# Writing a novel in less than two weeks



## Abalone (Jan 31, 2014)

Aproximately a week ago, I was recommended Rachel Aaron's book, "2K to 10K~" by a friend. I ended up purchasing the Kindle edition and sat down to read it when I awoke this morning at 3 AM. I only got about 30 pages in before needing to do some stuff around the house. I had never heard of her, except for that blog post of hers I made a thread about on here many months ago. According to her, she wrote one of her books under the penname Rachel Bach in a mere 12 days. Now being the cynical type I can often be, I imagined it was a poorly written work that had mediocre reviews. Nope. It holds a 4.5 rating on Amazon and a 4+ rating on GoodReads.com

I know some of your release a book every quarter via a series, but this is just crazy talk. Is there anyone who would do this often or do you think it was a one time thing for her?


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## SA_Soule (Sep 8, 2011)

Wow. Did she do a plot outline first? The fastest book I ever write was 4 months, and that was including having my CPs rip it apart and hiring 2 editors.


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## 75845 (Jan 1, 1970)

AA2014 said:


> I know some of your release a book every quarter via a series, but this is just crazy talk. Is there anyone who would do this often or do you think it was a one time thing for her?


I finished writing a novel on 26th November that I had begun on 1st November and that I was researching and checking locations while writing it. This was on a subject that I knew little about in mid-October and set in a city that I had never previously visited. I also attended a weekend writers' conference during that time. The previous novel had only reached 8000 words after 3 years. It is as much about the project as the length when it comes to writing. In those 26 days I wrote 50000 words, but on one day I wrote 5000 words and if I had maintained that rate throughout I would have completed the novel in 10 days.


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## CDForness (Nov 25, 2013)

She does extensive preparation and world building. Her methods are great but in my mind you probably should be tracking the prep time.  Adding that in, it definitely took longer than twelve days but the 2k to 10k is still a great resource.


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## Lionel&#039;s Mom (Aug 22, 2013)

I wrote one of my series (around 68k) in my winter vacation last year, which was 11 days. 

I think it's like running. You think you could never run 5 miles until you do, and then that's just your regular workout.


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## Morgan Jameson (Sep 16, 2014)

I think the trend towards pumping 'books' out is not doing the industry (or readers) any favors. I cannot see writing a book and editing it properly in less than 6 months to a year. My current historical thriller has been a 5 year process - but that's with working 60 hours a week also. The writing doesn't take long. The editing takes FOREVER. I'm finally inputting final line edits from my editor - I'm at page 270, about 1/2 way through. Then it'll finally be ready for formatting and in a week - publishing! Finally. 

I look at it this way: McDonald's is food, and it's fast, but wouldn't you rather have a home-cooked meal by a good chef?


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## 77071 (May 15, 2014)

Please don't hate me.  I once wrote a longish novella in 3 days.  One of those days was working on another project altogether.  I just had the time and the inspiration and it all really flowed.  Took longer to edit than write.  The benefit was I didn't waste a bunch of time doubting myself, forgetting plot points, or falling prey to that negative head space, "It's all horrible anyway why are you bothering you're stupid erase that."  The story turned out well, too.


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## valeriec80 (Feb 24, 2011)

I've done it lots of times. Before I got pregnant, I was writing 8K a day, which meant I could draft an 80K book in two weeks with weekends off. I got back up to 7K a day in my 2nd trimester, but I'm dropping that last half hour of work come October and just doing 3 hours, or 6K, a day. I get tired easily these days.


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## NoCat (Aug 5, 2010)

Eh. You write at the pace you write. Some people write good books slowly. Some people write good books quickly. Some people write terrible books slowly or quickly, it doesn't matter.

I've written every novel I've ever done in less than 4 weeks. Nobody cares. Nobody knows. Nobody can tell the books that took me 3 weeks or the books that took me 3 days (hint, length has nothing to do with it). Nobody can tell what I wrote while sick or tired or angry or whatever. All that readers care about is if the book is any good. Plenty of people can write a good book inside a month. Plenty of people can't.

Do what works for you.


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## Evenstar (Jan 26, 2013)

I wish I could! I've managed a novella in a month before, but that was pretty hard. On the other hand if I wrote full time then maybe it wouldnt have been so hard. I only get an hour or two a night about 4 days a week, and the occasional 4am start when I'm getting near the end. That's approximately 8 hours a week on writing, which just isn't enough to cut it at the production level I'm aiming for.


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## heidi_g (Nov 14, 2013)

I've also read _2K to 10K _and think the points she makes to help speed up the writing process/getting down the first draft are excellent. As a result, in the past year-and-a-half I've begun to write my first drafts rather quickly, typically weeks rather than years However, I also like to sit on things, mull them over, let them rest. Inevitably key things come up while I'm "away" from the ms. So... while my writing is faster these days, I'm still not someone who cranks out a book a month. I'm coming to accept I probably won't be. BUT, I'm working at a good, steady pace that I'm happy with.

I've decided to settle down for the long haul, and I do want to enjoy myself along the way


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## Abalone (Jan 31, 2014)

Sherry_Soule said:


> Wow. Did she do a plot outline first? The fastest book I ever write was 4 months, and that was including having my CPs rip it apart and hiring 2 editors.


From the book, and I hope she doesn't mind me posting this tidbit.

Plotting started: July 17, 2011
Plotting finished: July 20, 2011
Novel started: July 21, 2011
Novel ended: August 1, 2011


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## dirtiestdevil (Aug 20, 2014)

Writing fast does not equal writing bad. And writing slowly does not equal writing well.

Some of the world's best 'classic' literature was written in a SHOCKINGLY SHORT amount of time. Spend a year writing a spec novel that might not even sell a copy? Good luck!


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## Evenstar (Jan 26, 2013)

valeriec80 said:


> I've done it lots of times. Before I got pregnant, I was writing 8K a day, which meant I could draft an 80K book in two weeks with weekends off. I got back up to 7K a day in my 2nd trimester, but I'm dropping that last half hour of work come October and just doing 3 hours, or 6K, a day. I get tired easily these days.


When are you due? I've just hit my second trimester (well actually am 19 weeks but the nausea and exhaustion are only just letting up) and trying to get back into my stride before the baby comes in February. I intend to publish three/four books by then, not sure if I'll make it though as I seem to remember the third trimester was pretty knackering too!


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## 10105 (Feb 16, 2010)

"That's not writing. That's typing."
                  Truman Capote


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## Morgan Jameson (Sep 16, 2014)

heidi_g said:


> I've decided to settle down for the long haul, and I do want to enjoy myself along the way


That's the key right there I think. I've written short stories in an hour-long frenzy, and love it when it seems like I'm 'channeling' something. They are always complete and require very little editing. I write very quickly, and am fairly prolific, but I take a lot of time moving chapters around to ensure the flow and continuity. I think every writer has their own process, and you should stick with what works. The big question is, are you happy with what you produced? That's the main thing IMO.


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## Moist_Tissue (Dec 6, 2013)

Some authors are capable of "pumping out" solid reads within a day, a week, or a month. If readers are buying these works and finding enjoyment in the stories then it isn't destroying the industry. 

In fact, I would argue that the ability to write quickly and publish is a boost to the industry. We live in a world where we want what we want when we want it. Trade publishing has a eighteen to twenty-four month publishing cycle; they can't really publish to the reader's demands of today. Instead, the books they are publishing today were the trends readers pursued a year or more ago.

A crappy book can take a year to write. It's really about the skill, the editing, and the positioning of the author.


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## Morgan Jameson (Sep 16, 2014)

Al Stevens said:


> "That's not writing. That's typing."
> Truman Capote


LOL. Awesome.


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## shadowfox (Jun 22, 2012)

I've written a book in 2 weeks. I've written a book in a year. Both books took about the same amount of typing time. Both books were about the same quality.


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## Moist_Tissue (Dec 6, 2013)

*cough*

http://mentalfloss.com/article/29126/6-famous-novels-penned-under-month

http://www.newrepublic.com/article/115441/6-great-books-written-6-weeks

*blows into tissue*


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## Cege Smith (Dec 11, 2011)

dirtiestdevil said:


> Writing fast does not equal writing bad. And writing slowly does not equal writing well.
> 
> Some of the world's best 'classic' literature was written in a SHOCKINGLY SHORT amount of time. Spend a year writing a spec novel that might not even sell a copy? Good luck!


This.

I see Rachel's book (which I've read several times) as a great way for forming habits to write more efficiently overall- especially when you have a limited amount of time. Maybe you don't go from 2K to 10K. But if you were normally putting out 1K and you could increase that to 1500 without feeling the effects of it being a lot of work- I think most writers would call that a win.

I've written rough 60K-ish long first drafts several times in less than two weeks. In my world the hardest part is just putting my butt in the seat and doing the writing. Getting words down on the page once I'm there has never been an issue. But that's me and I don't expect that everyone can or wants to do what I do. That's the great thing about being a writer these days and in charge of your own destiny. You can choose your own adventure and do whatever you want to do.

Inevitably these kinds of threads turn into a quality vs. quantity debate which is unfortunate because I think the real discussion, which can be quite inspiring and motivating, is just hearing other writers' processes and culling out nuggets that you might want to try yourself to up your own game.


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## swolf (Jun 21, 2010)

Morgan Jameson said:


> I cannot see writing a book and editing it properly in less than 6 months to a year.


People tend to overlay their own limitations on others.


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## Morgan Jameson (Sep 16, 2014)

swolf said:


> People tend to overlay their own limitations on others.


That's true. I am saying that's MY schedule. Zane Grey and Alistair MacLean were also notoriously fast writers. I write quickly, but spend a lot of time editing. That's just me.


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## Evenstar (Jan 26, 2013)

swolf said:


> People tend to overlay their own limitations on others.


I'm dreadful for this! Except I do it the other way around. I am horribly intolerant of people who moan about writing taking forever, yet they watch TV. I really need to try not to judge anyone else by my own standards...


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## Guest (Sep 28, 2014)

ㅈㅈ said:


> Eh. You write at the pace you write. Some people write good books slowly. Some people write good books quickly. Some people write terrible books slowly or quickly, it doesn't matter.
> 
> I've written every novel I've ever done in less than 4 weeks. Nobody cares. Nobody knows. Nobody can tell the books that took me 3 weeks or the books that took me 3 days (hint, length has nothing to do with it). Nobody can tell what I wrote while sick or tired or angry or whatever. All that readers care about is if the book is any good. Plenty of people can write a good book inside a month. Plenty of people can't.
> 
> Do what works for you.


+1


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## swolf (Jun 21, 2010)

Morgan Jameson said:


> That's true. I am saying that's MY schedule. Zane Grey and Alistair MacLean were also notoriously fast writers. I write quickly, but spend a lot of time editing. That's just me.


Well, you did imply that those writing fast were putting out McDonald's quality writing.


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## Carradee (Aug 21, 2010)

AA2014 said:


> I know some of your release a book every quarter via a series, but this is just crazy talk.


How is it crazy? Whenever I've seen writers keep records of their writing speed, they often hit ≥500 words per hour _even after you factor editing in_. So if writing is their job, even one who averages 500 words per hour and spends 40 hours per week doing it would have a 40k words in two weeks.

But many folks are faster. I currently average about 750 wph. I just don't spend as much time writing as I should--which is something I'm currently improving.

And then the more you practice something, the faster you get. That's even true in things like cooking and knitting. Why should writing be an exception?

I have a math disability. I can comprehend it fine, but I transpose things all the time. (Think dyslexia, except it's with numbers rather than letters.) Nobody noticed until I was in college and stopped doing every problem 2-3 times. (I do a problem twice. If I get 2 diff answers, I do it a 3rd time. The answer I get 2 out of 3 times is the correct answer, the vast majority of the time.)

Even *I* didn't realize I had a disability. But even with doing problems 2-3 times, I was often among the first if not _the_ first person done on math tests. I had two or three times the practice my classmates had, and it showed in my final speed.

Ask me do a math problem in my head, and I'll be on the slow side (assuming I can do it at all), but that rate of speed includes doing the problem 2-3 times. Paper's much easier.


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## Morgan Jameson (Sep 16, 2014)

swolf said:


> Well, you did imply that those writing fast were putting out McDonald's quality writing.


Some are, yes. I didn't mean to imply that something good cannot be written quickly...but I guess I did. Sorry. Bad analogy I guess.


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## Guest (Sep 28, 2014)

It can be done. If I'm in the zone, I could do that on a semi-regular basis. I wrote "A Reluctant Companion" (80K) in three weeks. The longer part, for me, is waiting for the editor and the myriad little details one addresses before publication. But I have almost 100 books between my pen names and my real name, and I've written most of those in the past three years. (I'm not counting the books I have with Ellora's Cave. I won't be counting those again until the rights revert to me.) Oh, I should also disclose that a lot of those almost-100 titles are 30-page novelettes, and my typical novel length is around 50K. The last two long novels I've written were 80K and 95K, but those are atypical for me. I don't think I could write 350 pages in two weeks unless I didn't have any other commitments. Right now, I probably get to write about 10 hours per week, and I'd need a lot more time than that to consistently produce longer novels every couple of weeks. That's not happening, so...   (Besides, I think I would burn out if I tried to maintain that pace.)


