader in, by all means, do. It is just the beginning, so allow yourself to naturally fall into a flow for the first week or two. You have plots, outlines, and research right now, so small steps like this are helpful.

Keep a Journal:

You'd be surprised by how much this will help. I have often only written twenty words and then bitched to myself in my journals. But, again, this is the beginning, and beginnings are full of beautiful ideas and notions of the life you are about to create! So, use your time to imagine where you are going to take the story tomorrow. It's always lovely to look back and see the progress reports, too.

Write at the Same Time Daily:

Break to tell you all I have just reached 902 words just now… on that note…

This will be challenging for the artsy and creative to the depths of your soul-type writers and artists. I fully want to see a finished novel that isnt going to take up years of your life (I beg you, listen to the experience here). It shouldn't matter what time of the day you need the solitude to write as long as you get it. I am not stopping you from writing about something you feel in the moment, but you need to set your days of habit in motion. You may be like myself and an early riser or a night owl. But I implore you, don't wait for that creative genius to come and say hello. Twillng to be days when you show up, and they don't want to. As Elizabeth Gilbert said, maybe your genius is kind of lame! Do not rely on your muse. Rely on your work ethic. Remember you are in the first draft stages here. You need to build stamina for the days you do not want to write.

Dont Focus on the Count:

Your only focus at this stage is the sentence, paragraph, or page. Turn off word count visibility if you have to so that you have to search for it. Admittedly, this is easier said than done, but focus on how you will say what you want to say. It comes in handy at this stage to remember why you’re writing in the first place.

Write When It's Hardest to:

A great and terrible feat is to complete or start something when you don’t want to. The only thing worse than this is all those mornings I had work at 6 AM and had to down coffees because this little lady was still drunk, unslept and unshowered, bombing it down to work like a newborn calf. They really should have sacked me sooner than they did; I judge them harshly! All jokes aside, nothing will make a habit better than the discipline you need to keep going when you least feel the splurge. Get to the desk, open the laptop or turn on the PC. Showing up is the only way your book is getting done.

Have a Treat. Take a Break:

Grant yourself a coffee when you have written enough or need a break. Don't strain yourself, but this should occur when you’ve gotten used to building momentum. Hemingway had interesting processes for his writing. One of his mantras was always to stop writing before he felt exhausted, which makes perfect sense when you think of the many occasions when you would plough out thousands of words and, ultimately, we know where that leads. You've killed your book, too stressed at the thoughts of returning. So take your breaks, treat yourself, and relax into it.

Set your Daily Target:

Try setting your daily targets once you get a feel for the flow. Again, start small and realistic, in keeping with what you have produced with the above suggestions. Start with 200 words and work your way up every day.

Now, I am by no means saying I have the magic formula. As I said at the start, these are more exercises to get you in tune with your muse and help you gather a sense of purpose in writing. But what I do know is that if I get bogged down or too excited by a lack of or a heap of words, I falter. Once I stuck to the above (loosely), it all naturally fell into place. Albeit six years later, I am a first-time writer and soon-to-be author because of my efforts, like many of you reading. I am quite happy with the 365 words on the new Prologue draft that I did today. I am even happier knowing how much I've given you to read now.

Today's 365 words may be tomorrow's, but add that up in a month or two. You'll have a few thousand words under your belt and possibly a decent head start to your novel before the dreaded 30,000-word hump!

And remember, the first draft is the worst part for most authors. You’re not alone; it’s a gruelling process for everyone. If you start to get down to the first page and feel nothing is coming, remember what author Joyce Carol Oats said;

“Getting the first draft finished is like pushing a peanut with your nose across a very dirty floor.”

For context, Joyce is known for writing a novel a year. So, if she knows the struggle and she feels at peace, you can too. Now, get writing!

So, you finished reading my first blog on my new official site. Thank you so much. I am chuffed.

The website is incomplete, so I apologise if it feels a little misplaced and hard to navigate; I'm working out the kinks as I go.

Come back again next week, where I will discuss the infamous writer's block and how I don't technically feel it exists, along with exercises to help you trudge out of the funk.

Thanks again, everybody. See you next week!