Discipline of Writing. Writing as a Discipline.
First, there is the discipline of writing.
Writers have long touted the value of the discipline of writing. While the strategies and goals to accomplish this task vary, the primary advice is relatively consistent – write everyday.
Some say its best to write for a fixed length of time, while others insist on a daily word count. A few others state that the best way to start a day’s writing is by reviewing the previous day’s work, while some say that writing every day at the same time is important. Whatever the strategy maybe, the underlying theme is one of consistent practice.
As much as I know the theory of it, I have always had a difficult time putting it into practice. The longest I’ve written was five days in a row, and that too since I had to complete my dissertation proposal. After that, I could never get myself back on track.
Until now, that is.
In December 2011, my family and I moved from the US to Italy. I decided that it would be fun to chronicle the adventures of my first year – 365 Days in Italy in a blog, which I’ve called Observing Ourselves Observing.
There are days when I have to force myself. But I know it’s going to pay off – that by the end of the year I will have mastered the art of the discipline of writing.
Second, there is writing as a discipline.
If the discipline of writing is hard, writing as a discipline is even worse. So much so that it gets me tied up into knots.
I am a closet-writer. I use the phrase closet-writer with great prudence, as I am afraid of the backlash with the non-hyphenated version. The backlash of course is totally in my head, a twisted perception of reality, if you may. Yet it exists, therefore it is true.
Lav Chintapalli signing The Crayon Who Wore a Cap at an Art Festival
And this is why: If I say, “I’m a journalist’ I don’t expect anyone to respond with a ‘What have you written?” But if I say, “I’m a writer” I can pretty much expect that question. And of course, by ‘written’ they mean ‘published’. However, in order to be published, someone from the giant publishing industry has to accept my writing, and validate my existence as a writer. Therein lies my dilemma. In order to say that I am a writer, I feel like I need to earn my living as a writer. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
But writing as a discipline is a different sort of beast. It’s a beast that demands manifestation! I know this for a fact cause I see my 7 year old writing stories on paper, napkins, laptop, the notepad on my ipad. She is indifferent to the medium – it can be a clay tablet for all she cares. She writes because she wants to write. She does not wait for an audience, although she does try to recruit one. Perhaps therein lies the secret to becoming a full-fledged writer – simply writing!
Write. Write because you want to. Write when you don’t want to. Write.
No one clarifies it better than Maya Angelou who chided, “Some critics will write ‘Maya Angelou is a natural writer’ – which is right after being a natural heart surgeon.” And she is absolutely right. Writing as a discipline can only be honed by the discipline of writing.
And since I write, a writer, I am.
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This is Lav Chintapalli’s 2nd guest essay with us. Her first was Memoir: Agony and Relief.
Lav is the author of The Crayon Who Wore a Cap.
Subscribe to Lav Chintapalli’s blog Observing Ourselves Observing, or her professional blog Human Dynamix.
Follow her on Twitter @LavChintapalli.
Category: Being a Writer, Expatriate Writers, Indian Women Writers, On Writing
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I constantly here friends saying, “I’m not really a writer…” to which I just shake my head and sigh. You write, ergo you are a writer. I don’t get why this is so complicated, but apparently it is.
Now I’d choke a bit at calling myself an author, yes I’ve (self) published a book, and have a novel coming out in November. But it takes more than one book to make an author, right? *eyeroll* People can be damn silly at times, can’t we?
i love to write. but discipline eludes me. when i’m able to focus and write i’m pleased with my results, and i’m pleased with the reception i receive based on my output. i find that my thoughts are consumed with ideas of what to write, but again, lacking discipline my output is often sporadic.
i have surges and moments in time when all i can think to do is write. these days i’m more apt to tweet or comment on a topic i find interesting as opposed to sitting down and putting my thoughts into a salient coherent piece.
growing up, i knew that i always wanted to be a writer, but i was told that writing was a hobby and that i needed to get a profession. this has always stuck with me. and even though i now have all the encouragement i need to go forth and write, that little bugaboo sticks to the back of my head.
Bolaji – Thank you for commenting on Lav’s post. Discipline eludes many of us in different areas.
I know that experience of the surges and moments ending up in tweets or comments, rather than going for sustained writing – or as you say, a ‘salient, coherent piece’. That takes more time. Duration. And for me a marinating period when I let the piece chill, add flour to my hands if it were dough, so it doesn’t stick.
Yes… that old brainwashing – writing is a hobby not a profession. We have a strong freelancer community in the Raleigh, North Carolina area, and many of them are earning a living writing articles, book chapters and ghost writing books. And there are corporate writing jobs as well.
Still the pursuit of some longer articles than comments is so important, and I’m having to make that a priority myself. — Anora McGaha
The importance of everyday writing is immense. I’m lucky enough to have started this habit very early in my writing career. I’m not saying write pages and pages each day, but have your note pad with you wherever you go, and jolt your thoughts down; even the ones that don’t seem important. Those concepts will later spark some more ideas and so on. I think a writer writes because there are bottled up passions for a specific topic, raw emotions, and a particular knowledge present, which all press for expression. But that’s just my 5 cents…
Lovely comment Ulrike. I find if I don’t have pen and paper with me, I get a little frantic. I’ve asked waiters and waitresses for pens, and am always writing on paper napkins, the backs of paper placemats, paper hand towels. You’d think I’d know to always have paper on me. And mostly I do.
You are lucky to have started your habit early. I’m hopeful that where there’s a will and a dream, there’s a way.
–Anora McGaha, Editor
Caveat – the “write every day” thing has clobbered many a would-be writer because if they don’t SIT AND WRITE every day they feel that they have somehow failed. But writing is a process, not an action. Sometimes taking a long walk or a hot shower or just sitting by the window watching it rain and sipping a cup of coffee counts as writing, because you untangle a plot point while you’re doing that, or reimagine a scene, or figure out a setting, or simply take your story in a different direction you weren’t expecting but which improves it immeasurably. In other words, “write every day” need not mean just putting your butt in the chair and your fingers on a keyboard (or on a pen, depending on how you do this). Sometimes you just have to take the time out to THINK about the cigar, so to speak, before it becomes a real enough cigar for you to write about.
If someone calls themselves a writer, then I only assume that they like to write. I don’t know what you call the profession of a paid writer. Novelist? Journalist? Copywriter?
I would rather throw those sorts of titles out the window. Writing should be celebrated because of the freedom it gives the soul. If we start trapping ourselves into corners worrying about the next pay check, we will never get started.
Susan, thank you so much for commenting. So many hesitate to call themselves writers because they think only people who are paid for writing are writers.
But, as you say, if they like to write, they can call themselves writers.
Writing does give the soul freedom, especially if writing about what matters deeply to us. — Anora McGaha