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## Carradee (Aug 21, 2010)

Morgan Jameson said:


> I look at it this way: McDonald's is food, and it's fast, but wouldn't you rather have a home-cooked meal by a good chef?


Apples and oranges. You say that as if home-cooked meals necessarily take longer than ordering fast food. They don't.

I have a list of allergies as long as my arm, which mean I pretty much _can't_ eat out. Even soup stock has to be made from scratch. But I make good use of my freezer and of doing things in bulk. I could have a from-scratch pizza with <5 minutes' work, right now, because I have all the pieces prepped-crust in freezer, toppings chopped, etc. I also have enough practice and proper tools for prepping those pieces that it doesn't take as long as you might think. (My first from-scratch pizza ever took around an hour, from start to eating, which included mixing the dough and chopping the toppings.)

To continue the analogy, a writer who has all the foundations in place will take less time to create the same level of quality as a writer who's still figuring it out.

So perhaps the analogy you were going for was that writing is like a home-cooked meal, and the time spent doesn't necessarily relate to quality, but the time spent will affect a particular chef's quality of output?


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## Guest (Sep 28, 2014)

ㅈㅈ said:


> Eh. You write at the pace you write. Some people write good books slowly. Some people write good books quickly. Some people write terrible books slowly or quickly, it doesn't matter.
> 
> I've written every novel I've ever done in less than 4 weeks. Nobody cares. Nobody knows. Nobody can tell the books that took me 3 weeks or the books that took me 3 days (hint, length has nothing to do with it). Nobody can tell what I wrote while sick or tired or angry or whatever. All that readers care about is if the book is any good. Plenty of people can write a good book inside a month. Plenty of people can't.
> 
> Do what works for you.


Perfect summation. As long as you polish it, no one knows the circumstances or time frame in which it was written.


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## DanaG (Feb 13, 2011)

I set my timer for thirty minutes, sit down and write, and generally write 700 to 1250 words in that time period.  I do that for several hours, with a few brief breaks, and I've written anywhere from 3000 to 7500 words in a day.  

If I do that for five days, I've got a first draft. 

I write romance, and I do find that the more mystery I put in my plots, the longer it takes me, but I've written numerous novels in two weeks, and they have ranked very well.


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## Amy Corwin (Jan 3, 2011)

I see Rachel's book (which I've read several times) as a great way for forming habits to write more efficiently overall- especially when you have a limited amount of time. Maybe you don't go from 2K to 10K. But if you were normally putting out 1K and you could increase that to 1500 without feeling the effects of it being a lot of work- I think most writers would call that a win.

[/quote]

Yes--if you can "up" your output even slightly, that's great.
I'm in awe of these quick writers. Because I tend to write historical mysteries, I find that 2k a day is about my limit. I'm always having to stop to look up a word (did they use that word in 1820?) or verify a fact. And Sometimes the plot morphs and I have to rework various plot points, etc. After 2k words, I'm usually absolutely exhausted. I usually max out a week at about 10k words--it's about the best I can do. Otherwise, I just sit in front of the screen, exhausted and unable to figure out what to write. And since the rough draft is generally between 60-75k, it takes me quite a while to even get the first draft done. Then it's editing, editing, editing. The best I've done is three months, but that was spread out so it wasn't three calendar months. (I mean, I wrote the draft, wrote the draft for a different book, then went back to edit the first book. That way, I give my mind time to figure out if I need to add/change anything in the first book.)

For my current book, I spent two weeks just figuring out the basics (coming up with character names, basic plotting, locations, historical "venue" facts, and so on). I wish I could go faster, but I just can't, even when I try. It takes me a while for my brain to figure out what it needs to know before I start. If I try to short-circuit it (I tried--unsuccessfully--with my current book) and try to start writing before my brain gets the basics it wants, I just sit in front of a blank screen and don't produce anything. Or I'll write one word and then stall because I'll need the name of something or somebody and won't have it.

But that's just me. And I'm still in awe of folks who can site and write pages and pages each day.


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## Morgan Jameson (Sep 16, 2014)

Carradee said:


> To continue the analogy, a writer who has all the foundations in place will take less time to create the same level of quality as a writer who's still figuring it out.
> 
> So perhaps the analogy you were going for was that writing is like a home-cooked meal, and the time spent doesn't necessarily relate to quality, but the time spent will affect a particular chef's quality of output?


That's a better way to put it. I spend a lot of time agonizing over my books, and they are longer than most discussed here. (Current one is 143K) The longer a book is, the more work it is to maintain things like continuity. Historical fiction also means doing a lot of research and making sure you have your facts straight, so it's more time-consuming than some other writing I've done. I for one have no idea how Alistair MacLean had the output he did and write so well at the same time. That takes talent. I have two books done and 3 more 'in the oven' with ideas for a couple more. I guess I'm just slow.


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## Elizabeth Ann West (Jul 11, 2011)

I've also read that book and I can tell you how it's done. Actually writing during your writing time is one key factor.  

I stay home. Before my friend fighting cancer came to stay with us, my plan was to write for 2 solid hours, twice a day, M-F. That's 20 hours per week. I know when I write for one solid hour, I write about 1,300-1800 words. So 20 x 1300 = 26,000. 20 x 1800 = 36,000. In two weeks, I can conceivably write a novel. 

The reality is I binge write. I write 30-40,000 novellas in a 2 week span right now with everything else going on. I start off the first few days just 2,000 here, 4,000 there. About 6 days in, I'll be a at 15k-18k and all "woohoo" Then I take a day or two break because I'm daunted. Then I get all "Alright story, Imma gonna finish you" and I'll write like 5k in one day. And then rest a day. And then I'm daunted again, but a few hours later I'm like "Wait, I'm over 20k? Well hell, that ain't nothing... let's kill this." And then I write like I'm going to finish and get another 7-8K done. And then again it's all "GRRR, I'm still not done, well fine, forget you." And I am literally ::this close:: to finishing, just need about another 4-6K left.

BUT. I have an editor now that edits as I write. She has access to the raw material I write on Wordpress, so it's all timestamped and everything when I wrote what. And when I get to that point, she'll call me up and say "Elizabeth, I'm waiting, your fans are waiting, did you forget?" And I'll whine, and kick and moan, and then FINALLY just shy of 2 weeks to the day I started I will go "Alright, it's me or you, and it ain't gonna be me," and I finish it. And it goes to editor #1, then I look over her edits then editor #2 and I look over her edits, and then voila, new novella is born!

That's my process, for what it's worth.


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## Morgan Jameson (Sep 16, 2014)

Amy Corwin said:


> I see Rachel's book (which I've read several times) as a great way for forming habits to write more efficiently overall- especially when you have a limited amount of time. Maybe you don't go from 2K to 10K. But if you were normally putting out 1K and you could increase that to 1500 without feeling the effects of it being a lot of work- I think most writers would call that a win.
> 
> Yes--if you can "up" your output even slightly, that's great.
> I'm in awe of these quick writers. Because I tend to write historical mysteries, I find that 2k a day is about my limit. I'm always having to stop to look up a word (did they use that word in 1820?) or verify a fact. And Sometimes the plot morphs and I have to rework various plot points, etc. After 2k words, I'm usually absolutely exhausted. I usually max out a week at about 10k words--it's about the best I can do. Otherwise, I just sit in front of the screen, exhausted and unable to figure out what to write. And since the rough draft is generally between 60-75k, it takes me quite a while to even get the first draft done. Then it's editing, editing, editing. The best I've done is three months, but that was spread out so it wasn't three calendar months. (I mean, I wrote the draft, wrote the draft for a different book, then went back to edit the first book. That way, I give my mind time to figure out if I need to add/change anything in the first book.)
> ...


Me too. Well said.


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## Guest (Sep 28, 2014)

ㅈㅈ said:


> Eh. You write at the pace you write. Some people write good books slowly. Some people write good books quickly. Some people write terrible books slowly or quickly, it doesn't matter.
> 
> I've written every novel I've ever done in less than 4 weeks. Nobody cares. Nobody knows. Nobody can tell the books that took me 3 weeks or the books that took me 3 days (hint, length has nothing to do with it). Nobody can tell what I wrote while sick or tired or angry or whatever. All that readers care about is if the book is any good. Plenty of people can write a good book inside a month. Plenty of people can't.
> 
> Do what works for you.


*I agree with your comment.*

I've read some books that the author said they spent 2-4 years writing, editing and polishing and I found the novel to be quite boring and long winded.

I've also read some books that the author said they spent a few days or a month writing and I have enjoyed it because it is a quick entertaining read with no extra fillers and it has _not_ been edited and polished to death.

Each to their own.

Personally I just want to be entertained, that's why I buy and read books. If I read a book and love it, I'd like to read more stories by that author. I don't really want to wait 2-4 years waiting for their next book.


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## Elizabeth Ann West (Jul 11, 2011)

Amy Corwin said:


> If I try to short-circuit it (I tried--unsuccessfully--with my current book) and try to start writing before my brain gets the basics it wants, I just sit in front of a blank screen and don't produce anything. Or I'll write one word and then stall because I'll need the name of something or somebody and won't have it.
> 
> But that's just me. And I'm still in awe of folks who can site and write pages and pages each day.


Amy-

I also write historical fiction... and mine even has canon. Here's what I do, if I need a fact or need a name I use brackets.

Elizabeth sauntered down the hall, hearing footsteps behind her. With a giggle, thinking it was her husband, she took a swift right turn into a rarely used guest room. As she turned around, she gasped to realize the heavy footsteps were not William, but [LORD FANCYPANTS].

"Unhand me!"
"But you lured me in here, you asked for me to follow you." [LORD FANCYPANTS] sneered [check on word].

and so on and so on. Then, when I don't feel like writing, I will do a CTRL-F to find [ and fix details I didn't have. On my last draft I couldn't rememebr a child's name I had named in the previous book, so I just put a placeholder and went back and fixed it. It's really important to not break that creative flow when you're seeing a scene to type it all down.

Just a possible tip. It might not work for you... but it has saved me from the bottomless research pit many times.


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## Laura_Wingfield (Feb 6, 2014)

I'm feeling a little jealous now. I wish I could do this. But my time is limited with my kids. So it's a little slower paced. But if I did have time, I would totally try. I always wonder why people refer to this as 'pumping it out' though. Screenwriters easily churn out 30k plus words a week and sell them for top dollar.


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## Diane Patterson (Jun 17, 2012)

In the immortal words of Stephen King: "If Voltaire had spent more than three days writing 'Candide,' would it have been much better? If Norman Mailer had spent less than ten years on 'Ancient Evening,' could it possibly have been any WORSE?"

There's no correlation between speed and quality. Some of my best stuff has been done quickly, and some of it took me a while to pick at.


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## Jessica R (Nov 11, 2012)

Ohhhhh, I should stop watching tv.  Actually, sometimes when I'm watching a show that is in a genre that inspires me, I'll hear something that somehow ties into a solution for my book that I've been looking for, or it will get me in the mood to write. I'm one that likes to mull it over while I do other things too. When I'm driving or gardening or trying to sleep, that's when an answer will hit me. Also, I try to identify things in movies and tv shows that really work, structure etc.- I'm not copying, but I'll think about how I could use that concept my own way.
Maybe I should get that book. I've been researching this subject lately because I'm a freakin slow writer.


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## 77071 (May 15, 2014)

I've more or less given up TV shows, except Top Gear and Doctor Who.  I'm also trying out this new series, "Forever," which I like so far.  But yes, once I started getting serious about writing and editing and publishing it definitely took away from my TV time, and for the most part I haven't missed that.  (Once in a while there's a series I fall for, but it usually gets cancelled.  )  Generally, I'd rather read or write a book than watch a TV show most of the time.  Now if only I could develop similar habits about the internet....


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## A.A (Mar 30, 2012)

Amy Corwin said:


> I'm in awe of these quick writers. Because I tend to write historical mysteries, I find that 2k a day is about my limit. I'm always having to stop to look up a word (did they use that word in 1820?) or verify a fact. And Sometimes the plot morphs and I have to rework various plot points, etc. After 2k words, I'm usually absolutely exhausted. I usually max out a week at about 10k words--it's about the best I can do. Otherwise, I just sit in front of the screen, exhausted and unable to figure out what to write. And since the rough draft is generally between 60-75k, it takes me quite a while to even get the first draft done. Then it's editing, editing, editing. The best I've done is three months, but that was spread out so it wasn't three calendar months. (I mean, I wrote the draft, wrote the draft for a different book, then went back to edit the first book. That way, I give my mind time to figure out if I need to add/change anything in the first book.)
> 
> For my current book, I spent two weeks just figuring out the basics (coming up with character names, basic plotting, locations, historical "venue" facts, and so on). I wish I could go faster, but I just can't, even when I try. It takes me a while for my brain to figure out what it needs to know before I start. If I try to short-circuit it (I tried--unsuccessfully--with my current book) and try to start writing before my brain gets the basics it wants, I just sit in front of a blank screen and don't produce anything. Or I'll write one word and then stall because I'll need the name of something or somebody and won't have it.
> 
> But that's just me. And I'm still in awe of folks who can site and write pages and pages each day.


