Keep, Keep, Keep Writing

Hello all you beautiful readers and writers!

In the last two weeks, I’ve written ~1750 words a day.

That’s a lot of words, right? And they’re not all terrible. In fact, every morning when I open Scrivener (my writing app of choice), I re-read what I wrote the day before and make micro-changes, and I’ve been pleasantly surprised at the general standard of my writing. It’s definitely improved in the last two years.

📈 Stats

As of writing this newsletter, I’ve been writing the first draft of the fourth Seen in Silverbridge book for 28 days straight, and I’ve written just over 48,000 words.

I don’t plan to take a day off writing until the first draft is finished. That’ll probably be around 60 days in total, and in the ballpark of 100k words.

When Stormhouse does a writing bee, we keep a very nerdy spreadsheet:

It’s helpful to see that even though the daily word count doesn’t vary much between writers, the total word count is very different. A little bit a day…

But when I’m writing a first draft by myself, I eschew keeping any kind of intense counter or spreadsheet. Instead, Scrivener provides a very simple, motivational daily goal counter:

And a more in depth Writing History tool if I ever feel like reflecting:

The fourth book in a series is a lot easier to write than the first. By now, the characters speak for themselves, their growth almost feels inevitable, yet still surprises me, and the structure of a young adult mystery is more obvious.

But it still takes a lot of grind to keep going, especially when I wake up tired. Or unmotivated. Or feeling like a terrible writer.

Here are some tried and tested tips and tricks that help me punch on.

🔋 How To Keep Going

Some of these you would have heard before, so I’m sorry for my dead-horse beating.

Let’s start with the most well-worn and most useful technique:

1. Routine, Habit, Regularity Yeah, I know. I’ve said this a lot, but it’s because it’s the single most helpful tool in my writing kit. Carve out your time and make it count. Every day, if possible. Whether if it’s in the early morning before the chickens are up, or late at night after the babies are asleep, or during your increasingly lengthy bathroom breaks at work. You’re a writer. You need to write. Make your routine a non-negotiable.
2. Chunkify it
   The idea of writing an entire novel can be daunting and overwhelming, so turn that MASSIVE task into a lot of small ones. Step one: Write a log line. Step two: Write your entire story in four easy sentences. Then, expand each of those sentences into a paragraph, each ending with a turning point. When the tasks are smaller, they’re more achievable. You’ll find yourself achieving them, and that’ll inspire you to keep going.
3. Chrysalism
   The idea of a ‘sanctuary’ brings to mind a photograph of my little sister. While I was having lunch, I opened my Photos app and saw a blast from the past: a photograph of my now very successful little sister squeezed into the gap in a cane table between the glass top and a shelf. It reminded me that Lana loved squeezing herself into weird places, like the bottom of the kitchen pantry or the gap behind the bookshelf. If feeling cosy helps you write, then wrap yourself up. Write from bed (I do!). If your sanctuary is a busy cafe, then find a local cafe you like and write there every day.

1. Petrol (or Gas if you’re in the States)
   Eating well and exercising helps you get a good night’s sleep, and sleeping helps your creativity. If you can’t do this, then stock up on coffee (I do!) and cut down on McDonald’s. If you need a block of chocolate to hit your word count, then you know? Do it. You can hit the gym when you’ve finished your draft.
2. Be a Sponge
   Find inspiration in anything and everything. Read up a storm. Watch films. Read articles. The one place I very rarely find inspiration is social media—one interesting tidbit is not worth the risk of losing yourself in a bottomless scroll. Even seeing a random photo today led to some inspiration in this newsletter (see point 3).
3. Get a Crew, or a Buddy
   ’Community’ is a pretty hot word. I’d love to be part of a writing community—in fact, the whole reason I started Stormhouse was so I could find one—but it’s easier said than done. If you’re not big on Facebook groups or subreddits and you don’t have a writer’s group in your life, find someone who can help keep you accountable. Tell your best friend, or your sibling, or your mum, that you’re gonna write a book. Ask them to hit you up regularly for updates. That’ll kick you up the arse and make sure you stick to your deadlines. One writing community I ambig on is NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month, where thousands of people from around the world attempt to write 50,000 words in November). This year, I’ll put a call out and we can do it together, what do you reckon? Daily check-ins, group motivation, it’ll be a blast.
4. Lose Yourself in the Music Juju
   Get some headphones and lose yourself in thrash metal. Or movie soundtracks. If you want some added Nerd Points, be like Nicholas Heering (author of the third Seen book) and listen to ‘Hogwarts Ambience’. My writing music changes depending on the project, but lately has been a lot of Dan Romer. Listening to music can get you in the zone as well as turning time into a sexy, slick slide, allowing you to fully lose yourself.
5. Buy Yourself Stuff
   I split my books into parts. Five parts per book, about 20k words each. When I finish a part, I celebrate. It can be in the form of a gift to myself (I recently bought a very bougie exercise belt from Lululemon) or even a flabby day (I just gorged myself on an entire large pizza and garlic bread for lunch because I finished Part II today!). It’s important to reward yourself. Treat yourself like you would your own kid or pet. Positive reinforcement.

With this arsenal of tips, you can’t lose. I guarantee if you utilise at least half of the above techniques, you’ll write more, and the more you write, the better your writing will get.

Have any more tips? Hit me with them.

📣 Shout out to Exhalation by Ted Chiang

This series of eight short sci-fi stories is making me think a lot about decision-making and how our past influences everything we do.

The majority of the ideas in this book revolve around free will and whether it truly exists. There are stories about portals to other times, digital creatures who develop sentience, archeologists who aim to prove the existence of God…

As someone who tends to choose novels over short stories, I’m digging this book.