Writing--Discipline and Determination

 

The quote today is by Pearl Buck, a prolific writer of many years ago. The daughter of missionaries, she grew up in China, and the majority of her books are set in China. She won many prizes and awards in the literary world. One of her best-known books was 'The Good Earth' which was made into a movie.

Her quote, "I don't wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got to get down to work." is some no-nonsense advice to other writers. In the movies, writers are sometimes portrayed looking and waiting for inspiration to hit so they can write the Great American Novel. In real life, it is a bit different. We don't have days, months, and years to sit idly waiting for inspiration. Another famous writer, Jack London said, "You can't wait for inspiration. You must go after it with a club."

What the quote comes down to is that writers must be disciplined enough to work steadily on a regular basis. What if you're having trouble with a chapter or an essay? Put it away and start on something new. The advice given to us to write every day is right on. You don't need to work on the same project day in and day out. It's good to take a break now and then. Find something else to work on, either a new piece or work on revising an old one. 

If you can manage to carve out a certain time of the day that is writing time, discipline yourself to stay with it and make it a habit. I know that is not always easy to do. Those writers who make a full living writing can probably do it. Those who write only part-time or as a hobbyist writer have to fit it in around another job or household needs. Even then, it is wise to set aside a portion of your day for writing.

Determination goes hand-in-hand with discipline. The desire to write must be strong to be successful. If you have a namby-pamby attitude about writing, your results will show the same. It's beneficial to acquire the outlook that you are going to write and submit and get published. 

Discipline and determination are two qualities writers should have. How about you? Where do you fall in developing these two helps for writers?

Advice From A Master Storyteller

Quote by Pearl S. Buck

Yesterday, I posted thoughts about one of my favorite authors, Pearl S. Buck. One thing I forgot to mention in that post was that critics did not treat this author kindly. Her readers, however, loved her early books and continued to look for more. Who buys more books--the critics or the readers? Case closed.

Today, let's take a look at a quote by this gifted author. Pearl Buck's quote tells me something about her personality. She wasn't a dreamer, sitting idly waiting for inspiration. She knew that to write you had to get busy and do it. She must have been a practical person in many ways.

If you worked on a line in a factory, what would the supervisor say if you stepped back and waited to be inspired to do your work? How about a football quarterback waiting for inspiration to move the ball to the goal line? We often hear about those in the arts world waiting for inspiration to write, paint, sculpt, or compose music. Perhaps our best work does come when we are fully inspired. 

Even so, there are more times that we must skip that waiting period and 'get down to work.' We need to put bottom in chair and fingers to the keyboard and start typing. So what if the result is not worthy of a prize or publication? We have taken the biggest step--getting down to work. 

Once you begin, your mind clicks in and you probably write increasingly better as you go. Don't forget that we have the great gift of being able to revise and edit right up to the moment we submit. 

We can also 'get down to work' by beginning with a writing exercise. Most are short but they get those creative juices flowing. The best part is that you are writing, not sitting around thinking about writing. 

A lot of would-be writers are dreamers who loll around thinking about writing but somehow never do the actual writing. I'm waiting for inspiration. Reason or excuse? Your call.

If you want to write, the rule is to to actually write. "...get down to work." Good advice from a master storyteller.