^ ^ This stuff factors in. I found myself looking up references every few sentences with my YA series (of which a part is set in 1920) and my current serial (which is set in the present but has lots of journal entries that are from 1930 to the 1940s) I also include a lot of sci fi elements and while none of what I write is hard science, I want to get basic facts correct, so i might spend days reading up on scientific theories.
You can put in a note and keep writing and look up the reference later, and sometimes I do, but often, the reference itself will change the sentence/dialogue/plot point and you'd just be digging yourself into a hole to write the entire book and then have to do so much rewriting later on. Also, mysteries need a lot of careful foreshadowing and reveal.

Am not saying there can't be people who can dash through research and writing and plotting mysteries at the same time. And it's very cool if you can do this.
For me, personally, I can't, and I find the constant research exhausting. But I've written other things very, very fast - I've written a spicy romance of 30,000 words in less than a week, including editing. So for me, it does depend on what I'm writing.



Elizabeth Ann West said:


> Amy-
> 
> I also write historical fiction... and mine even has canon. Here's what I do, if I need a fact or need a name I use brackets.
> 
> ...


I didn't see your post when writing mine, and I agree that if inserting notes to look up facts later works, then do it 
I've found that sometimes it does and other times the facts totally change what I would have written.


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## Amanda M. Lee (Jun 3, 2014)

I've written three 60,000+ novels since the beginning of September. One was a cozy chick lit mystery. The other two were romantic suspense installments for my new pen name. Two of them have been edited and shipped off to editors. One will be edited in the next few days. I like all of them and am happy with how they turned out. It generally only takes me a couple hours to outline a project, but I always have an idea where the story is going when I start. I plan on starting the fourth romantic suspense book later in the week. I've set a rigorous writing schedule for the rest of the year, including four more books (after this fourth RS book). I don't foresee having a major problem with it. I also work 40 hours a week as a reporter. I put long hours in, writing five to ten chapters in a sitting (10,000-20,000 words). I find, focusing hard on a project for a week helps the process and I self edit as I go. It's working for me. Perhaps others will think it sucks, but I'm happy with it and that's what counts for me.


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## Cheryl Douglas (Dec 7, 2011)

Morgan Jameson said:


> I think the trend towards pumping 'books' out is not doing the industry (or readers) any favors. I cannot see writing a book and editing it properly in less than 6 months to a year.


It can be done. I write a 60k every month and have three professional editors go through it before I publish (content editor, copy editor, proofreader). I think it depends on whether you're doing it full-time, how many hours per day you're prepared to work, and whether you have a strong formula. Thirty books in, this strategy works for me.


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## vlmain (Aug 10, 2011)

Elizabeth Ann West said:


> Elizabeth sauntered down the hall, hearing footsteps behind her. With a giggle, thinking it was her husband, she took a swift right turn into a rarely used guest room. As she turned around, she gasped to realize the heavy footsteps were not William, but [LORD FANCYPANTS].


I do basically the same thing. Once I am in the zone, I don't want anything to slow me down. If I need to research something or can't think of just the right word, I'll make a notation in parentheses and color it red so I don't miss it.


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## Cege Smith (Dec 11, 2011)

I use "XXXX" for a name or "xxxx" for some other detail that I can't remember as I'm writing. Then I fill that in on the edit.


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## valeriec80 (Feb 24, 2011)

Evenstar said:


> When are you due? I've just hit my second trimester (well actually am 19 weeks but the nausea and exhaustion are only just letting up) and trying to get back into my stride before the baby comes in February. I intend to publish three/four books by then, not sure if I'll make it though as I seem to remember the third trimester was pretty knackering too!


I'm due the second week of December. I definitely had to work up to it. Around 13 weeks, I was writing 2K a day, and then I went up to 4K, and then finally to 6K, and then it was only about 3 weeks at 7K, to be honest. I also don't have any little ones yet, and I have the added pressure of bringing in the actual pay-the-rent money in the household, so basically losing 12 weeks at the beginning and getting literally nothing done was pretty panic-inducing for me.



Elizabeth Ann West said:


> The reality is I binge write. I write 30-40,000 novellas in a 2 week span right now with everything else going on. I start off the first few days just 2,000 here, 4,000 there. About 6 days in, I'll be a at 15k-18k and all "woohoo" Then I take a day or two break because I'm daunted. Then I get all "Alright story, Imma gonna finish you" and I'll write like 5k in one day. And then rest a day. And then I'm daunted again, but a few hours later I'm like "Wait, I'm over 20k? Well hell, that ain't nothing... let's kill this." And then I write like I'm going to finish and get another 7-8K done. And then again it's all "GRRR, I'm still not done, well fine, forget you." And I am literally ::this close:: to finishing, just need about another 4-6K left.


This is really interesting. I very rarely can handle the stress of writing like that. I'm wound a little tight, lol.

In case anyone's interested, I write according to a schedule, and it's all planned out, and there is NO DEVIATION. That way lies anxiety. Must follow everything to a T--OR ELSE.

When I don't hit the schedule properly, I am awash in guilt until I hit my goal for the day. The guilt is completely demoralizing, and I can't ignore it. Either I must make my goal, or I must find some way to refigure the schedule to make sure it's not that big of a deal. (When possible, I'll figure in a bit of wiggle room for days when circumstances out of my control keep me from writing.)

Similarly, if I'm on a roll at the end of the day, and I want to keep going? I don't. I know from personal experience that it'll just eff up tomorrow, and I could actually end up in a word deficit. So I hit my goal, and I don't go over.

I find it fascinating to hear how other people work, though. Thanks for sharing. I'm totally intrigued by that.


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## DanaG (Feb 13, 2011)

YodaRead said:


> I've written three 60,000+ novels since the beginning of September. One was a cozy chick lit mystery. The other two were romantic suspense installments for my new pen name. Two of them have been edited and shipped off to editors. One will be edited in the next few days. I like all of them and am happy with how they turned out. It generally only takes me a couple hours to outline a project, but I always have an idea where the story is going when I start. I plan on starting the fourth romantic suspense book later in the week. I've set a rigorous writing schedule for the rest of the year, including four more books (after this fourth RS book). I don't foresee having a major problem with it. I also work 40 hours a week as a reporter. I put long hours in, writing five to ten chapters in a sitting (10,000-20,000 words). I find, focusing hard on a project for a week helps the process and I self edit as I go. It's working for me. Perhaps others will think it sucks, but I'm happy with it and that's what counts for me.


I bow in awe at your wordiness! I was a newspaper reporter too, which I loved, but I had no mental energy left over for writing afterwards. I didn't start writing fiction until after I left the newspaper industry.

And I echo everyone else here who recommends the 2k to 10k book. I recommend it even to people who write at a very slow pace; it just helps you become more aware of your writing habits, and can help anybody increase their writing speed, I personally believe.


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## 10105 (Feb 16, 2010)

LisaGloria said:


> Truman Capote was making condescending excuses for his missed deadlines while he was obsessing over a sociopath, if I remember right.


Capote was responding to Jack Kerouac's claim that he, Kerouac, never did any rewrite, that his first draft was what got published.


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## KGGiarratano (Aug 14, 2013)

To me there is a big difference between drafting a novel in one month and finishing a novel in one month or less. I wrote 2K words in an hour by getting off the internet. I could probably draft the damn thing in a month but it will take much longer to flesh out my characters and setting. I write clean, but shitty, first drafts. The writing is in the revisions.


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## Guest (Sep 29, 2014)

LisaGloria said:


> Ha! Funny. Yeah I probably should have looked that up.


That sparks a new question. How many people do rewrites? I do editing, but I don't think I've ever written an entirely new draft of a book. Every now and then, I'll take out a whole section, or add a new one in, but it's rare that I have to do that these days. I think that is mostly having written so much that I have a "sense" of what I'm doing and where I'm going as I do it though. I remember doing a lot more edits when I first started, but I would never have the patience to completely rewrite a project. I think my husband said Frank Herbert rewrote "Dune" ten times or something before he settled on the draft that got published. Wow.

When you put out such high-quality literature as "Kilted Tentacle Monster," I guess you don't need to do rewrites. LOL.


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## Cege Smith (Dec 11, 2011)

tunskit said:


> That sparks a new question. How many people do rewrites? I do editing, but I don't think I've ever written an entirely new draft of a book. Every now and then, I'll take out a whole section, or add a new one in, but it's rare that I have to do that these days. I think that is mostly having written so much that I have a "sense" of what I'm doing and where I'm going as I do it though. I remember doing a lot more edits when I first started, but I would never have the patience to completely rewrite a project. I think my husband said Frank Herbert rewrote "Dune" ten times or something before he settled on the draft that got published. Wow.
> 
> When you put out such high-quality literature as "Kilted Tentacle Monster," I guess you don't need to do rewrites. LOL.


By the time I get to 10K words, I have a pretty good sense if the story is going to work or not. I've scrapped 10K words and started over many times. I've written new chapters that I've inserted. I've rewritten beginnings and ending chapters. Otherwise, I have never written an entirely new draft of a new book.


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## Sophrosyne (Mar 27, 2011)

When I write, I rewrite as I'm writing, but then, at the end, I put the entire book on speaker and do another pass, as the computer reads it to me.

While I think you can write a book in two weeks, I would think you'd need another two weeks for the rewrite at least, and then another month for the editor.

Some of my favorite authors are starting to pump out books like crazy, and that's fine, as long as the quality is there. But when the editing vanishes and the quality diminishes, because the book is going through some write your first draft and publish process, I have to admit, I stop buying the books. 

I don't understand what the massive drive is to publish every month, regardless of the corners you need to cut. I'd rather wait and get a more finished story. That said, however, there are authors whose best draft is their first draft and their subsequent drafts decrease in quality. But they're rare.


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## Incognita (Apr 3, 2011)

I'm another person whose first drafts tends to be very clean (I'm a copy editor by trade, for what it's worth). I have a book out right now that took me about three weeks to write, but is 90K-plus and has a 5-star average (I'm sure mentioning it here will kill that average, LOL). If you're in the zone, you can get out an enormous amount of verbiage in a short amount of time...or not. It just depends on where you are mentally, I think.


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## Sophrosyne (Mar 27, 2011)

You know what I find helps a lot, in terms of increasing writing and rewriting speed? Deadlines. Specifically, hard deadlines. I love that indies can do pre-orders on their books now. Because once you have that pre-order deadline set, you will be in deep hot water if you miss it. I found that I went from writing 2-3 hours a day to writing 12 hours a day, to meet that deadline.


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## M. Frank Parsons (Sep 23, 2014)

Moist_Tissue said:


> *cough*
> 
> http://mentalfloss.com/article/29126/6-famous-novels-penned-under-month
> 
> ...


Good, but neither of these mention "Old Man and the Sea" which, despite Hemingway saying it took 55 years to write, was most likely cranked out in two weeks, maybe three.

And he never rewrote (so I'm told) 

ETA: and don't diss the Kilted Tentacle Monster. He's only looking for True Love™.


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## Guest (Sep 29, 2014)

LisaGloria said:


> IDK, if I ever finish the two that have gone through >3 rewrites, I guess I'll have a story about all the massive rewrites it took. But more and more, it just looks like they're going to wither on the vine. And probably, they should. It's sort of Darwinian - if they're strong enough to get born, then great.
> 
> But then I've never birthed anything as genius as Kilted Tentacle Monster either...


Give it time, and you shall reach the zenith of tentacle romance. 

I have scrapped entire books that I decided weren't worth trying to save, so maybe I'm just too lazy to do rewrites.


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## vlmain (Aug 10, 2011)

tunskit said:


> That sparks a new question. How many people do rewrites? I do editing, but I don't think I've ever written an entirely new draft of a book. Every now and then, I'll take out a whole section, or add a new one in, but it's rare that I have to do that these days. I think that is mostly having written so much that I have a "sense" of what I'm doing and where I'm going as I do it though. I remember doing a lot more edits when I first started, but I would never have the patience to completely rewrite a project. I think my husband said Frank Herbert rewrote "Dune" ten times or something before he settled on the draft that got published. Wow.
> 
> When you put out such high-quality literature as "Kilted Tentacle Monster," I guess you don't need to do rewrites. LOL.


I've never rewritten anything, either. I'll go back to do some minor edits, but I am one of those _edit as I go_ types, so I usually just give it a good once over, then send it off to my editor. Depending on comments from my editor, I may rewrite select parts, but I've never done a complete rewrite.


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## wtvr (Jun 18, 2014)

tunskit said:


> Give it time, and you shall reach the zenith of tentacle romance.
> 
> I have scrapped entire books that I decided weren't worth trying to save, so maybe I'm just too lazy to do rewrites.


From your mouth to Cthulhu's ears! ;-)

You know, that scrapping thing is underrated.


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## Guest (Sep 29, 2014)

LisaGloria said:


> From your mouth to Cthulhu's ears! ;-)
> 
> You know, that scrapping thing is underrated.


It truly is. I usually end up reusing some of the material or concept in another project.


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## vlmain (Aug 10, 2011)

tunskit said:


> When you put out such high-quality literature as "Kilted Tentacle Monster," I guess you don't need to do rewrites. LOL.


