#as a sidenote i just found out tsp is currently about 187 pages long. that is. so sad LMAO

[gerrydelano]

I keep going to write stories, listening to songs that inspire me but... but I just sit there getting emotional about the stories and not writing them. How, HOW, do you get to 43 pages? Any hinters? This isn't meant to be pushy btw, it's okay if you don't want to answer, I love your blog!

oh. oh g-d i’m sorry to be misleading that’s how long my PLANNING document is KJDHKJDSK that’s just the outline! 

…which. i now see may actually make this look even worse oHGHG. sorry! 

this isn’t pushy, dw, i’m just. when it comes to stamina and page count, my personal standards are deeply skewed, so i’m not sure i’m the best person to ask? i did surprise myself, though, and finally came up with a list, so i hope this helps some!

first off, like. when i say my perception is deeply skewed, i mean it. i actually really damaged myself very badly when i churned out 390 pages in 10 weeks during the Great Manic Episode Of 2019, so anything i do now never feels #Enough even though i know that was. a superhuman feat that required literal months of recovery lol. 0/10 recommend.

so my advice is this!

do not stress yourself out! take it easy.

ride the wave, man. just go with the flow! find your personal schedule and just, write when you can, whatever comes to mind.

don’t hold yourself to unrealistic deadlines. deadlines have helped me to motivate myself, but they also stressed me out; if deadlines help you to keep a goal in mind, by all means, go for it! but do NOT put your health at risk just to meet a deadline writing a fic or something, it is not worth the brain pain that’ll come with it. your readers can wait! you are more important.

do what makes you comfortable and happy, don’t base your creative process around what other people might be expecting from you, don’t do it for anyone but you.

don’t compare yourself to other writers. certainly don’t compare yourself to me; i’m a statistical outlier and i should literally NEVER be counted.

(really, though. one of the worst habits i have is comparing myself to other writers and feeling guilty and jealous every time someone either churns out something really long or really fast, because i feel like i should constantly be doing Better than i am doing. it’s all bullshit, babey!!!! don’t let yourself fall for it when your brain starts telling you that type of shit. your accomplishments are special and impressive and if you’re proud of it, that is ALL that matters!)

plan things out in a way that works for you. make an outline that suits you and is accessible and easy to follow! it doesn’t have to look like my example ones (which i show in this response about how i plan my projects), it needs to be YOUR speed and YOUR style and you have to be able to actually USE it. get creative! have fun with the outline.

seriously, my 43 page long outline is going to help me write the 32+ chapter series. i would not be able to do THAT without the outline. make OUTLINES.

separate things into documents and like, keep notes in the document underneath what you’re writing so you can see it/cross out whatever you cover as you cover it. that helps me visually!

i find that i CAN’T write if i’m sitting right next to ren because i get paranoid, and i can’t write when there’s music or TV on. however i CAN write in places like cafes and dining halls where there’s ambiance and foot traffic? though that’s not super applicable during quarantine times, it’s definitely something to keep in mind for the future. find settings that make you comfortable and help you focus! 

for me, the hardest part of writing is sometimes just. figuring out that first sentence. i’ll have a whole outline but until i come up with that hook, i’m LOST and i’m staring at my doc for days. once you come up with that sentence, take the fuck OFF and RUN just GO GO GO find your rhythm and your tone and stick with it!

don’t be afraid to just write without editing as you go, like. i’m an animal (read: evil awful demon) so i get real pedantic in the moment and honestly when me and ren beta each other’s shit it’s just us screaming at the content we hardly EVER actually EDIT each other’s stuff, so everything of mine is virtually 100% unedited hgjhvkbjn.

DO NOT DO THAT! do not be us!!!! we are bad examples!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

seriously, just write EVERYTHING that comes out and come back to it later, don’t judge yourself as you’re doing it just live in that moment and pop it out and THEN go back and fix it. 

really, i am assuming most people are not off the rails like us and would greatly benefit from giving themselves some breathing room. don’t be afraid to produce drafts before you worry about the Final Version. no piece of writing is ever actually finished. there is ALWAYS something to change.

forgive yourself. be proud of yourself. be kind to yourself. encourage yourself. LOVE your work. ENJOY what you’re doing. don’t punish yourself while trying to do what you love. if you set a standard and don’t meet it, forgive yourself and try again.

honestly, a good tip i saw once was “set a standard that would be almost IMPOSSIBLE to NOT meet, and you’ll end up going above and beyond that just because you want to.” like instead of telling yourself to write 500 words a day, tell yourself you’ll write 100. or even less, like 75! because i can guarantee you’ll get going and word count and realize “oh shit, i hit 200 without realizing? y’know, i have enough energy to keep going!” and it’ll be a really nice way to kind of train yourself into feeling a LOT more accomplished than you might if you said “i’m gonna write 1000!” and only wrote 230. 

length wise, for me, it’s just. i really do have Can’t Shut The Fuck Up disease. i have… terrifying stamina when i really get in a zone, which usually requires literally being manic, or it being between the hours of 3-7 in the morning. neither of which are ideal conditions! don’t be like me, i really am off my shits like 90% of the time. i have no real advice because i don’t know how i manage it most of the time, i really do just get an idea and just go.

so, that part is a personal thing that i can’t help you with. the best i can do is advise you on how to cultivate your own setting that is comfortable and conducive to your personal creative process!

wow look at me i sound so smart 😊

anyways

just, do not do not do NOT compare yourself to other people that may be the most important piece of advice in that list up there i can tell you right now it’s a surefire way to really hurt yourself and damage your art so just make sure you are setting your own pace and doing what you love FOR YOU okay! okay i hope some of this helps jgvhbknkm good luck also thank u ilu!!!!