For the writer – whether they be nonfiction or fiction – one thing that is of importance is productivity (or should be). For the vast majority of us, were working another job and writing, many times in hopes of leaving that 9-to-5 and pursuing our writing full-time. Sometimes it’s just a permanent part-time gig that supplements our bread-and-butter job. No matter what situation that we’re in, productivity is a concern and the main way that is measured is by how many words we get in per day.
Not too long ago, I finished Chris Fox’s book 5000 Words Per Hour. That title in and of itself sends shockwaves through a writer’s nerves. 5000 words in hour? For many writers that is 2 1/2 days worth of work. And if you think that is something, then Rachel Aaron’s book 2000 to 10,000 will probably seem more like fiction than nonfiction.
As I alluded to earlier, many writers attempt to get in about 2000 words per day. That’s not bad and you can actually write a few novels a year at that pace. But if you write more words, then you can my write more novels. That is important for fans and potential fans because they can receive more of a favorite author’s work in a shorter amount of time. This is a trend that has been going on for quite some time. The more books that you have out the more visible that you become, and the more visible that you become, the more likely a people may at least sample your work.
I recently decided to increase my word count to 5000 words per day minimum. The reason why I did that is because I can. I keep a diary of my writing and I’ve done it more than once. Now, I don’t think I’m going to be writing 5000 words per hour anytime soon. But I can easily write 5000 words per day because my life allows me to do that and because I’m committed to doing it. I was cranking out 4000 words per day with a full-time job. So writing a little longer and getting a little more productivity out of my day in terms of words and so forth is going to do wonders.
This is something that is not beyond the grasp and reach of those who really want it. That’s the bottom line. It’s like my high school football coach used to say when someone would run out of gas before getting to the end zone. His words of wisdom were, “He didn’t want it bad enough.”
5000 words a day is not an impossible thing by any stretch of the imagination. It’s simply coming to a place in your life to see if you want it bad enough.
It’s a new beginning here at R.I.U. Central. Very soon, the next book in the series of short stories for The Dark Corner will be released. That book is called The Forest. This will be the beginning of a slate of releases that will continue until the end of the year into next year, God willing. The only way that I would ever be able to do that is if my productivity went up and that is the reason why I have increased my word count per day by a thousand words. I have a ton of projects in my head that are just are screaming to get out and for my citizens, I want them to be in on this as soon as possible.
What you may also see is a slight increase in the amount of blog posts. There will still be at least one blog post per week as I’ve said before but there may be some weeks where you see 2 to 3 times that (this is one of those weeks). Those posts are going to be focused in a little more on the R.I.U. as well as some random musings on things like my word count. In either case, I hope you join me.
Until next time my friends, I’ll see you in the Tapestry.
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