Kilted Tentacle Monster - #7,947 Paid in Kindle Store
William Faulkner - The Sound and the Fury - #13,314 Paid in Kindle Store
Steven King - Carrie - #11,523 Paid in Kindle Store
Ernest Hemingway - A Farewell to Arms - #7,949 Paid in Kindle Store

Just sayin'


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## Kia Zi Shiru (Feb 7, 2011)

NaNoWriMo 2012 I wrote 50K in 12 days, though that was including the first couple of days where I was telling myself to "just pace yourself", which didn't work. My best day was 6K.
In NaNoWriMo 2011 I wrote the last 25K in the last 7 or so days, which was actually written by hand, not typed...

For NaNoWriMo 2012 I did a few days of research, outlining and other plotting things, so I took from start of idea to finishing the book in about 16 to 20 days. But not everyone can do it and I wouldn't be surprised if I can't pull it off right now either...


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## SabrinaLacey (Dec 31, 2013)

Al Stevens said:


> Capote was responding to Jack Kerouac's claim that he, Kerouac, never did any rewrite, that his first draft was what got published.


What I heard in Stephen King's Memoir- On Writing - was that the Jack wrote and rewrote every page until he was happy with it, before he moved on... so doesn't that mean he had many drafts, just not traditional ones?

Dammit, why isn't he here to call up and ask??!! grrrr

And I just looked up Kilted Tentacle Monster... and am in awe. In AWE.


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## 75845 (Jan 1, 1970)

tunskit said:


> That sparks a new question. How many people do rewrites? I do editing, but I don't think I've ever written an entirely new draft of a book.


I write a chapter think "I wasn't planning to take the book in that direction" decide it seems interesting and write subsequent chapters based on what has been put into the previous chapters. The only rewrite is if I realise that something said in chapter two contradicts what happens in chapter seventeen. I edit the flow of the prose, but it too falls out of my head mostly fully-formed and editing is generally the correction of typos and the removal of extraneous commas. I am with Jack Kerouac.


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## JessieSnow (Jul 25, 2014)

I'm a perfectionist. On top of that, I think the saying, "Things will look different in the morning," not only applies to writing in the literal sense, but in the longer sense, too. I like to edit after I've slept on it, but also after a week or two of not looking at the same work at all. 

It's kind of like writing when you're drunk. You think you're on the ball, but only when sober can you actually tell if you were truly on the ball or just stringing words together. I'm also of the opinion that editing work written years ago is (on occasion) a good thing. You have to keep moving forward, but at the same time, your life's work is your life's work. Once you're dead, your work doesn't get any better. It just sticks around  the way it is.

People have varying opinions of what "good" means. Readers want good stories. Editors want good grammar. Writers want good... everything. 

Personally, I don't think a writer writes at their best when outputting, say, 8k per day. Certainly, it's possible, but does every word, every sentence convey exactly what you meant? Is there a shorter way or a better way to describe this or that? Is every sentence of dialogue not only necessary, but meaningful? Do multiple layers of plot interweave seamlessly with one another?

How can a writer craft and make what they're writing *better* if they're racing through the story and then declaring the work finished? I just don't get it. Some classics may have been written in a short time period, but most of them weren't and there's a reason for that.

On the other hand, if you're writing just to sell books, by all means, type away. No need to overthink it if you're not trying to become legendary. 

There is, of course, a middle ground. My output is anywhere from 1-2,500k per day, usually settling around 2k when I write at a leisurely pace all day. I also like to take weekends off though. And I'm not one of those writers who forces myself to write when I wake up with a strange aversion to writing a single word. If I do, I always hate what I've written the following day. Some days are also entirely for editing, like this week for the boxed set I'll release next week. I want it to be as perfect as possible so I can have enough closure to move on to the next project.

As an erotica writer, all this "perfectionism" may seem like overkill, but I suppose my habits from other genres overlap with my erotica. I can't write "just okay" stuff. It ain't gonna happen.


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## Todd Gunn (Sep 16, 2014)

Elizabeth Ann West said:


> Amy-
> 
> I also write historical fiction... and mine even has canon. Here's what I do, if I need a fact or need a name I use brackets.
> 
> ...


I like your way of working.


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## Dolphin (Aug 22, 2013)

JessieSnow said:


> There is, of course, a middle ground.


Yes, like people who draft 8k+ words a day and then revise and edit them later. I guarantee you that's what the vast majority of folks who do this for a living will mean when they say "I wrote 8k words today."

"X is a bad practice" or "X produces worse writing than Y" is why these conversations never go anywhere. We all know (or should know, as it's been illustrated a few times already in this thread) that many writers can't do 8k words a day on a regular basis, yet others have done their best work as quickly or even quicker. There's no pace of writing which is _ipso facto_ bad, and nobody has said you shouldn't edit or revise your first draft.

Cege nailed it on page 1: what's interesting is learning what works for other writers. What tricks have you learned to help you write faster, how do you stay on task, how do you go about tracking the pace at which you're writing, what exogenous factors play into it? We all might learn something from that.


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## Guest (Sep 29, 2014)

vlmain said:


> Kilted Tentacle Monster - #7,947 Paid in Kindle Store
> William Faulkner - The Sound and the Fury - #13,314 Paid in Kindle Store
> Steven King - Carrie - #11,523 Paid in Kindle Store
> Ernest Hemingway - A Farewell to Arms - #7,949 Paid in Kindle Store
> ...


OMG, that is hilarious. Sad that the closest I've come to producing "great literature" has four tentacles. Well, enjoy success where you can, hey?


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## ShayneRutherford (Mar 24, 2014)

vlmain said:


> Kilted Tentacle Monster - #7,947 Paid in Kindle Store
> William Faulkner - The Sound and the Fury - #13,314 Paid in Kindle Store
> Steven King - Carrie - #11,523 Paid in Kindle Store
> Ernest Hemingway - A Farewell to Arms - #7,949 Paid in Kindle Store
> ...


Yesterday KTM was at #6,868, FYI. And #92 and #95 on a couple of the bestseller lists.


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## NoCat (Aug 5, 2010)

I revise as I go (though I only count finished words at end of day for my word count) and not at all after except to fix what editor says to fix. My first drafts are 95% final draft.  I can comfortably write 7-12k words a day.

Everyone works in their own way. Work however best suits your habits and goals. For me, I hate revising, so I try to write it perfectly the first time. Other people like revising so they do that more. Etc.


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## Todd Gunn (Sep 16, 2014)

2 weeks!  How i can only dream of doing this! I could publish 25 novels in just one year and be putting my feet up in some magical, yet affordable,  tropical paradise.  50 novels in 2 years could upgrade me to European living standards!

As a novice writer, with a recently set goal of completing a book, I can punch out a very mediocre, incorrect spelling and grammar riddled 3,000 words a day.


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## Gerald (Dec 11, 2010)

One thing which affects how fast I write: the season.

During the summer months, I struggle to write 1,000 words a day. It's almost painful.

In winter, I can write 2,000 words a day, easily. I've had several 5,000 word days in the winter. I have had none in the summer. Too much bright light, too many other things to do.


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## 75845 (Jan 1, 1970)

Gerald said:


> In winter, I can write 2,000 words a day, easily. I've had several 5,000 word days in the winter. I have had none in the summer. Too much bright light, too many other things to do.


I've often wondered if that is why Seattle is such a literary city!


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## chele (Jun 5, 2013)

When I get into NaNoWriMo, I will write 50k in 30 days, sometimes much more. However, it's very much first draft and I go through multiple edits before I send it to anyone, let alone publish. 

Like others have said, some people work wonderfully on a tight schedule and are really polished in their first draft. This isn't me. 

While I could finish a draft of a novel in 30 days, I wouldn't be able to publish it like that. I'd say it takes me about 6 months to get a book from conception to publication.


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## Chinese Writer (Mar 25, 2014)

I know that if I keep a scene in mind, playing with parts of a conversation when I do laundry or wash dishes, my word count goes up when I sit down to draft. Separating the thinking from the actual the writing shows up on a lot of speed writing advice books. When I outline the scene's goal, conflict, and outcome before I start writing, I also get words down faster. 

However, I hate first draft writing. Takes me forever to get done because I hate staring at the blank page and there is more telling than showing. But I love to revise and will re-write the entire scene for the second draft. Then it's off to get critiques. Revise third draft from feedback. Then it's off to beta readers. Revise fourth draft from feedback. Then to copyeditor. Revise fifth draft from feedback. So it takes about five drafts for me to finish a book, but I'm still really new at writing. I'm hoping to streamline my process as I get more books written.


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## Guest (Sep 29, 2014)

I write about 3 to 4k a day. Sometimes that's done in four hours. Sometimes I'm too busy reading emails and playing on the internet and it takes all day. I think sometimes when people say a novel took them a year, they should think how many of the 365 days did they skip writing because life got in the way. The real amount of time it took is 365 - X days of no writing. Writing is also a mental game. I feel this block in my head that says I could never sustain a 10k a day schedule without  my brain popping, so I don't try.


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## Kenzi (Jul 28, 2014)

Are we still having this discussion? This thread pops up every month or two, with the same tired "fast is crap, slow is good" arguments.


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## Kia Zi Shiru (Feb 7, 2011)

I think one important thin to keep in mind is that some interpret "writing" as just a first drat while others see it as the process from planning to the final publication version. Those are two VERY different time schemes as many people in the topic point out.

I can write drafts in just a few weeks, that doesn't mean that I'll publish that draft. After writing I usually put it aside for a while (and wind down myself from the stress), then a few weeks later I'll pick up the book and read it once, twice or a few more times, with time inbetween just to see for any errors of flow. Then a few months later I print out the book and edit edit edit heavily. Add descriptions and other things to. That version then goes to my editor.

So, while I can write a book in a month, I need at least a month or more later on for editing and then again for the preparation of the book for publication.


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## valeriec80 (Feb 24, 2011)

Kenzi said:


> Are we still having this discussion? This thread pops up every month or two, with the same tired "fast is crap, slow is good" arguments.


There are actually only about ten topics discussed on the Writer's Cafe. It's amazing we hang out here at all with all the repetition, lol.


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## Elizabeth Ann West (Jul 11, 2011)

This one wasn't so bad all "Fast is crap, slow is good" myths. Many of us learned from each other about different processes we all took. I learned a few things..


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## dmdaye (Jun 6, 2014)

I think it's awesome if you're able to take two weeks and sit solidly at your laptop, for most it is a bit of a marathon.


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## Z. Rider (Aug 15, 2014)

tunskit said:


> That sparks a new question. How many people do rewrites? I do editing, but I don't think I've ever written an entirely new draft of a book.


I envy people who can just polish their first draft and wind up with a good story. I get a first draft down that's probably polishable & publishable...but publishing it would keep me tossing and turning at night afterward thinking of all the ways it could have been better, because while the words are usually decent (after a polish), the story has shortcomings. So I rewrite it in the second draft, typing the whole thing over, and I often do it all over again in the third draft, shoring the stupid story up more each time. From the fourth draft onward, it's edits instead of rewrites, working on both story and phrasing. I send it off to my first reader and he helps me tighten the story even more. I send the revised draft to the second reader, and he picks out the things the first reader missed. Eventually I'm finally just concentrating on words and sentence flow, which is when it's time to send it to the editor... I write fast, and I revise fast, and I edit fast, but I do a lot of drafts, so the overall project isn't very fast. Probably an average of six months, but not all at once because I work on other projects between the early drafts. (Once I hit the revising-instead-of-rewriting stage, though, I do the drafts one right after another, UNTIL MY EYES ARE BLEEDING.)

I _like_ my process, but I wouldn't mind if I were innately better at story and could cut down the work a little.  But I'm not, so...


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## unkownwriter (Jun 22, 2011)

cegesmith said:


> I see Rachel's book (which I've read several times) as a great way for forming habits to write more efficiently overall- especially when you have a limited amount of time. Maybe you don't go from 2K to 10K. But if you were normally putting out 1K and you could increase that to 1500 without feeling the effects of it being a lot of work- I think most writers would call that a win.


This is what I take away from the book as well. It isn't about writing and publishing a book a month, but about making whatever time you have to write more productive.



> Inevitably these kinds of threads turn into a quality vs. quantity debate which is unfortunate because I think the real discussion, which can be quite inspiring and motivating, is just hearing other writers' processes and culling out nuggets that you might want to try yourself to up your own game.


I've been here since early 2011, and every so often certain threads come around, where people rushed to put down someone who writes differently, or writes some genres (there have been some doozies about erotica). It used to be worse, though. Most of the die hard, "you are so wrong" crowd has either mellowed or moved on.

One draft, two drafts, a hundred drafts. Revise, rewrite, edit, or not. Weeks, months or years to write. *It doesn't matter, people.* No one is wrong, no matter how you do it. The only thing that's wrong is if you won't accept that how you do it isn't the only way.

DWS is a big advocate of Heinlein's Rules, and so am I. _For me._ My goal is to put out near-perfect -- okay, perfect -- first drafts, check for typos (which I wouldn't have to do if they were perfect  ), and publish.


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## Guest (Sep 29, 2014)

I'm genuinely curious about how other authors approach writing, rewriting, and editing. It's been a long time since I had access to a large group of writers, and I have missed discussing the craft. Plus, it's a good excuse to procrastinate.


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## Jim Johnson (Jan 4, 2011)

Sheila_Guthrie said:


> DWS is a big advocate of Heinlein's Rules, and so am I. _For me._ My goal is to put out near-perfect -- okay, perfect -- first drafts, check for typos (which I wouldn't have to do if they were perfect  ), and publish.


