This week, I wrote a piece on how to do editing/rewriting for this website.

Creating writers’ resources and news articles for this website works well for me because it’s educational. Writing about re-writing made me think about book number two (Two Slices of Carrot Cake) and its progression. It’s at first draft stage and I know it’s too full of extraneous detail and exposition.

There are chapters that are self-indulgent, chapters that do not move the story on and pieces that I have used to add in some anecdote that doesn’t belong, but just because I liked it.

So… time to start on the re-write.

Writing about how to do a re-write also made me think about book number three, currently in progression. When I’ve been writing this one, I have felt myself wandering and going off on tangents and the chairperson in my head snaps to attention. “Is this relevant? Back to the point please!”

Anyway, because I like stats and figures I thought I’d tot up my approximate weekly word count

• Book number three - 5,300 words 
• Rewrite of book number two - 600 words 
• Paid work – 7,900 words for clients 
• CBP website words – 1,500
• Total – 15,200 (approx.).

What’s your weekly word count this week?

Massive disclaimer: saying that I have written two books and am in the process of writing a third might make me sound impressive. Bear in mind that I might have written them, I might even have published one of them – but are they any good? Copies sold? Ah, a different matter entirely… 

Bless her cotton socks. The muse chose to grace me with her presence this week… This was not a happy accident. Self-discipline played its part.

As I make a (poor) living from writing, the paid work always comes first as prioritisation goes, but with a little extra zeal I resisted shilly-shallying and enforced certain rules for the paid work – no checking emails mid blog and no faffing about on the internet unless research was really necessary – to get it done as quickly as possible.

Apparently, people get a dopamine hit these days from being able to find out something instantly. Say you are watching a TV programme and you recognise an actor, but can’t remember the name. A quick look at IMDB and you are all the wiser, instead of having to rely on that “A-ha!” 3am moment when said actor’s name finally pops into your head.

I am one of those poor souls, my brain peppered with holes from all those dopamine hits I take throughout the day as random thoughts cross my mind and demand instant answers.

• ·         Ooh – lamb would be nice on Saturday. How do you cook a leg of it?
• ·         What’s on at Cineworld on Friday?
• ·         Am I going to need an umbrella tomorrow – what’s the weather doing on Tuesday?
  

[Given that I live on the west coast of Scotland, the answer is “raining” more often than not.]

Not giving into those instincts to instantly find out the answers makes you much more efficient – and therefore able to clear the necessary paid work in good time. And that frees up more time for your own creative writing.

Self-discipline needed for creative writing… revelatory, hmm?