Writing Workshop Video 3: Two Pages A Day

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Well, I actually spent several hours today writing. Got 2 NEW pages done. So that's great. My brain was so fried - after revising 20 OLD pages, which added the 2 new ones - that I said to my daughter; I made great strides today. I devoured 9 Lives - while holding up the empty bag that yesterday held 9 Limes.

i think i can manage 2 pages a day. cool stuff.
chapteread.blogspot.com

I like that image

OK. Two pages a day. Probably can do that.
Now where to do it - write that is. Claire where are you writing? I know you're out of the mini van now. Can you talk about the space you write in, what you surround yourself with for inspiration and whether you have any little rituals you do while you write - like the hockey players who grow beards until the season's over - do you have a reward for yourself when you're done?

I'm slowly refinishing a shed where two cats live and I want to write out there. Guess I should call it the studio now. Any suggestions for making it a "writeable environment?"

It's good to commit to something -- even if it's only1/2 a page, because once you get going you will usually write more than you planned. I'm taking a class called"The Writing Habit" starting in a couple weeks. Hopefully that will get me on track

Kathryn,

Glad you're writing!

Joseph,

Thanks! And, yes, two pages a day makes it manageable, whatever else you have going on!

Kim,

Everybody's different, but if I were doing what you're doing now, it would be major PROCRASTINATION!!! I have to believe I can write anywhere, and certainly if I wrote a book in a minivan, it's probably true! I block out the world and my environment. It's about the world of my novel, and not where I'm writing. I do have an office now, and it's got a pretty view, but I almost always keep the shades closed. Then when I'm done with the day's pages, I go outside and take a walk and appreciate the real world again! So, for me, it feels like putting the energy into the writing and not rituals/environment is the way to go. It's tough enough to get your work done without worrying about that stuff!

But, again, everyone is different. So if you and the cats get your work done in the studio, that's great! Just don't use the renovation as an excuse not to write till it's done.

Gretchen,

Absolutely! The number of pages isn't important. Half a page is great, as long as you do it every day. And, sometimes, if I'm writing on deadline, I have to step it up to five pages. Usually, the further into a novel I get, the easier it is to write more.

Good luck with your class!

Sukey,

Yes! And don't let thinking about the long term make you panic about the short term. I find if I think about the whole novel, it can feel overwhelming.

I love the photo of you under the hair dryer. :) I am really enjoying your workshops. I think the videos are so much better than a plain article. Thanks for sharing your knowledge with me.

Writing in a shed sounds good, but what about weather? Extreme heat or cold, I mean, not rain. :-)

Claire Cook, I'm with Sukey t., I have committed to 1000 words a day. Sometimes I do more, some times I am right on the button. However, all of the comments and questions have been excellent and of benefit to me. Thanks for this post.

Connie,

Thanks! The photographer and I borrowed a salon chair and lugged it down to the beach for that photo! I'm glad you're enjoying the videos. And I'm more than happy to share anything I've learned. Thanks for writing!

Beaker,

I'll let Kim answer that one!

Michael,

1000 words a day is great! I think the point is that it has to be measurable and doable! So glad you're getting some helpful information!

Beaker - it's almost 90 today and the contractor just installed a window that OPENS! I got a double window fan that both sucks and blows . . . I say it's all for the cats.
We had a woodstove in the house but an allergy forced its removal so it's in the shed, too. It was so much warmer out there than in the house this winter that when I sat in the poofy chaise to hang with the cats after work, I often dozed off and woke at about 5 a.m. when it started getting light. Cat purrs are like valium.

untill I get to my home in southern Ill it's rough haveing momonts to be alone and write.but soon.....................

Clare, it was meant for me to find your video on writing two pages. Oh the shame for having been such a slacker. I dutifully will write today :) thanks!