And Dean's living it (has been for the last year). He's written that Smith's Monthly magazine of his, which contains a novel and a bunch of short stories per issue, all new content, about 85-100k words worth of content. Per month. Every month. I'm confident he writes the draft, spell-checks it, has his readers read it, then he publishes it and moves on to the next one. Boom. Mind-boggling production.

And all you have to do is look at the blog to see how he finds the time--a half hour here and there, an hour there, creating words. Sometimes he misses a day, sometimes more than a day. I've never read him make an excuse for missing or for slacking. He just shows up to his desk when he can for as long as he can and when he does, he gets words on the page. Studying his blog is a clinic in how to be a professional, long-term writer.


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## katrina46 (May 23, 2014)

As an erotica writer, I've done 10k in one day plenty of times, but then I edit 3 or even 4 times. That's the part that takes the longest for me. Given that, I could type out a book in a week, but I'd probably edit  for a month. Then I'd put it away for a week or two and edit again with fresh eyes, so I could definitely NOT be ready to publish in 12 days.


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## katrina46 (May 23, 2014)

Sophrosyne said:


> You know what I find helps a lot, in terms of increasing writing and rewriting speed? Deadlines. Specifically, hard deadlines. I love that indies can do pre-orders on their books now. Because once you have that pre-order deadline set, you will be in deep hot water if you miss it. I found that I went from writing 2-3 hours a day to writing 12 hours a day, to meet that deadline.


I buy my book covers a head of time. It motivates me because I want to get the story out there having already invested money in it. Right now I'm doing a story that isn't working, but I know I have to make it work because I have paid for that cover and it' s on my computer waiting to be uploaded.


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## valeriec80 (Feb 24, 2011)

I don't know about other people, but I find that when I'm drafting fast, doing a lot of words per day, the story is definitely better. I'm sucked into what's going on, and I'm really dialed-in to the characters' heads, and that part is generally real flowy, and better than when I slow draft, because then so much time passes between scenes that I lose the thread, forget stuff, and make a lot of errors in continuity, etc.

But, I do notice that I make more typos, repeat more words, and struggle more to put phrases together. Which is no big--that's the kind of stuff I would rather fix in revision, as opposed to big content rewrites.

Is it similar for other people or the complete opposite?


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## Robert Gregory Browne (Mar 10, 2011)

I wrote a book for Harlequin in two and a half weeks. 50K words. The book turned out pretty good, if I say so myself, and required minimal rewriting. But writing a book in that amount of time is something I hope to never go through again. A firm deadline can be a very solid motivator. It can also make you lose a lot of sleep. 

Also, in the "fast is crap, slow is good" file, I remember when I was in college I wrote a five page paper for one of my classes about an hour before I walked in the classroom. It came back an A, with a note saying "this is very well written." About a week later, when another paper was due, I sat in the classroom before class started and was working on the paper. My professor saw I was working, came over and asked what I was doing. I told her I was writing the paper that was due. She was appalled that I would wait until the last minute to write it, so I told her that the previous week's paper was written the same way.

When I got the paper back, it had a C- on it, with a note saying it was "poorly written, needs revising."


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

tunskit said:


> OMG, that is hilarious. Sad that the closest I've come to producing "great literature" has four tentacles. Well, enjoy success where you can, hey?


Tentacles happen. 

I couldn't resist after the discussion here. I read and enjoyed it (though I'm not going to seek out other tentacle porn) as part of my KU subscription...and will be checking out your other books.

Betsy


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## Z. Rider (Aug 15, 2014)

valeriec80 said:


> Is it similar for other people or the complete opposite?


It makes no difference for me whether I write the first draft fast or slow; I still have story problems to fix afterward: character motivation/credibility, tension, various bits I didn't think of in the initial draft that make the story better when they're added, etc. I just don't possess the ability to think of everything the first time through. So I think of myself as an oil-painter type writer, adding new layers with each pass. Even working from an outline I still have a lot of work to do after the first draft. (Admittedly my outlines are more like synopses than detailed outlines, but still. I keep thinking "this time I've got it all figured ahead of time!"...and no, no I haven't. Still, as long as I'm enjoying the process, I'm good!)


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## Incognita (Apr 3, 2011)

valeriec80 said:


> I don't know about other people, but I find that when I'm drafting fast, doing a lot of words per day, the story is definitely better. I'm sucked into what's going on, and I'm really dialed-in to the characters' heads, and that part is generally real flowy, and better than when I slow draft, because then so much time passes between scenes that I lose the thread, forget stuff, and make a lot of errors in continuity, etc.
> 
> But, I do notice that I make more typos, repeat more words, and struggle more to put phrases together. Which is no big--that's the kind of stuff I would rather fix in revision, as opposed to big content rewrites.
> 
> Is it similar for other people or the complete opposite?


It's fairly similar for me, although I tend to do a quick edit of the previous day's work before I start writing, and I clean up a lot of that stuff at that point. I don't do a lot of rewriting...more like filling in details, that sort of thing. My second pass before I send it out to beta readers generally only takes me a couple of days.


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## Sophrosyne (Mar 27, 2011)

I find that when I write fastest, it's when I visualize the scene and then just write it down, without worrying about dialogue or thoughts or filling in any other extras, unless it's part of what I'm seeing. The goal is to just get the scene down. Then, during the rewrite, I go back in and flesh out the scene. 

But when I'm fleshing out the scene from the get-go, it takes a LOT longer. When I do that, I tend to go back, edit the previous day's work and then move into the current day's work.


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## Chance (Jul 2, 2014)

Didn't read all replies but...

It can happen. There are prolific writers out there (and plenty of them in fact) that CAN write in that pace, but likely not all the time. However my personal belief is that unless you have really good control in your writing, have an overflow of ideas with control, and great grasp of the English grammar, the odds that you can bring out a good readable novel in less than 2 weeks is very moot.

Personal experience: I had written a first manuscript (50k or so words) in a week or so duration. However, several things: 1.) I did not have a job at the time, 2.) I basically had no life while doing all that writing, and 3.) that first manuscript ultimately never hit the market. The reason for the latter point is because my writing was not polished at the time, and looking back at it I had improved greatly in overall writing - basically, the first manuscript (to be blunt) sucked. I read that first manuscript several months after it was finished, and I found myself pointing out the grammar - and logic - mistakes that happened along the way, and there were plenty. 

But it gave me two good giveaways: one, that if I was polished at the time, I could and can write at that pace. Two, it helped me see whether I was dedicated enough to get at least a first manuscript completed, without the inevitable self-doubts. 

Regardless, writing a novel in less than 2 weeks can happen, but it'll likely happen when you've already written and published books at a persistent and quick pace before, and whether you've already done quality work. Anyone, to be honest, can write at that pace if they have the time, but the work may be unreadable for others.


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## Carradee (Aug 21, 2010)

valeriec80 said:


> I don't know about other people, but I find that when I'm drafting fast, doing a lot of words per day, the story is definitely better. I'm sucked into what's going on, and I'm really dialed-in to the characters' heads, and that part is generally real flowy, and better than when I slow draft, because then so much time passes between scenes that I lose the thread, forget stuff, and make a lot of errors in continuity, etc.
> 
> But, I do notice that I make more typos, repeat more words, and struggle more to put phrases together. Which is no big--that's the kind of stuff I would rather fix in revision, as opposed to big content rewrites.
> 
> Is it similar for other people or the complete opposite?


I'm similar. But I also tend to have to go back and layer in description when I write fast.


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## 10105 (Feb 16, 2010)

tunskit said:


> That sparks a new question. How many people do rewrites? I do editing, but I don't think I've ever written an entirely new draft of a book. Every now and then, I'll take out a whole section, or add a new one in,


That's my understanding of what a rewrite is. You crank out a first draft. Ten percent of your time. The other ninety percent is rewriting--rearranging scenes, fixing typos, rewriting sentences, the story, the presentation, etc. Then beta readers weigh in. Then the editor gets a crack at it.

Rewriting is my favorite part of the process.


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## katrina46 (May 23, 2014)

Kenzi said:


> Are we still having this discussion? This thread pops up every month or two, with the same tired "fast is crap, slow is good" arguments.


Well they also say there are only three stories ever written in thousands of different versions, so maybe original threads don't exist.


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## katrina46 (May 23, 2014)

swolf said:


> People tend to overlay their own limitations on others.


The only thing I don't like is I've had other erotica writers suggest I have to write faster than I do in order to do well. I do not put out 2-3 books a week. I put out one every 10-15 days. My sales are picking up. I'm doing fine for a newbie. I don't think that just because other people put out a hundred titles a year means I have to or that I am not serious because I don't. Slower works better for me and that's what matters.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Kenzi said:


> Are we still having this discussion? This thread pops up every month or two, with the same tired "fast is crap, slow is good" arguments.


Y'all do know that we have new members all the time for whom the discussion is neither old nor tired? And, as has been said, there have been some good points made in this iteration. If the discussion doesn't interest you, lots of other threads.

Betsy
KB Mod


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## D-C (Jan 13, 2014)

I could write a first draft in that time. As has already been said, it's the editing/polishing that takes the time.

I don't 'rewrite' per-se, but I do edit, edit, edit, and then edit some more. Some people call this a rewrite. I don't, unless I literally scrap the first draft completely and write the whole darn thing again (which I've thankfully never had to do).


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## D-C (Jan 13, 2014)

Carradee said:


> I'm similar. But I also tend to have to go back and layer in description when I write fast.


Agreed. When I'm on fire, the story flows, but the quality suffers. Thank goodness for edits.


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## Carradee (Aug 21, 2010)

Al Stevens said:


> That's my understanding of what a rewrite is. You crank out a first draft. Ten percent of your time. The other ninety percent is rewriting--rearranging scenes, fixing typos, rewriting sentences, the story, the presentation, etc. Then beta readers weigh in. Then the editor gets a crack at it.
> 
> Rewriting is my favorite part of the process.


This really captures a core issue with any discussion: *You have to define your terms.*

"Re-writing" is one that can mean anywhere from revision (which is what Al Stevens describes) to redrafting (tossing a draft and starting over). I personally tend to consider re-writing when I chop something to pieces, re-order some of them, toss and replace others, and restitch the remains together. I rarely do that, but when I do, I enjoy the result.



DaCosta said:


> Agreed. When I'm on fire, the story flows, but the quality suffers. Thank goodness for edits.


I don't think it's the quality so much as going fast accentuates your weak spots. In my case, I tend to not have a clear image of a scene until after I'm well into it, so the description suffers in the first draft. But I also find it easier to convey emotional impact when I write fast, because I'm getting out of my own way.


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## JessieSnow (Jul 25, 2014)

Let's not forget, guys: we can write slowly, quickly, badly, horribly, whatever.. as long as we're writing. To create something from nothing takes hard work any way you do it. As long as we stick with it, there should be a certain amount of "pat on the back" we allow ourselves.


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## Evenstar (Jan 26, 2013)

Actually, in my 18 months experience on this board, I find that whenever this thread/discussion comes up the majority of people all say "Everyone is different, do what works for you." It's rare to see people bashing others for being fast or slow. I guess that probably says a lot about the type of people who come to this forum.

Anyway, I quite like these discussions because it gives an insight into how others work, which can be either quite helpful or quite motivating.


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## katrina46 (May 23, 2014)

Al Stevens said:


> That's my understanding of what a rewrite is. You crank out a first draft. Ten percent of your time. The other ninety percent is rewriting--rearranging scenes, fixing typos, rewriting sentences, the story, the presentation, etc. Then beta readers weigh in. Then the editor gets a crack at it.
> 
> Rewriting is my favorite part of the process.


I have an exact procedure. The first time I add things to make the story better or the characters stronger. Maybe I'll find better ways of saying things. The second time I'm looking for typos and grammar. The third time I'm making sure I don't have any unclear sentences. If I go a fourth time I read it out loud and see how it flows or use text to speech to have it read to me. By then I'm usually okay to publish. Doing all that, it would take me a lot longer than two weeks to write a full length novel.


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## AJStewart (May 10, 2014)

Good books take as long to write as they take. For me, I've done it by pantsing, and taken 7 years to finish a novel. I've plotted and taken 2 weeks. The later works for me. A while ago I sent a MS to my editor who said it was my cleanest, most pub ready work she'd read. She didn't know it took 2 week to write. Sometimes stories tell themselves, and sometimes they are like getting blood from a stone. Time doesn't define the quality of the story. Maybe the story defines the time it takes to write.


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## kathrynoh (Oct 17, 2012)

> For me, I've done it by pantsing, and taken 7 years to finish a novel. I've plotted and taken 2 weeks. The later works for me.


Or maybe you had to labour over that one book to get to the stage where you can write faster and better


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## Guest (Sep 29, 2014)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> Tentacles happen.
> 
> I couldn't resist after the discussion here. I read and enjoyed it (though I'm not going to seek out other tentacle porn) as part of my KU subscription...and will be checking out your other books.
> 
> Betsy


Thank you for the borrow and the review, Betsy. I also don't plan to seek out tentacle porn or write more. It was fun, but as a lifelong career move...um, no.


