Discipline to write is often an obstacle

Becoming a writer, a really bona fide writer, takes discipline.  I have read dozens of how-to and what-to-do and guide books that gave guaranteed success stories on how to become a published author. And I have discovered reading all these articles and books about being a writer brings me some understanding of the craft, but it also brings me no closer to being an author than I was before reading these testimonials.  To become a writer takes discipline, giving one’s self time each day….regardless of the day or the situation, to write. To hone  the craft of writing. I have been developing a method to my own madness. I now try to “assign” myself a schedule for each day, giving myself a block of time for networking, another for checking supplies or reading emails and the most important of all, the block for writing. I have even gone so far as to start a calendar with my daily schedule to follow. Now for those of you who know me personally, I cannot and usually do not function well on schedules. Many years ago I was a stickler for schedules…back in the days when I held a regular day job and was required to handle a great deal of responsibility.

But I love to write and my main goal is to become an established author. This is not only a goal but a mission. So…..the schedule is in place and I hope to stick with it. My daughters have helped me realize that to achieve my goals I need the push of trying to remain on schedule. LOL, I even now have an appointment book to schedule my time….ahead of time!!

For most of us who are not published, I think the drive to write is there but sometimes we need to treat writing just as we would a regular job instead of like a hobby. Keep outside distractions to a minimum, let friends and family know that certain times of the day are spent writing, even go so far as to establish a home office in a room or corner of its own….and have access to your area depend on when and if you are available.

Because when (not if, but when) you do become published…unless you are a one hit wonder…you will need to write that next book, and the next….and you need a definite writing schedule to achieve this. Whether you work by word counts, page counts or even time allowance…your writing is only going to flourish as long as you give it the attention it deserves. Will putting myself on a schedule work? Would I do better aiming for goals such as word or page counts? I don’t know….but what I do know is that I will succeed somehow, it is just a matter of what, in the end, works for me.

KW