Tuesday, December 8, 2020

Excitement Versus Reality

It’s one thing to get excited to write a new novel.  It’s something else altogether to find the time to write it.

I came up with an idea recently for a new novel that merges science fiction and fantasy.  Basically, a fleet of ships from Earth heads out to explore the galaxy and finds a world run by magic.  I thought it would be interesting to see if these two genres could be integrated.  So far I’ve managed to get two chapters written and have started on the third.  Unfortunately, I haven’t gotten further, and given that it’s been over two months, you’d have thought I’d made more progress.  Alas, life gets in the way.

I think this is the case with most writers who aren’t able to do this for a living(ie, almost everyone not named King or Rowling).  We get excited for the idea, but we have to keep our “regular” jobs and tend to our families.  Taking time out to write consistently is challenging.

And let’s not forget that writing requires momentum.  I can’t just write 50-100 words at a time and create something coherent.  That’s too bumpy, so I need time to write at least 500 words in order to have a rhythm that works.  Five hundred words takes about 15-20 minutes, so I have to try and carve out time in an otherwise busy life.

So I’ve had to temper my enthusiasm.  If I could get some time to concentrate, I could have this new novel ready(1st draft) by mid-Spring, but as long as we’re wishing, the winning lottery numbers would be nice…

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