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

I still go at about the same speed (on Book 12 now, and I write long books) as I did in Book 1. It takes me about 6 weeks to write a 95K book, another two weeks to edit it. But a few weeks in between--during which I also attend to the rest of my life-business and publishing-business, as I tend to get pretty focused when I'm writing a book.

I publish 3-4 books a year. This is slow by the standards of some self-publishers, and very fast by the standards of my publisher and agent. Anyway, that speed has worked for me. It has actually been just fine as far as keeping visibility up and maintaining sales, I think, although some will tell you that you have to go faster. I don't think you do. I think the main thing is to go at the speed at which you can put out the very best work of which you're capable. That speed will be different for different authors, genres, series vs. stand-alone, etc. (For example, for me--I write long stand-alone books (different couples) within series. The first book of a new series will take longer to get into, because I'm not familiar with the "world" or the tone of the series yet. Also, some of my books actually require a fair amount of research. So the writing takes about the same amount of time, but the thinking-up-time can be different.)

I edit as I go, and although my finished product will have received many, many subsequent rounds of smoothing, my first draft is pretty clean. 

I think it's important to find the speed and process that seems to work for you, and then not worry too much about somebody else's speed and process.


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## AJStewart (May 10, 2014)

kathrynoh said:


> Or maybe you had to labour over that one book to get to the stage where you can write faster and better


Not maybe. Absolutely the case.


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## WDR (Jan 8, 2014)

Ray Bradbury wrote _Fahrenheit 451_ in almost three weeks. Though, there is a catch to this.

The first version was written in about nine days and published as a 25,000-word novella in 1951. Two years later, his publisher urged him to expand it into a novel. So, he took another nine days and doubled the length of the book, which was then published in 1953 as the book we all know.

Bradbury qualified the speed by which Fahrenheit 451 was written by pointing out that he had already addressed much of the story's concepts in several other stories he had written earlier. This echoes what a number of posters here have commented, that it is difficult to judge writing time without taking preparation and research time into account. That isn't to say that a story can't just come pouring out of a writer, as many others have also pointed out. Sometimes, you sit down and the story idea is so hot, it just keeps flowing until you're done writing it.

As far as quality vs. speed and speed vs. quality, consider Stephen King and George R.R. Martin, two highly successful authors. Martin takes years to pump out one book. King writes so many books in a year, he was forced by his publishers to publish much of his output under a variety of nom de plumes.

I average about 2,500 words per day, but I know I'm capable of much more, as I can and do pull off 4,000- and 5,000-word days. For me, most of it depends no how often I'm interrupted by one thing or another. I'm one of those greenhouse writers who works best in isolation.

How much output you can generate depends on you. Can you increase your output? Definitely! Just like training for sports, you can train yourself for writing. The key thing is, make yourself write each day-regardless of whether it is a little or a lot. Getting bored working on the current story? Then start writing another one. Tired of creative writing? Try doing a blog entry for the day. I find blog-writing to be a good way to break up any writer's block. It's a way to vent, clear out extraneous or random thoughts, and flex my writing brain in other ways.


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## heidi_g (Nov 14, 2013)

Elizabeth Ann West said:


> The reality is I binge write. I write 30-40,000 novellas in a 2 week span right now with everything else going on. I start off the first few days just 2,000 here, 4,000 there. About 6 days in, I'll be a at 15k-18k and all "woohoo" Then I take a day or two break because I'm daunted. Then I get all "Alright story, Imma gonna finish you" and I'll write like 5k in one day. And then rest a day. And then I'm daunted again, but a few hours later I'm like "Wait, I'm over 20k? Well hell, that ain't nothing... let's kill this." And then I write like I'm going to finish and get another 7-8K done. And then again it's all "GRRR, I'm still not done, well fine, forget you." And I am literally ::this close:: to finishing, just need about another 4-6K left.


Ooh, I'm a total binge writer too! And... it goes a lot like how you described! Slow start... then it builds, then a day or two of low output, then push-push-push. I haven't been able to even out my productivity, i.e so many words a day, so I'm just learning how to schedule myself around the way that I seem to be most productive... in sustained bursts.



Sophrosyne said:


> You know what I find helps a lot, in terms of increasing writing and rewriting speed? Deadlines. Specifically, hard deadlines.


Deadlines do a lot for me too


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## swolf (Jun 21, 2010)

katrina46 said:


> The only thing I don't like is I've had other erotica writers suggest I have to write faster than I do in order to do well. I do not put out 2-3 books a week. I put out one every 10-15 days. My sales are picking up. I'm doing fine for a newbie. I don't think that just because other people put out a hundred titles a year means I have to or that I am not serious because I don't. Slower works better for me and that's what matters.


When I first started writing, it took me five months to write a 15k short story. Now I could probably put something like that out in two or three days, including editing and the cover.

Sounds like you're doing better than me at this point in your writing career.


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## swolf (Jun 21, 2010)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> *In the metro DC area? Come by my booth at Art on the Avenue in Alexandria, VA on Sat, Oct 4!*


Just missed you by a week. We were in DC this past weekend.


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## harker.roland (Sep 13, 2014)

swolf said:


> People tend to overlay their own limitations on others.


Swolf just dropped the mic....

On another note, I read Rachel's book and, while my output didn't increase (I too find myself with a limited amount of time to write), I found that when I did sit down to write I was far more focused and productive. 2k to 10k taught me how to properly plan an outline a piece before I sitdown to write so when I do sitdown I am laser focused.


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## Abalone (Jan 31, 2014)

I feel like this book let alone some of the personal anecdotes in this thread can become a double-edged sword for new authors. The ones who feel they can write a single draft with minor editing and publish it. "If they had all those sales, then surely I will too!"

Like traditional publishing, there's a lot of bad in self publishing. Though I suppose it comes with the territory in any creative field.


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

AA2014 said:


> I feel like this book let alone some of the personal anecdotes in this thread can become a double-edged sword for new authors. The ones who feel they can write a single draft with minor editing and publish it. "If they had all those sales, then surely I will too!"
> 
> Like traditional publishing, there's a lot of bad in self publishing. Though I suppose it comes with the territory in any creative field.


Almost anyone who's selling in good numbers that I know of (perhaps not in erotica, don't know) is putting out well-edited, well-formatted, well-presented work, I think it's safe to say. However long it takes them to write the first draft. Maybe it's helpful to keep that in mind.


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## LBrent (Jul 1, 2013)

ㅈㅈ said:


> Eh. You write at the pace you write. Some people write good books slowly. Some people write good books quickly. Some people write terrible books slowly or quickly, it doesn't matter.
> 
> I've written every novel I've ever done in less than 4 weeks. Nobody cares. Nobody knows. Nobody can tell the books that took me 3 weeks or the books that took me 3 days (hint, length has nothing to do with it). Nobody can tell what I wrote while sick or tired or angry or whatever. All that readers care about is if the book is any good. Plenty of people can write a good book inside a month. Plenty of people can't.
> 
> Do what works for you.


Exactly!


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## Abalone (Jan 31, 2014)

Rosalind James said:


> Almost anyone who's selling in good numbers that I know of (perhaps not in erotica, don't know) is putting out well-edited, well-formatted, well-presented work, I think it's safe to say. However long it takes them to write the first draft. Maybe it's helpful to keep that in mind.


Right. I should have clarified my post. Some out there see the success of these well-written authors and presume that it's as simple as pumping out words and doing some vague editing. Maybe a tiny rewrite here and there. I feel the best way to get my point across is the old adage, "Easier said than done."

P.S. My girlfriend loves your books.


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## Amanda M. Lee (Jun 3, 2014)

Rosalind James said:


> Almost anyone who's selling in good numbers that I know of (perhaps not in erotica, don't know) is putting out well-edited, well-formatted, well-presented work, I think it's safe to say. However long it takes them to write the first draft. Maybe it's helpful to keep that in mind.


To be fair, I have seen some authors making bank on stuff that doesn't read like it has been passed by a friend, let alone editors or even passable beta readers. I can think of three offhand (and, no, I will not name names).


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## Abalone (Jan 31, 2014)

I can name about 12 people from a private reddit group who are making five-figure incomes from erotica sales. It's mind boggling. I'm a man, I tried my hand at it, but found myself snickering more than being aroused. Think Anderson Cooper laughing. Yep, that was me. 

Also Rosalind, if my gf decides we must go to New Zealand before marrying, I'll be sure to pass on the travel bill to your office.


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## Guest (Sep 30, 2014)

I'm exhausted just reading your process, Eelkat. And 537k in a month would kill me. 25k per week sounds reasonable and what I plan to aim for when my toddler starts kindergarten--if my hands and shoulder hold up. I might have to invest the time to train Dragon Naturally Speak some day.


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## Crystal_ (Aug 13, 2014)

For me, it's the editing that sucks up time. Even with a detailed outline, I need to write at least three drafts. Often, I'm rewriting over half of the content. I'm hellishly awful and plot, and--this is not a slight to anyone who can accomplish this quickly--I really want to dig deep with the subtext, themes, and emotions. This takes me several drafts.

This may sound like a lot, but I used to write 5-10 drafts for each of my screenplays. I've got that down to 3-5, which feels about right.

For some reason, I can't really envision the big picture unless I have a finished draft. The little details--those things that come up while you're writing, like a line of dialogue or a specific description in a scene--are what end up driving the big picture, and I can't see those darn details without writing the draft.

I honestly, cannot fathom how anyone could publish a lightly edited first draft. It is so antithetical to my process that I literally cannot imagine it.

I can write pretty quickly if I'm motivated. But, the only way I'll be motivated to write quickly is if I give myself a word count goal. For me, 2k words a day, five days a week is manageable. This usually takes me two to four hours. I'll often go over and write 3k or 4k words.


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## valeriec80 (Feb 24, 2011)

tunskit said:


> I might have to invest the time to train Dragon Naturally Speak some day.


I think you'd be surprised at how well it works right out of the box, actually. The thing to do is to have it scan all the books you've ever written (it'll pop up and ask to scan your documents. Just make sure to give it your books). That improves accuracy a ton.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

swolf said:


> Just missed you by a week. We were in DC this past weekend.




EDIT: Hope you enjoyed your visit to my hometown!!!


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## Z. Rider (Aug 15, 2014)

CrystalKay said:


> For some reason, I can't really envision the big picture unless I have a finished draft.


This is me too. I need to get it out of my head before I can step back and see what I have to work with.


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## swolf (Jun 21, 2010)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> EDIT: Hope you enjoyed your visit to my hometown!!!


Loved it. Got to see some things we've never seen before, like Mount Vernon, the Library of Congress, and a tour of the Capitol. Also took the Moonlight Monument tour.


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

AA2014 said:


> I can name about 12 people from a private reddit group who are making five-figure incomes from erotica sales. It's mind boggling. I'm a man, I tried my hand at it, but found myself snickering more than being aroused. Think Anderson Cooper laughing. Yep, that was me.
> 
> Also Rosalind, if my gf decides we must go to New Zealand before marrying, I'll be sure to pass on the travel bill to your office.


i don't think I could write erotica either. My folks have to know each other for about 150 pages before they do the deed. That isn't going to fly, I fear.

I laughed about NZ! Don't you think Air NZ should at least upgrade me? I know I've influenced more than a few vacation destinations!


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## vlmain (Aug 10, 2011)

valeriec80 said:


> I think you'd be surprised at how well it works right out of the box, actually. The thing to do is to have it scan all the books you've ever written (it'll pop up and ask to scan your documents. Just make sure to give it your books). That improves accuracy a ton.


This brings up a question. I have used dictation on a few projects (I use my smart phone and Evernote), and I love that I can get a lot done in a very short time. However, I have noticed the words that come out of my mouth are different from the words that would fly off my fingertips if I was using my keyboard. The content I dictate seems very stiff and matter of fact. When I am writing, it is more fluid and creative.

Did you have the same experience in the beginning? Is this something that gets better with practice? I would like to use dictation more, because I have arthritis in my hands and it's getting harder to type, so I'm hoping this is something that improves over time.

Edited for typo


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## wtvr (Jun 18, 2014)

tunskit said:


> I might have to invest the time to train Dragon Naturally Speak some day.


I'm with ya, sister. Thought it's pretty tough to arrange your thoughts for dictation and I gave up immediately, the wear and tear on our poor paws...


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## Guest (Sep 30, 2014)

I didn't know you could have it scan your books. That might be a newer version than I have. It didn't feel natural to me--and I don't like having people hear/read my work before it's done--so I boxed it. I also had the same problem as vlmain. When I was speaking the narrative, it didn't sound as good as it does when I write it down.


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## Chinese Writer (Mar 25, 2014)

vlmain said:


> This brings up a question. I have used dictation on a few projects (I use my smart phone and Evernote), and I love that I can get a lot done in a very short time. However, I have noticed the words that come out of my mouth are different from the words that would fly off my fingertips if I was using my keyboard. The content I dictate seems very stiff and matter of fact. When I am writing, it is more fluid and creative.
> 
> Did you have the same experience in the beginning? Is this something that gets better with practice? I would like to use dictation more, because I have arthritis in my hands and it's getting harder to type, so I'm hoping this is something that improves over time.
> 
> Edited for typo


Unfortunately, dictation while gets more accurate the more you use it, but is still interrupts your flow (at least in my experience). I've been using dictation on and off for the last 5 years.

