What is the biggest challenge for someone who is trying to become a writer. Is it the difficulty of finding time to write (you see, this is a breed of writers who don't get their bread and butter from writing, and bread and butter earning sure takes up a lot of time)? Or is it the search for new ideas which often doesn't yield results and we have to go for formulaic ones? Or maybe it's the disappointment of reading a letter from a publisher which says your book 'isn't the write fit for them' or 'may not be commercially viable' and wishes you 'best of luck in your future endeavors', even though you feel you book just couldn't get any better.
I know I'm young, but I've already experienced all of the above.
But writing is addictive. Even when you're going through the 'business weeks' of your life, you make time to write, be it in the early hours of dawn or after the clock strikes twelve and all non-writers go to bed. Even when you can'e think of anything new to write, you just write anything you can, hoping it'll be brilliant anyways. Also, no matter how many publishers reject you, you always find the name of a new agent, a new publishing company and start sending your material after hours of reading submission guidelines on the Internet. And when publishers the world over reject you, you simply start with a new project, hoping this one will somehow be the next 'Girl With A Dragon Tattoo' or 'On The Road' or 'Harry Potter'. You might even settle for it being the next 'Five Point Someone'.
But for me, challenges can take a whole new form when my inexperience starts getting in the way. I tend to be a little angst-y in my writing, because I am at an angst-y age. My protagonist becomes everything I dream of becoming. I end up using too many words and eventually, I end up with a novel that might be great but will never find a publisher.
So, this time, I have resolved to make 'Unexplained Disappearances' different. I'll make as much time to write as possible. I'll stay away from formulas. I won't send my manuscript to people till it is completely ready. But above all, I'll try to finally grow into a mature writer.
I know I'm young, but I've already experienced all of the above.
But writing is addictive. Even when you're going through the 'business weeks' of your life, you make time to write, be it in the early hours of dawn or after the clock strikes twelve and all non-writers go to bed. Even when you can'e think of anything new to write, you just write anything you can, hoping it'll be brilliant anyways. Also, no matter how many publishers reject you, you always find the name of a new agent, a new publishing company and start sending your material after hours of reading submission guidelines on the Internet. And when publishers the world over reject you, you simply start with a new project, hoping this one will somehow be the next 'Girl With A Dragon Tattoo' or 'On The Road' or 'Harry Potter'. You might even settle for it being the next 'Five Point Someone'.
But for me, challenges can take a whole new form when my inexperience starts getting in the way. I tend to be a little angst-y in my writing, because I am at an angst-y age. My protagonist becomes everything I dream of becoming. I end up using too many words and eventually, I end up with a novel that might be great but will never find a publisher.
So, this time, I have resolved to make 'Unexplained Disappearances' different. I'll make as much time to write as possible. I'll stay away from formulas. I won't send my manuscript to people till it is completely ready. But above all, I'll try to finally grow into a mature writer.
Writing is addictive; I agree. The more I write, the more I want to write. I sneak time in everywhere. Like now during breakfast. ;)
ReplyDeleteYes, make a commitment to writing a few regular times a week, and it's amazing how much you'll get done!
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