Every time, when I meet people and they know I’m a writer,
they always ask me how long it takes to write a novel. Most are surprised when
I tell them it takes me a year to write a work of about 70,000 to 80,000 words.
I am not a fast writer. Others write much more quickly than I do.
But there are many facets to writing that deplete your time,
including rewriting the draft, editing, and allowing the manuscript to sit for
a length of time so the writer can take a second look with a refreshed, erased
mind, and a different outlook.
Writers don’t just write. We have to advertise, blog for
ourselves, maintain websites, appear on other blogs, read, belong to chat
rooms, have a presence on social media, and follow the latest industry trends. I
also belong to a book club. These all infringe on writing time.
When I start a story, I hate to play with more than one
draft, so I try to get the story line and plot fairly correct the first time. I
write each chapter as a separate unit/document before bringing them all
together in a complete manuscript and into one final document. This makes it
easier to delete a chapter or rearrange all of them.
My biggest failing in writing is that I used to keep a
sketchy log or bible of my characters, noting specifics about them, but I quit.
Now, I often have to go back to the original manuscripts or print book and
search for things like eye color, hair color, and other physical descriptions.
I try to be sure I’m not overusing some characteristics or repeating names.
This month, I am showcasing Four White Roses for just $0.99 while I work on special advertising
for it. This is the time to tell your friends with eBooks and Kindles to grab
it. It’s still my favorite of all the contemporary books and novellas.
By the way, the best thing you can do to help a writer is to
leave a review if you’ve read his/her book. And it doesn’t have to be a long
one—just a sentence or two.
I’ll leave you with this question? Why do writer’s write?
They write--because
they can’t not write. If they are away from their craft for too long, they
get antsy and need to fill the hollow creative space in their brain with ideas
and words.