Recently I discovered mechanical keyboards for gamers. I bought a Cool Master's Cherry MX mechanical keyboard up with red switches.OMG! What the difference it makes on my wrist. It is pretty much touch typing. When you don't need to put any force on the keys, it really saves your wrists and hands. Even my Logitech Ergonomic keyboard and my MBA keyboard feel stiff now. I used to feel the beginnings of my carpal tunnel after half an hour of typing. Now I could go for about 2 hours before I feel the tingling on my fingers.

For writers, I would recommend the red switch or the brown switch. There is a little tester kit you can buy on Amazon to figure which switch you would to pick for about $10. The product description describes the differences between the various switches. The red and brown have the same actuation force, but the tactile feel and clickness is different. These keyboards are expensive though. So I recommend getting the tester if your local computer store don't have any on display for you to try out.


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## swolf (Jun 21, 2010)

I use Dragon off and on, depending on my mood.  I've discovered that my output doesn't improve with Dragon, due to two reasons.

First, it's not perfect, so you're constantly checking to make sure it heard you correctly, and going back and fixing things. Some of the 'mis-hears' are so far off, you'd never know what you intended to say if you didn't fix it right away.  

Secondly, and this is probably related to the first, but I've never gotten in the 'zone' while using Dragon like I do when I'm typing.  Maybe if I used it more, I would become as comfortable with it as I am with the keyboard, and the words will just flow, but I haven't reached that point yet.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

swolf said:


> Loved it. Got to see some things we've never seen before, like Mount Vernon, the Library of Congress, and a tour of the Capitol. Also took the Moonlight Monument tour.


If you were at Mount Vernon, you were a couple miles from my house...we can ride our bikes to Mt Vernon, though we don't 'cause the roads are too busy and narrow. Did it once, though.

Isn't the Library of Congress amazing? It's my favorite building in DC. Haven't done the Moonlight Monument tour. Though I've seen most of the monuments by moonlight.  I love the monuments at night--glad they're lighting them up again.

Glad you enjoyed it.










Betsy


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## Donna White Glaser (Jan 12, 2011)

I've been using Dragon for a couple of months now and it's doubled my output. Part of that, though, is just the "Look, Ma! No hands." novelty of it.  But hey! It's getting my words out there.


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## swolf (Jun 21, 2010)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> If you were at Mount Vernon, you were a couple miles from my house...we can ride our bikes to Mt Vernon, though we don't 'cause the roads are too busy and narrow. Did it once, though.


We might have drove by your house. I set the GPS to 'Mount Vernon Estate', and it took us to this housing plan that I think was called Mount Vernon Estates. Following the directions, we pulled into this cul-de-sac where a guy was cutting the lawn and the GPS said, "You have arrived at your destination." To which my wife snarkily replied, "I thought Washington's house would be bigger than this." 

But we eventually found the right place a few miles away.

Edit: Here's the cul-de-sac we pulled into: https://www.google.com/maps/@38.722561,-77.108623,849m/data=!3m1!1e3



Betsy the Quilter said:


> Isn't the Library of Congress amazing? It's my favorite building in DC. Haven't done the Moonlight Monument tour. Though I've seen most of the monuments by moonlight.  I love the monuments at night--glad they're lighting them up again.
> 
> Glad you enjoyed it.
> 
> Betsy


Just got a quick glimpse of that side of the Library of Congress, but the other side was just as incredible:


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## kpaul (Jun 18, 2013)

Kerouac's On the Road is just one example of writing a novel quickly. It's easy to burn out writing that fast.


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## 77071 (May 15, 2014)

This thread is very interesting.  I realize I've often felt a bit embarrassed about being able to write fairly quickly.  But if I was a runner who'd practiced for years, would I feel embarrassed about being swift on my feet?  No.  I'd keep practicing and do my best to take care of my skill and improve it.  It's just the same with writing, really.  It's taken me years to get where I am, and no one will ever really know how many I suspect!


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

swolf said:


> We might have drove by your house. I set the GPS to 'Mount Vernon Estate', and it took us to this housing plan that I think was called Mount Vernon Estates. Following the directions, we pulled into this cul-de-sac where a guy was cutting the lawn and the GPS said, "You have arrived at your destination." To which my wife snarkily replied, "I thought Washington's house would be bigger than this."


ROFL...had to share that with my husband.



> But we eventually found the right place a few miles away.
> 
> Edit: Here's the cul-de-sac we pulled into: https://www.google.com/maps/@38.722561,-77.108623,849m/data=!3m1!1e3


That's a bit closer to our house, but a much nicer neighborhood than we live in.  We're on the "wrong side of the tracks, er, Route 1." Though my husband was out mowing the lawn last weekend.



> Just got a quick glimpse of that side of the Library of Congress, but the other side was just as incredible:


Yes, love that side, too. Love the whole building....I could take pictures there all day long...we took a tour the last time we were there.

EDIT: Our house is more like this:








 But we do have high-speed internet.


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## swolf (Jun 21, 2010)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> EDIT: Our house is more like this:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


   

For some reason the Beverly Hillbillies tune is running through my head.


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## valeriec80 (Feb 24, 2011)

Yeah, Dragon is waaay less than ideal. Typing is so much better in every way except for OUCH. 

But when I'm in a lot of pain, I use it because it's better than not getting anything done.


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## Abalone (Jan 31, 2014)

artan said:


> For writers, I would recommend the red switch or the brown switch. There is a little tester kit you can buy on Amazon to figure which switch you would to pick for about $10. The product description describes the differences between the various switches. The red and brown have the same actuation force, but the tactile feel and clickness is different. These keyboards are expensive though. So I recommend getting the tester if your local computer store don't have any on display for you to try out.


Coolermaster

Reds are the most common, brown and blacks are quiet but rare. Blues are the most stiff and loudest. Personally as a computer engineer I still prefer traditional keyboards because I'm not a fan of the tactile feeling I get from mechanic keyboards. If anyone doesn't want a gaudy keyboard but wants mechanical, I'd suggest the DAS brand. It's more expensive, but worth it.


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## Abalone (Jan 31, 2014)

Also reading a few of the replies toward me I've noticed something. Some of you write 3-4 books a year and are very successful. Say you wrote every day for 60 days. Each day you banged out 4,500 words on the dot. Divide 270K into 4, and you've got 4 books that are 67,500 words each. Spend another 1 month editing and beta'ing it, and you've got a year's worth of release ready. Heck, you can do that all year long if you want to stretch your sanity.


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## SabrinaLacey (Dec 31, 2013)

Got this book after reading this thread and, when I'm writing, my word quota has grown to 3k a day. Today I hit 5.2k without a problem because of things she pointed out to me in the book. Namely: where do you write the best (less distractions) and plot out your story. 

Caveat - I don't like to plot. My entire Hearts Series happened of the characters's own volition. I'm like Mr. King who wrote in his memoir that he never plans the end. Ms. Aaron does plan the end. I just don't wanna!! I want to be surprised, so I can keep the surprise for my readers, too. HOWEVER, the book I wrote today is a Christmas spinoff of my Hearts Series as it's doing the best of my books right now. I know these characters through and through for 6 volumes of novellas. I love them to pieces. All I had to do is think, after what they went through, what would their Christmas be like, and what's interesting enough to write about, that will happen to them? So... with the end in mind, I scene-plotted like Ms. Aaron suggested, and boom. 5k words that oddly, didn't suck. 

I may have felt better than I do after my normal 3k. So... buy the book if you haven't. I don't know if I will (or want to) reach 10k, but I did up the antie (someone spell that for me) and had a good time doing it. <3


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## Abalone (Jan 31, 2014)

I haven't had the chance to read more, so I may be going against her advice here, but does anyone write with music on? I use Spotify myself and am able to tape into thousands of playlists to my heart's content, myriads of languages, etc.


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

AA2014 said:


> Also reading a few of the replies toward me I've noticed something. Some of you write 3-4 books a year and are very successful. Say you wrote every day for 60 days. Each day you banged out 4,500 words on the dot. Divide 270K into 4, and you've got 4 books that are 67,500 words each. Spend another 1 month editing and beta'ing it, and you've got a year's worth of release ready. Heck, you can do that all year long if you want to stretch your sanity.


I think it just depends on the author's process. For me--It takes me a month to have my books and characters fill my head, and to do the research. Then I write up to 5k a day for five to seven weeks, in books that are up to 117k long (so I guess I could write 6 books a year instead of 4, except I don't write that length), editing as I go, to get their story down. With thinking time where I walk and run and ride my bike to let it marinate. Then 2-3 weeks of editing. And audiobooks and print books and marketing and a bunch of other stuff, and the next book's characters gradually filling my head.

It's really not a production line, and I actually believe that that is WHY I am quite successful. That my characters feel real, at least that's what people say. (And that my books are long, and they enjoy that.) Besides, what the heck would I do with those months? I work every day, 7 days a week, almost 365 days a year, because it's my favorite thing to do. It's not a job. It's fun. It's my life. I enjoy it, and I think it shows. At least I hope so.

I know other people deal with it much more as a job, but I had jobs I didn't like that much for 34 years. Now, I pretty much don't do a darn thing I don't like to do. I write exactly what I feel like writing. I don't even do any marketing I don't enjoy. It's not hard work. It's the easiest, the best, the most fun job I've ever had in my life. It's great.

(My production schedule, if anyone cares--in 3 months July to October, I will have thought up and written, um, let's see. Three books, about 180K words. 60K/month. Two novels and a novella. One out at end of July, one out in December, one out in June. Then I'll write three more books before Sept. 1, another 280K words or so, out June, September, and December. Four books in 2014, 3 novels & a novella. Four books in 2015, all novels. That's fast enough. That feels like enough. Maybe somebody else could make twice what I do going twice as fast. That's OK too. I think I'm going to have a good end of 2015, and meanwhile, I'm able to have pretty much the life I want, take a few research trips too.)


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## vlmain (Aug 10, 2011)

AA2014 said:


> I haven't had the chance to read more, so I may be going against her advice here, but does anyone write with music on? I use Spotify myself and am able to tape into thousands of playlists to my heart's content, myriads of languages, etc.


Always! Music really inspires me and I find it very helpful. It seems to get my creativity flowing.


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## Kia Zi Shiru (Feb 7, 2011)

Keyboards: My boyfriend has a mechanical one (he's a gamer) and he loves it. I'm not a fan, the keys are too high, he has light in them and it just feels weird.
I use a Razer Arctosa because 1, I'm also an avid gamer, and 2, it's flat while having regular keys (most of their newer non-mechanical keyboard have the keys that Mac computers made popular in the last few years, I don't like them). It's like typing on a laptop but without the bad screen angle and the bulk under the keyboard, which I like.
That said, I also use a Razer Naga Hex, which is a mouse, during writing, editing and formatting. The macro keys on the side allow me to put Header 1, italics, bold and a few other things under them for formatting or "accept change", "discard change", "discard comment" and things like that for editing, which does away with the need for using the keyboard or on-screen buttons for those options.

Music: I listen to a lot of music while writing, not just for the feeling of it but also because it shuts me off from the rest of the world, so I don't get distracted. During NaNoWriMo (only 1 month left) I also like to share my music list with others, just because I can


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## Amanda M. Lee (Jun 3, 2014)

AA2014 said:


> I haven't had the chance to read more, so I may be going against her advice here, but does anyone write with music on? I use Spotify myself and am able to tape into thousands of playlists to my heart's content, myriads of languages, etc.


I watch television series. It's always stuff I've already watched, so I don't get too distracted. That's my background noise. I'm starting Lost again tomorrow. On deck after that? Angel and then Gilmore Girls.


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## Elizabeth Ann West (Jul 11, 2011)

From a plotter to pantsers:

Just because you have planned out the end DOES NOT mean that is what will happen when you get there.  Think of your outline or notes as your road map. You're on a journey. But you're driving. So if the passengers in the car (your characters) want to go somewhere else at the last minute, you can turn the wheel and veer off into the wilderness. 

I find having an outline MORE freeing creatively. Because I have a plan, I feel comfortable sitting down at the keyboard and writing whatever comes. Most times it's pretty close to the outline, other times it's way different. Sometimes my outline is just a bunch of Point A, Point B, Point C. And it's a puzzle to get my characters through the checkpoints. HOW we get there is often a mystery as we're typing, but having that structured thought put my brain's creative thoughts into overdrive. Sometimes the little details that come up and get used later (plants) surprise me, but it was subconscious rendering of the outline plot data that produced that.

Now, if I looked outline or note cards as set in stone, I could see how that would be stifling. But I know I'm still always the boss, and I'm really good at changing my mind.


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## valeriec80 (Feb 24, 2011)

AA2014 said:


> Also reading a few of the replies toward me I've noticed something. Some of you write 3-4 books a year and are very successful. Say you wrote every day for 60 days. Each day you banged out 4,500 words on the dot. Divide 270K into 4, and you've got 4 books that are 67,500 words each. Spend another 1 month editing and beta'ing it, and you've got a year's worth of release ready. Heck, you can do that all year long if you want to stretch your sanity.


