Perhaps because I'm showing every calendar day of my 68 years , or maybe because I've been typing poems, reviews, short stories and features stories for over 40 years some folks have assumed that I know what I'm talking about . A few anonymous folks on the various internet venues that concern themselves with creative matters have been brave enough to pose a question or so to this graying and cranking presence. Most recently a soul queried whether " writing 500 words a day, three times a day, too much?" The question wasn't quite clear as posed--did they mean writing 500 words three times a day? Charge, said my ego, bluff your way through the ambiguity. This is what I answered :
"Not if it works for you in terms of getting the writing done . If you have a lifestyle that would not be adversely effected by writing according to a work schedule—social life, family responsibilities, personal care—then no, it’s not too much. Consider that the word “write” is a verb in the sense that I’m using it, and verbs describe action; writers write, it’s an activity they perform on a regular basis. It’s why we call them writers. Consider also that great writers, popular writers write pretty much every day because there is usually a project they are working on, a writing project they are more than likely getting paid for.
"This mean the writers are working against deadline, and that means they have to “go to work” to meet the deadlines and be paid for their labor. Which brings up the next point, that writer is an occupation, and that writing is labor, work. Even authors of literary masterpieces will tell you no less than that. If you desire to be a writer, whether poet, novelist, playwright, screenwriter, or even a dedicated blogger, you have to have the discipline to take a seat and write as required whether you feel like it or not. Getting started is the hardest part of writing."
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