I don't stop until I'm finished. I don't sideline projects in pursuit of others. I start a project and then I don't stop until I finish it. Frequently, I also won't eat, sleep, or read either. Why am I saying this? Because at work yesterday I saw an advertisement for a writing workshop program that the library will be hosting next month.
Writing workshops don't make sense to me. You don't learn how to write by instruction or reading or any other method save one: rote practice. The only way to learn to write is sit down and write. The only way to finish a short story or a novel or a screenplay is to keep writing until it's completed. Almost every time when I hear from a friend that they've "started writing" and "Won't you read it and let me know what you think?" I say yes. I want to support my friends, I think writing is an amazingly strong talent that can translate into many other skills. However, what do I get to look over? One chapter. One chapter that my friend has looked over so intensely that they haven't had a chance to write a word beyond it.
Please stop doing this. Please just write the book, beginning to end. All authors constantly have new ideas that pop into their heads, that doesn't mean you should drop your current project to run at it. Jot the idea down somewhere, stash it away for later, and get back to writing.
Why the rant? I'm sick of hearing about workshops and how-to books and writers' blogs. They're a waste of the writer's time. Write your damned book, and don't let some wayward "marketing" workshop derail you and make you rethink your whole project. Put the blinders on and just run for the finishing line.
Ironic, isn't it, that my advice to you is to not listen to advice from sources like this? If you're a writer get off this blog and go write something. Only when you've exhausted yourself, should you check out Chapter Four, The Axes They Wield.
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