Here's the thing. More books does not equal more success. They have to be books that people want to read. Theoretically, yes, if you release more content, and people are clamoring for it, then yes, more success. But there are all kinds of factors at play here, and let's not forget that everyone gets sick of everything eventually, so to keep rolling, there's going to have to be some kind of turnover to your audience. Or it's got to be this little treat that a reader doesn't get all the time, so she gets excited because of the scarcity...

Don't get me wrong. I totally release about once a month, and my books are generally longer than 67,000 words. But this in and of itself does not make me successful--at least not as successful as I'd like to be. This month, for instance, on Amazon, I sold 546 copies across 45 different titles (and some of my titles sold a big goose egg). 200 of those copies went to two titles. TWO.

The point of publishing a lot and publishing often, I've always thought, is that it's like buying a lottery ticket. Increases your odds. But if you go into this thinking that book A sold 100 copies, so once I've got book B out, I'll sell 200 copies... No. It rarely works that way. Actually, you might sell several thousand of the two combined, or you might sell even less total copies of both books. With the way the algos work, it's an all-or-nothing game. People are either seeing your books (and if they're visible, they're being purchased) or they aren't (and if they aren't visible, they aren't being purchased). And that is something we all have far less control over than the amount of words we can write a day.


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

valeriec80 said:


> Here's the thing. More books does not equal more success. They have to be books that people want to read. Theoretically, yes, if you release more content, and people are clamoring for it, then yes, more success. But there are all kinds of factors at play here, and let's not forget that everyone gets sick of everything eventually, so to keep rolling, there's going to have to be some kind of turnover to your audience. Or it's got to be this little treat that a reader doesn't get all the time, so she gets excited because of the scarcity...
> 
> Don't get me wrong. I totally release about once a month, and my books are generally longer than 67,000 words. But this in and of itself does not make me successful--at least not as successful as I'd like to be. This month, for instance, on Amazon, I sold 546 copies across 45 different titles (and some of my titles sold a big goose egg). 200 of those copies went to two titles. TWO.
> 
> The point of publishing a lot and publishing often, I've always thought, is that it's like buying a lottery ticket. Increases your odds. But if you go into this thinking that book A sold 100 copies, so once I've got book B out, I'll sell 200 copies... No. It rarely works that way. Actually, you might sell several thousand of the two combined, or you might sell even less total copies of both books. With the way the algos work, it's an all-or-nothing game. People are either seeing your books (and if they're visible, they're being purchased) or they aren't (and if they aren't visible, they aren't being purchased). And that is something we all have far less control over than the amount of words we can write a day.


I sell about the same of every book. They've all sold and continue to sell, but Valerie is right. That isn't because I can dump anything out there and it will sell. I'm pretty sure they've sold because I've written the story I felt compelled to write, have taken the time to let it come to me, and have sure I've written and polished it to the best of my ability. How long that takes will depend on the writer. I write very steadily but I couldn't publish a book a month because it takes a month after one book is out just to think up the next one. The book has to fill my heart as well as my head to work.

Other genres may be different. But for me writing character-driven romance, that's the deal. I'm kind of making a point of answering this because I used to read threads like this and think I should be doing things differently. I had to stop myself and say, this way is working for you and you're doing fine with it. Keep doing it your way. Other people can do whatever they want. And that's the deal. If it works for you to go straight from one book to another and write it in two weeks, great. If it doesn't, great. You don't have to write a book a month, two months, three months to sell lots of books. And writing faster won't necessarily mean you sell more.


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## C. E. Stocker (Sep 18, 2014)

Rosalind James said:


> I know other people deal with it much more as a job, but I had jobs I didn't like that much for 34 years. Now, I pretty much don't do a darn thing I don't like to do. I write exactly what I feel like writing. I don't even do any marketing I don't enjoy. It's not hard work. It's the easiest, the best, the most fun job I've ever had in my life. It's great.


Definitely agree with this sentiment. I think it's great for productivity and output to incorporate some of the aspects covered in the From 2k to 10k ebook--I picked it up after seeing this thread, and she did have some valuable advice. I've always been a pantser but there's just too much compelling advice out there on plotting to ignore, so I plan on incorporating it more into my writing.

But the key for me is to not let the writing become so routine it starts to feel like drudgery. I'm new to the self-publishing aspect and I have hopes of being able to carve out at least a small foothold somewhere with my writing, but writing right now is still something I have to squeeze around my day job and other obligations. The process still represents a release for me. I guess the worry for me is that I don't have to sacrifice that feeling too much just to be productive.


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## vlmain (Aug 10, 2011)

Thanks for the feedback on Dragon and the info on keyboards. At this point, I'm willing to try just about anything!


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## Kia Zi Shiru (Feb 7, 2011)

I read the first part of "2k to 10k" last night, will probably read more of it today. While I do use quite a bit of this, I also 'forgot' about most of it when I moved to a new place and had to get new routines last year...


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## ShayneRutherford (Mar 24, 2014)

SabrinaLacey said:


> but I did up the antie (someone spell that for me)


Ante, I believe.


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## Andrew Broderick (Aug 6, 2014)

C.Saffron said:


> Personally I just want to be entertained, that's why I buy and read books. If I read a book and love it, I'd like to read more stories by that author. I don't really want to wait 2-4 years waiting for their next book.


That's why I, as someone pretty slow compared to the speedwriters here, plan on queuing up my books to be released ~6 weeks apart.


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## SabrinaLacey (Dec 31, 2013)

ShayneRutherford said:


> Ante, I believe.


Thanks!


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## valeriec80 (Feb 24, 2011)

Rosalind James said:


> I'm pretty sure they've sold because I've written the story I felt compelled to write, have taken the time to let it come to me, and have sure I've written and polished it to the best of my ability. How long that takes will depend on the writer. I write very steadily but I couldn't publish a book a month because it takes a month after one book is out just to think up the next one. The book has to fill my heart as well as my head to work.


This is not why you sell well. If it were, it would work for everyone, and I do the exact same thing, and it doesn't work as well for me.

But I have mad respect for you, and I wish that things had come easily for me, so that I could be all optimistic and think that people would just like me for me too. (Or maybe it's the other way around--maybe if I were optimistic, things would have come easily for me.) I'm reminded of the Lee Child/Joe Konrath convo that's happening on his blog where Lee Child is all, "Hey, I didn't have any advantages you didn't, Joe. But whyever I'm selling better, it's totally because I did something right that you didn't do." And Joe's like, "No, dude, it was luck. Seriously. I'm not caving on this."

I see both sides. If I say, "Rosalind, you got luckier than me," then it sounds like I'm trashing all your hard work, which is not my intention. But if you say, "Valerie, you're not selling as well as me because you don't write what you're compelled to write, and you don't polish it enough," not only is that not true, but it's also insulting (which is clearly not your intention). So, it seems we can't have the conversation without insulting each other.

I don't really believe in objective truth, so I suppose we all have to tell ourselves whatever truth helps us keep going. And when things are going well, I think that truth is, "I must be doing something right." And when things are going badly, I think that truth is, "It's not my fault." Thing is, things have gone badly for me too much. So even when things are going well, I can never really believe that it's because I'm doing something right. My truth--for better or for worse--is that it's mostly chance, that the universe is governed by random occurrences, and that the best one can do if she wants to be happy to accept one's portion and try to be content with it.

But I do think that you, Rosalind, are a fabulous, stand-up person. I admire your work ethic, completely agree with your stance on writing what speaks to your soul, and wish you all the best, because you deserve it. Cheers! (Also, I just reread your post, and I don't think you were actually saying what I initially thought you were saying, but I still wanted to make this point, and I took all the time to type it out, so I'm going to post it, but don't consider it directed at you personally or anything, even though it's addressed to you. Um...  yeah. Sorry.)


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

valeriec80 said:


> This is not why you sell well. If it were, it would work for everyone, and I do the exact same thing, and it doesn't work as well for me.
> 
> But I have mad respect for you, and I wish that things had come easily for me, so that I could be all optimistic and think that people would just like me for me too. (Or maybe it's the other way around--maybe if I were optimistic, things would have come easily for me.) I'm reminded of the Lee Child/Joe Konrath convo that's happening on his blog where Lee Child is all, "Hey, I didn't have any advantages you didn't, Joe. But whyever I'm selling better, it's totally because I did something right that you didn't do." And Joe's like, "No, dude, it was luck. Seriously. I'm not caving on this."
> 
> ...


If it helps--I absolutely agree with you. I got way luckier than I had any right to be. Believe me, I don't attribute my sales to any fabulous talent that others don't have.

I guess I'm saying that I wouldn't have done anything differently. That I started doing this because I loved it, and that's the thing I try to hold to, when I start getting anxious about writing some certain way so readers will continue to want to read me. I have to dance with the one what brung me, and that's writing the book in my heart. That way, even if everyone else hates it, at least I did my best. I satisfied myself.

My best to you. Thanks for making your point so well, and in a way I could hear and appreciate.


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

Also, on a lighter note--I think I write really good sex. Maybe that's the real secret!


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## Abalone (Jan 31, 2014)

Rosalind James said:



> Also, on a lighter note--I think I write really good sex. Maybe that's the real secret!


Well that certainly explains why my sex life has improved these last few months.


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## unkownwriter (Jun 22, 2011)

Jim, I hear you. I found Dean's blog early on, and really took his opinions and experience to heart, along with some others'. I was working really well until 2012, when my mother got sick. Then last year my father was diagnosed with a disease that threw us for a loop, and my writing basically stopped. It was too much to keep up with everything, when both were going to the doctor every week, and my own family drama.

This was going to be my year, finally. Except I've been sick myself most of the year. So, now I'm starting over. Again. Getting back into the routine, trying to improve my craft, get those stories published as best I can. 

I'm getting older, so I don't really have time to spend years working on one project. I've got to get myself organized and become more prolific, or all the stuff in my head will die with me. I hope I have another 30 years (and my family on both sides is normally long-lived, with mental faculties intact {knock on wood} so it's possible), but no one knows when Death will arrive.

Gosh, I sound really bummed this morning, but I'm my usual upbeat self. Ah, well. Carry on writing, however you get 'er done. 

2015 is going to be my year, though!


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

AA2014 said:


> Well that certainly explains why my sex life has improved these last few months.


LOL.Tell her to read my Xmas book. (You know, feel-good for the holidays.) Dec. 1. You're welcome.


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## vlmain (Aug 10, 2011)

Rosalind James said:


> I think it just depends on the author's process. For me--It takes me a month to have my books and characters fill my head, and to do the research. Then I write up to 5k a day for five to seven weeks, in books that are up to 117k long (so I guess I could write 6 books a year instead of 4, except I don't write that length), editing as I go, to get their story down. With thinking time where I walk and run and ride my bike to let it marinate. Then 2-3 weeks of editing. And audiobooks and print books and marketing and a bunch of other stuff, and the next book's characters gradually filling my head.
> 
> It's really not a production line, and I actually believe that that is WHY I am quite successful. That my characters feel real, at least that's what people say.


The reader in me loves this! I have a hard time getting into a story if there is no depth to the characters. I want them to feel real. I want to get sucked into their life.

When I think about some of my favorite books--the books I didn't want to end, I realize it wasn't really that I didn't want the _story_ to end, but that I was really going to miss the characters. Books I have read numerous times, like The Thorn Birds, are because I miss the characters. It's not like I don't know how it will end--I read it again and again because I miss Father Ralph.

I think you have done a great job of explaining how those kinds of characters come to be.


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## PaulLev (Nov 2, 2012)

My record is two months - for an 80,000+ novel, Chronica (Sierra Waters Book 3), now available for pre-order.

But that was during June and July of this summer, when I wasn't teaching (I'm a professor), and wasn't doing anything much more than swimming, walking, and relaxing. My hat's off to anyone who can write anything that length in two weeks.


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## Abalone (Jan 31, 2014)

Typed out 40K words since Thursday. I used that nifty Tomato method and broke the session groups at 5 AM, 1 PM and 9 PM. I'm going to wait until next week to finish because I want to conduct more research into the novel I have going. I'm still waiting on some French records.



 Rosalind James said:


> LOL.Tell her to read my Xmas book. (You know, feel-good for the holidays.) Dec. 1. You're welcome.


Is that preorder? I'm not seeing it on your 'Zon profile.


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## 77071 (May 15, 2014)

Is this the Tomato thing you mean? I'm not familiar with it, but this is what Google showed me when I tried to find out what you meant

http://tomato-timer.com/


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

AA2014 said:


> AA2014 said:
> 
> 
> > Typed out 40K words since Thursday. I used that nifty Tomato method and broke the session groups at 5 AM, 1 PM and 9 PM. I'm going to wait until next week to finish because I want to conduct more research into the novel I have going. I'm still waiting on some French records.
> ...


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## a_g (Aug 9, 2013)

HSh said:


> Is this the Tomato thing you mean? I'm not familiar with it, but this is what Google showed me when I tried to find out what you meant
> 
> http://tomato-timer.com/


Try The Pomodoro Technique. I think that's what was meant.

http://pomodorotechnique.com/

The manual used to be free.

If you're interested, pm me.


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## Kia Zi Shiru (Feb 7, 2011)

I'm gonna trial run my boyfriend's new mechanical keyboard for the week. I just realise I'm gonna have to make an arm rest as it's too high, but I hope my typing pressure might improve because of it.


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