Enjoying writing

Subject: Enjoying writing Fri Aug 22, 2008 11:50 am

I was thinking how much I enjoy writing: putting words together, forming chapters in my mind, doing research on a variety of subjects, and then even rewriting and moving things around.

So, do you think you enjoy writing as much, more, or less than than other writers, like those at the top of the bestseller list?

Carol

Subject: Re: Enjoying writing Fri Aug 22, 2008 1:30 pm

I love to write, Carol. Otherwise, why do it?

I have to wonder when I hear some writer talk about "suffering for his/her writing". Maybe I am missing something?

I escape when I write. If I have had a bad day, I can torment a character. Adds drama. If I am sad, I can express the emotions through a scene.

Not to mention the joy of computer issues.

Certainly, I am not in it to make millions. Yes, that does happen to a handful of authors. Most are lucky to get a book published with some success.

The other benefit has been meeting fellow scribes.

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Southern fiction with a madhatter twist...
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Four Star Member Age : 39 Joined : 25 Mar 2008 Posts : 212

I'm with you Carol + Madhatter,

I love writing too, if only for leisure. So long as it is for pure escapism and leisure... I think it can be as relaxing and as serene as sitting beside a crystal blue stream high up in the Swiss Alps on a fine summers day... or fishing in Loch Lomond in Scotland for that matter... and it comes straight from the heart Very Happy

.

When your writing has to be for commercial marketing... then it starts to feel more like a job and less like an enjoyable pastime... which is where it can get *painful*. Ouch!

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A Ahad
http://www.myspace.com/aa_spaceagent

Subject: Re: Enjoying writing Fri Aug 22, 2008 1:56 pm

I agree with each of you. To be forced to stick to a deadline would make it a J.O.B.
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Zada Connaway
Mother's Journals: parts 1, 2 and 3 ISBN # 1-4241-6969-0

http://www.zadaconnaway.com/

Subject: Re: Enjoying writing Fri Aug 22, 2008 2:24 pm

I believe Ahad got it right. Hemingway said writing is the toughest job in the world. He was speaking of writing for a living, of course. I believe you will find that a great many writers ( probably the majority) who do it as their only source of income don't particularly enjoy writing but are glad that they have written something. It is, after all, a job. A job that has to be done every day, rain or shine, regardless of mood, household problems or anything else. Nothing can be allowed to take precedent over the job. Family members and friends must understand this so that nothing short of the building catching fire can be permitted to interfere with the writer at work.
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Mystery Writers of America, Private Eye Writers of America
www.dickstodghill.com

Three Star Member Joined : 07 Jun 2008 Posts : 171

I've made my living for a lifetime by writing and publishing--writing manuals for aircraft and missile systems, magazine staff-editing and freelance writing, and independent editing of other authors' books. One of my earliest jobs related to publishing was stripping covers from unsold magazine issues for return from the distributor to the publisher for credit. Writing has not been recreation or therapy for me. It has been and continues to be a very satisfying job--my choice of a job.

Jim Woods
www.ultrasw.com/jwoods

Subject: Re: Enjoying writing Fri Aug 22, 2008 3:12 pm

I have the utmost respect for those who make it a job, and still enjoy it. But that is a status I and many others shall never attain, I am sure. To be able to blend both the job aspect and the enjoyment of the work is a special talent.
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Zada Connaway
Mother's Journals: parts 1, 2 and 3 ISBN # 1-4241-6969-0

http://www.zadaconnaway.com/

Subject: Re: Enjoying writing Fri Aug 22, 2008 5:38 pm

I have to say I felt more enjoyment when I was first beginning and
wasn't aware of all the rules. No matter how many people say rules do
not matter, I have to disagree.

If I'm writing an article for the newspaper, I'm aware I need to
include the rule of the 5 Ws, and must include them in a way that
doesn't bore the reader into a coma. I need to make the article
interesting and describe items in a new and different way.

If I'm writing a short story, I also follow the rules of novel writing
with a beginning, middle, and ending, and I know that each section has
it's own rules. And of course, in writing a short story, there's not as
much time or room to leisurely introduce characters, situation, and
theme, as in a novel, so even while I'm writing it, I worry about
accomplishing it all within the required word limit.

Then there's the novel. Each day that I work on one is an effort to meet
my personal challenge. I'm constantly editing, critiquing, and no matter
how I try to slap that little editor who sits on my shoulder, she
usually has her way so I'm always critical of what I write.

So while writing is my chosen profesion and I love what I do, I no
longer enjoy the process like before. I love the thrill of satisfaction
when I've completed something, or how I feel when I think I've done a
good job.

And I do enjoy editing, especially first chapters. I love helping
writers rewrite that first chapter to make it more dynamic.

And, I love a paycheck. That's my pat on the shoulder, evidence that
it's all worthwhile.

So after all that, do I still enjoy writing? Yes, and if I were ever
forced to do something else, I know I'd be very unhappy, biding my time
until I could get back to my computer.
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www.brendahill.com
www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Cu6YeS9_Ro

Subject: Re: Enjoying writing Sat Aug 23, 2008 5:24 am

I enjoy writing when I feel I have something to say and/or know the subject matter. I have never tried pure fantasy except for a children's book.

Historical fiction is challenging. Writing about current events with fictional characters is challenging. Having a base of knowledge about the subject matter, for me is paramount.
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"To Beirut and Back"
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Subject: Re: Enjoying writing Sat Aug 23, 2008 12:34 pm

Writing is one of the things makes me who I am. It is part of what makes me whole.

And even with all the rules and dos and do nots I've learned, and all the things I've learned about writing and language ... I think these things have simply made me a better writer.

So all in all, I think my writing has kind of been like my marriage. The longer I am around it the more I know it and the more I love it! Yeah, kind of like my husband.

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~ JoElle ~
http://www.joellemartin.com

Subject: Re: Enjoying writing Sat Aug 23, 2008 3:44 pm

In every stage of my life from the age of thirteen I have alway been a writer even if I didn't know it at the time. I have always tried to write that great novel we all dream of but failed because I used to get bored to easily when I was younger which led to the project gathering dust or being lost somewhere. It's only in more recent years that I have found the drive to persue my love for writing but I doubt if I'd have done so if I hadn't had my kids or found Lulu to publish my work through. I tried the coventional way to get published with the strories I wrote from my children though as you can guese to the usual out come, rejection. Anyway it hasn't stopped me I just wish I could sell some books now. Cool

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Author of: Teddy the Bear www.lulu.com/content/1237349
A Winter Journey www.lulu.com/content/2289972
My Site: http://billyyoungsbooks.co.uk

Subject: Re: Enjoying writing Sat Aug 23, 2008 10:29 pm

I love to write, and I enjoy it even in the midst of deadlines and gnarly editors or late cheques for the most part. No job is great all the time, and even hobbies consist of work and sweat at times; gardening is one hobby that makes me sweat, and yet I enjoy it too, because the final product is so satisfying.
Very Happy

_________________
Pam Robertson

http://andthebandplayedonmylawn.blogspot.com

Subject: Re: Enjoying writing Sat Aug 23, 2008 11:38 pm

How you feel about gardening is exactly the way I feel about writing.
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www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Cu6YeS9_Ro