The author copies for my other collection, The Dinosaur Diaries and Other Tales Across Space and Time, arrived in the mail the other day. Very happy to hold this one in my hands — eighteen of my best stories which originally appeared in magazines like Ellery Queen, Asimov’s, Analog, and Realms of Fantasy.
I also saw that Amazon just discounted the price $5. If you haven’t ordered yours, you should do so today!
It never fails. Whenever I find my creative well running dry, I get a charge out of reading great writing.
Of course, great writing is subjective, so what I find great will be different than what you find great. But almost all writers can name a couple of influential books that inspired them along the way, books that made them want to write something equally as good. I’m not talking works by Shakespeare or Joyce or Chaucer either, although it certainly could be. I’m talking about books that made you fall in love with reading — Lord of the Rings, Catcher in the Rye, Pride and Prejudice . . .
It’s even better when it’s a modern book, one written in a style that’s still popular. Maybe it’s an author you really admire. For me, Stephen King is one of the first writers I grab, because he writes with the kind of engaging voice and clear style that I’m reaching for in my own writing.
So here’s the game in a nutshell: If you need a creative boost, grab one of your favorite books and turn to one of your favorite passages. Read it aloud. It won’t be long before you feel that creative impulse return, the impulse that says, “I want to write something as good as that.”
-+-
A special treat showed up in the mail the other day — the author copies of my collection, A Web of Black Widows and Other Stories of Love and Loss.
A very beautiful book — they really do a superb job at PS Publishing. There’s two editions of this book available, the jackletless hardcover (pictured above), and the signed limited edition with a book jacket (only a 100 copies) that matches the cover on the front piece itself. Both are actually limited print runs — only 500 copies total. They’re available only directly from the publisher.
Who knows, maybe someday they’ll be worth some money.
As a teaser, here’s a blurb that appears on the back of the book, which is taken from the story “A Web of Black Widows”:
“You understand it’s forever, huh? Even if you get rid of it later, there’ll still be a scar.”
“I want a spider.”
“All right, it’s your body.”
He pulled out his sketchpad from underneath a pile of magazines that people used to get ideas. Grabbed an HB pencil from the cabinet of supplies he had mounted on the wall. He flipped open the pad to a blank page. “What kind?” he asked.
“I don’t know. Not a tarantula.”
“Okay. You like black widows?”
“I don’t know. What’s one look like?”
He sketched one for her. He had done them lots of times.
“I like that,” she said.
“Okay. Where?”
“On my tummy,” she said, and opened her robe.
Steven froze. Not much happened inside his van surprised him. People wanted tattoos in all sorts of strange places, and after years in the business, he had gotten used to it. But he had never seen a pregnant woman’s naked body in real life.
I’ve written over ten thousand words in a day. I’ve also written over seventy thousand words in a week. Am I particularly fast writer? Not really. I’m usually slow to warm up and fast as I close in on the end — but the average is around 1000 words an hour, give or take. Most writers are in the 500-1500 words range, though this can vary a bit depending where writers are in their careers.
When I tell non-writers I’ve written a short story in an afternoon or a novel in a week, invariably mouths drop open. But this isn’t as amazing as it sounds. Whether I write a book over a number of months — which is certainly more typical — or over a week, my actual writing speed is about the same.
So if I write, on average, 1000 words an hour, then a seventy thousand word novel = seventy hours of writing time.
Or if I’m trying to do it in a week, that’s ten thousand words a day for seven days, or 10 hours of writing time a day. Which is certainly grueling, but not impossible. I’ve done it. I’ve also written 5000 word stories in one sitting. In fact, I’ve done it many times — and sold those stories.
Here’s the kicker: When I look back years later at work that was done over many days or weeks or months, versus work that was completed in a short time span, I can’t tell, without looking at my writing journal, how long it took to complete any particular project.
This is all a long-winded prelude to this week’s particular game, which is simply this:
Block out a span of time, whether an afternoon or a week, and attempt to write a certain number of words — or, better yet, complete a project appropriate for that number of hours of writing time.
You’re going to have to clear the decks, of course. If you haven’t done this before, I’d recommend starting by blocking off a day. Write a short story. Or a novel chapter. Take a vacation day from the day job if you must. (This is important, right?) Get your family on board — it helps to tell other people what you’re doing. If you have an office, stay in there until you’ve met your quota, whatever it is. But you have to have a quantifiable goal, one that you’re going to have to reach for based on your writing speed.
What are the benefits? Even though the writing speed might be generally the same, you don’t have to “warm up your engines” as often as you do when you’re breaking up your project over more writing sessions. You’ll be in the flow longer, which certainly has its benefits. It’s also a nice skill to have should you ever be called by an editor who needs a project done on a tight deadline.
But the biggest benefit for me is that I get to stay in that creative place, that place I love so much, for a much longer period of time.
-+-