Rules for Writing

Write every day. Outline the entire book before you start writing it. Stick to a writing routine. Never revise until you've finished the first draft.

Okay, so I am going to assume not everyone spends as much time thinking/reading about writing but those are a few of the writing rules that seem to crop up a lot. I've seen them a lot on Pinterest which makes them seem less than credible but I've also heard some of them from published, very successful authors. So clearly they know what they're talking about.

But I disagree with all the rules I just listed.

Why? Well, I have specific issues with every one. First, most people have jobs and lives outside of writing so writing every day is a rule that is just waiting to get broken. Sooner or later, you won't get to write because you have to work late or finish homework or take care of the screaming kids. But beyond that, it's been my experience that there are some days when the words won't come. So I don't write that day. I go on Netflix, I read, I clean my apartment. Then I try again the next day. Honestly, maybe some people need to write every day and that's what some people like. That is totally fine. But don't assume that because it works for you it makes it a 'rule' for how to write. It's not.

Outlining is a little different because I've written books that I outlined in meticulous detail. For Crown & Claw, I wrote an outline. But for Black & Gold, I didn't. The latter didn't need the outline-the former did. So I decide whether to follow this based on the story in front of me.

Writing routines are another iffy matter. Most of the time I see this advocated in the context of writing at the same time every day for the same amount of time. Which frankly makes writing seem like a job (I know it's technically a job but be quiet, what other job can you do without pants on?) and that does not work for me. Sometimes I write for an hour in the morning, sometimes at night. Sometimes I write in little 15 minute bursts throughout the day. Yeah, routines are great if they work for you but, like writing every day, that does not make a it a rule.

The last one is about revising before you've finished the first draft. Honestly, this could have a whole post all to itself and maybe it will. For now I will say that the finishing the first draft is in many ways the greatest obstacle to writers simply because it requires so much time and commitment to one idea, to one set of characters. I've been writing and then I've realized something about a character that drastically changes their story line and I have to go back and fix it before I can go on. This is fine. Stories unfold in unexpected ways and making it fit together is just as important as finishing it. When you revise to make this happen is entirely up to you.

Here are my personal rules for writing.
1. The only thing you have to do to be a writer is write.
2. If you had to do two things, the second one would be read.
3. Give yourself a break when you need. Better to write a slightly better first draft than have to write three extra drafts.
4. Don't write when you're hot and miserable.
5. Don't write when you're too tired and start telling instead of showing.
6. Write down ideas you get when you're trying to fall asleep. No, you won't remember them in the morning.
7. There are some scenes you have to write at night. There just are.
8. Don't waste rainy days by not writing.
9. Save the document frequently.

But really, they're more like guidelines. Except for number 9.