Authors Answer 122 – Should You Write Every Day?

It’s one of those things that’s a good idea if you can actually manage it, but shouldn’t be promoted as essential.

I Read Encyclopedias for Fun

This month, we return to regular questions and answers, but we have a theme for the month. We’re looking at common advice that may be considered either bad or good advice. We’re starting off with how often we should write.

Question 122 – Write every day. Do you agree or disagree, and why?

Tracey Lynn Tobin

Although I might possibly be the worst person in the world at actually adhering to this advice, I do actually agree. In order to be a writer, you have to write, and write a lot, so the best way of accomplishing that is to write something – anything – every day. In that way it becomes a habit, something that you do automatically. Additionally, if you’re writing daily – even if it’s not anything that goes toward your current WIP – you’re getting lots of practice in, and that is never a bad thing…

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Authors Answer 72 – Writing Targets

Writing targets probably work better for some authors than others.

I Read Encyclopedias for Fun

A full-time author’s job is to write. For many of them, they spend a full-time job’s amount of time writing, editing, promoting, and doing many other things for their books. But many authors write only part-time, as they often have a non-writing job. But they tend to have their own routine, or some just do it whenever they can. How about our authors?

Question 72 – Do you have a daily or weekly target for writing? What is it, and how do you achieve it?

S. R. Carrillo

For the past 2 or 3 years, I have made monthly goals of writing, at a minimum, 10,000 words on any given project. It’s a realistic goal for me – especially since I was playing G.I. Joe when I made it.

As for how I make it happen – I simply make it a priority. I finish a scene, start a new…

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The downside of schedules and plans

Putting yourself on a schedule can be a good way to make sure you actually do what you plan to, but something I’m starting to realize recently is that getting too attached to a plan can lead to not wanting to do things out of order, and become a barrier to getting anything important done when the next step is a big or time-consuming one.

Like how right now I should be working on a novel or story, but the thing I want to do “next” is a large complicated change that I’d like to do all at once, so I’m posting this instead.