Devious Journal Entry

Crank

I have lately been writing a story every day. It is, for me, a perfectly natural writing cycle. I spend the day pondering a story and then, upon waking, I sit down and crank it out. I don't feel bound by the routine, knowing full well that days come when making up and writing a story can't rise above my other needs. I also know that a day or two off track is no hindrance to getting back into the groove. I keep pondering and keep writing.

Part of the joy of this particular full bore approach to writing is that weak stories can come and go without generating much of a ripple. I don't worry if the story is poor. I don't worry if the writing is bad. I'll get it over and done with, move on past and get to the next, hopefully better story. What I often find, is by ignoring my evaluation of the story in progress that the resulting story is often significantly better than I thought it was. The internal critic is our worst enemy. Pay it absolutely no  heed.

One of the hardest part is avoiding the distraction of feedback. Nothing slows my writing as much as wondering what people think. My focus shifts to the response and hits, which has absolutely nothing to do with writing my next story. Considering the tastes of my audience has an even worse effect. Trying to find another story to write is challenging enough without trying to find a story that pleases some stranger. Making things harder is never my task. Make things easier and get on with it.

Practice is the stuff. Keep the words flowing, day after day, hour after hour.