It you talk to a lot of authors, you’ll know that the biggest problem most have is right at the end of the book. More specifically, at least in my experience, is just before the end of the second act. It’s where a lot of people get into trouble.
I will admit, I’ve had the same problem, especially in the past when I didn’t heavily outline like I do today, but now, it’s a whole lot better. I don’t slow down at the end, I accelerate. Now, I sprint to the ending.
My third piece of advice is the one that most people seem to have the biggest problem with. That is that the world isn’t fair, life may not be what you want, and you have to grow up and deal with it. That’s not cruel, that’s just truth and truth is really all that matters.
So let’s go take a look at the realities of writing life and why most people who try, they fail. That’s just how it is. Deal with it.
This is a question that comes up a lot in writing circles so I thought I’d answer it.
A lot of people say that the very thought of Covid stopped their writing in their tracks due to anxiety or whatever. They were afraid they might get sick, or afraid that their friends and family might die and that screwed with their jive. That never happened to me. My problem was something entirely different and entirely my own fault.
Part two of my advice should be obvious, but you can’t really be a writer unless you write. Yet this seems to be a major problem for a lot of amateur writers and they can’t seem to just sit down and do what they claim they want to do.
That strikes me as odd, sorry. If this is what you want to do, then why do you refuse to do it? Let’s explore that.
This is something that, surprising, is met with a lot of apprehension by a lot of prospective authors. Time and again, I have seen people argue that they don’t like to read, they shouldn’t have to read and they absolutely reject reading for bizarre rationalizations that make no sense whatsoever under observation. The simple fact is, if you are not a voracious reader, you will never be a good writer. You learn to write primarily by reading. If you’re not willing to do that, give up now.
A lot of beginning writers ask where they should start in the writing game. How do you go from wanting to write to actually writing? There is tons of advice out there, but really, the process is simple, it’s the execution that’s hard. Therefore, I wanted to go into the boilerplate advice I offer in hopes that it helps those willing to put in the hard work.
One of the first things that most professional writers, or even just experienced writers will tell amateurs is to hold yourself accountable. You don’t know how well you’re doing unless you have some means of measuring it objectively. That’s why most recommend a word count tracker for whatever project you’re working on and I’m going to tell you the same thing. If you want to improve, if you want to produce work, you need to know how you’re doing. Track your words.
