by Dave White
I am very superstitious.
When my favorite team is in the playoffs, I try to sit in the same seat, drink the same beer, and eat the same food. I will readjust the angle of my cap and wear the same shirt.
The same goes with writing. When things are going badly, I'm always looking for a way to switch things up. I go to a coffee shop to get a different outlook. I take a few days off before writing. I write in the morning or late at night instead of right after work.
But when things are going well, there is no messing with me. I sit in the same seat. I write in the same seat. I follow the same routine (the one I chronicled last week.). I try not to overwrite something and I try not to underwrite. That means I write a complete scene. I try to up the stakes and give me a damn good cliffhanger to figure out the next day. I shoot for 1000 words. Sometimes it's higher sometimes its lower.
And I ride the hot streak. I go as far as I can for as long as I can.
What I'm saying is... I'm going to keep this blog post short, because I don't want to jinx anything.
Are you a superstitious writer? How? Why? What are your routines?
5 comments:
I just try to keep my butt in the chair and hope for the best. If I have a routine, it's an unconscious one.
My main thing, when I get in a slump, is to break out pen and paper. Dunno why but that breaks the log jam. Other than that, I just go. I try to be routine-less so I don't get hamstrung on the routine itself.
I've always been a write anywhere anytime kind of guy and that really comes in handy now with kids around. I find my writing streaks mimic my reading streaks. If i'm reading a lot of cool stuff I tend to write faster and better. but mostly it's just a daily slog. My worst writing slumps are when i get away from it for more than a couple of days.
I'm not superstitious. It's bad luck.
Things usually go well for me if I stick to a routine...like get up at 6am and just start writing. So far that's working. If I don't do that then it doesn't work...I don't get any writing done at all some days if I don't do it first thing.
I guess I just keep doing what works...is that superstitious or just smart?
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