I don’t know if any of you are prospective writers or not, but since somewhere around 80% of the people in the United States have thought about writing a book, I figure there’s a pretty good possibility. Some of you may already be writing and doing well (at the writing–I’m not talking about publishing today). This article is not for you. Today, I want to talk to those of you that are still wavering about whether or not to write.
If the idea of writing a book sounds fun, in theory, but you aren’t sure if you’d like it in real life, could I suggest a trial run? NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) made me think of this post, but since it won’t be published until late November, it won’t actually help you with the trial this year. (Note to self: plan ahead next time!) Nonetheless, the idea is sound.
Let me back up and tell you about NaNoWriMo. The idea is to write a 50,000 word novel in one month (an average of 1667 words per day). Writers and prospective writers all over the world participate. There’s an official website, Facebook groups, and more. There are badges to collect along the way, buddies to encourage, a tracking chart to see your progress. It’s kind of fun. If you win, there are usually cool digital prizes (mostly discounts on things). The best prize, though, is the progress you make on your book and the chance to discover if you like writing well enough to make it through an entire novel.
But you don’t have to do NaNoWriMo to get those last two prizes. All you have to do is write. Every day. For weeks, or months, or years. If that sounds like fun, you might be a writer. If that sounds like torture, or if you just don’t know… well, maybe you want to try that trial period I suggested. Pick a month, any month. (November is the official NaNoWriMo, and they have Camps in April and July if you want to participate in their buddy system, but the calendar also has nine extra months you could use on your own.) Pick a goal (50,000 words, 20,000 words, “X” words per day, whatever). Now, for that month, write every day (or at least almost every day). Track your word count. Don’t worry about editing right now, though you should certainly put that on your to-do list for a different month. Just write. Keep writing. Write more.
If you start dreading your daily writing session, then writing might not be the profession for you. Consider dropping it to hobby status and only writing when inspiration strikes. If you look forward to sitting down with a computer or pencil and find yourself plotting when you’re washing dishes or driving or supposedly working, then keep writing. Write the whole month. Write like a crazy person, if that’s your style.
At the end of the month, look at what you’ve accomplished. Did you write (almost) every day for a whole month? Did you meet your goal? Did you come close? Did you enjoy yourself? Did the writing become easier? Do you want to keep doing it?
Notice that I’m not asking you right now if your writing is any good. I’m assuming that you will let it sit and then edit it before you try to make that assessment. Besides, quality can be practiced, researched, and improved. Enjoyment and dedication are more inherent, and that’s what this experiment was about.
So, what do you think? Now that you’ve tried it, do you still want to be a writer?
Happy writing,
M. C. Lee
© 2019 M. C. Lee LLC. All rights reserved.
