This is crazy but I keep cranking these out because I can.
I said in a previous post that I was going to write at least one post a week and for the last month, that has been what I have been doing which is kind of amazing given everything that I have on my plate. But a lot of things have been moved to the side in order to make time for my writing. Even writing these posts are something that is a part of my writing life. It’s what needs to be done for a whole litany of reasons that I don’t need to get into at this time. I’ll save that for another post.
In my last post, I had mentioned that I’m on a quest to write faster. To write more words per day in a short amount of time. In that time, I’ve finished the book by Chris Fox, 5000 Words Per Hour and it has helped me focus on my writing in ways that I previously haven’t before. Part of that is maturity. Not maturity so much as a writer as much as maturity as an individual. You only live one time. Once. So, the question that we have to ask ourselves is how are we going to redeem the time that we’ve been given? I’m not going to wax poetic on my philosophy of life but it is something that we have to think about if we’re going to be serious about this thing called writing.
I gave two reasons why this was important in Part I. I’m going to give you two more reasons why this is important to me and they very well could be important to you as well if you’re a writer. You may not have thought about it in this way.
The third reason (and it’s a very important one) why I need to write faster and get this out to the world is because I want to have a legacy for my children and grandchildren. I’m thinking about the future when I’m not here any more. I want to be able to leave something behind that can bless them not only in a financial way but also in other ways. That it will bless them in knowledge, wisdom, and joy. I first want to bring this to my family. The only way that is going to happen is if I write and write a lot.
You have to understand: I’m a self-publisher. I can’t wait for a book publisher to possibly, maybe, buy my book and then buy it for peanuts. That’s not going to do my family any good. Having your own business, you have to make your own way and we are carving out a future for my family so when God calls in my expiration date, there will be a part of me that’s here, still speaking to them, still loving them. The more I put out, the more I’ll leave behind.
The fourth and final reason has to do with my sanity. I’m not lying here. You think I’m playing but I’m dead serious.
Having all these ideas and characters and stories rolling around in your head without a place for an outlet is not healthy for the mind. They need to be out there. They need to be set free on the world. Those that write know what I’m talking about. This is not just a desire, a life-long kind of thing that I dabble in. I’m wired to be a writer. This is something that is a necessity. It’s a must. It is a part of who I am and if I don’t get this done then I’m going to explode. I’m like the prophet Jeremiah in the Bible where he says,
“But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.”
You can’t fight this stuff. You have to write for sanity’s sake. Writing faster helps my sanity. Keeps me mentally healthy.
So, those four reasons being the impetus behind my quest to write faster, I’m going to do so. I think that this is a quest that I will always be on and that’s fine. I love what I do. What about you? Has it gotten that serious for you? Let me know in the comments.
God bless.
