Hard relate here. I started a new job a few months ago and it’s the first time I’ve been full time since my eldest was born, first time managing a large team & a service (I work for a council), and first time I’m an employee rather than a consultant. I spent several years in jobs I could do in my sleep, accommodating being a mum to little kids. All of this means I’m at the top of my current capabilities. It’s good- I needed the challenge to grow. Coming home after work does not mean chill out- it means laundry/ dinner/ teen emotional drama. And I need to rest to have the energy I need. It does not come naturally to me ! Off on hold in two days and I will be reading by the pool (Toxic paperback is already in my case), drinking rosé and doing very little else.
Because I spend a lot of time in indie publishing forums, I’m constantly berating myself for not being able to produce copy at the rate of these writers. They’re doing 5-10k words a day! But even if I could get to 5k words (which I can just about do with dictation) I have to recover the next day. HOWEVER, totally agree it’s like building muscle. I am so much better at it now because I’ve built stamina but also accepted I need the rests in between. (The same is also true of dictation, which is like any learned skill and improves with practice).
(Ps SO lovely to meet you last night and share teeth pics 😁)
Some people can be WILDLY productive - and to some people, I’m the wildly productive one. (I was talking to someone on Saturday who asked how I write so much, and my honest answer is that I don’t think I do - but everyone’s workrate is different.) It also depends a lot on what the words are: I knew someone who split their day into mornings for writing Amazing Unlimited erotica (highly formulaic, I think they completed a “novel” a fortnight), and writing their own fiction (a book a year maybe). I don’t think I could do that without burning out, but it’s a good illustration of how the kind of writing affects the quantity that’s possible.
Yes, the fact that many of them are writing police procedurals or romance helps them churn out the (actually very high quality considering) copy, but they'd all be the first to admit they're not writing great masterpieces.
I was talking to James O Malley about this the other day. It was reassuring to hear how long his Substacks take him, since mine take me far too long. He, meanwhile, was intimidated by how much copy Matt Yglesias can fire out. Some people are just crazy productive. (I once asked Stuart Dredge to write up a piece for me as I wouldn't have time. We chatted over messenger (Skype - it was the old days) and he sent the copy while we were still chatting. It would have taken me bloody ages and he did it while chatting to me! I have sat next to him liveblogging as well and I cannot believe how well and how quickly that man can write.)
Hard relate here. I started a new job a few months ago and it’s the first time I’ve been full time since my eldest was born, first time managing a large team & a service (I work for a council), and first time I’m an employee rather than a consultant. I spent several years in jobs I could do in my sleep, accommodating being a mum to little kids. All of this means I’m at the top of my current capabilities. It’s good- I needed the challenge to grow. Coming home after work does not mean chill out- it means laundry/ dinner/ teen emotional drama. And I need to rest to have the energy I need. It does not come naturally to me ! Off on hold in two days and I will be reading by the pool (Toxic paperback is already in my case), drinking rosé and doing very little else.
I hope you enjoy Toxic! Here's to having a revitalizing break and coming back stronger!
Good Lord, that Giles Coren piece. I may need a bleach bath, and I couldn’t even finish it.
It is truly extraordinary.
Very much choosing not to click on that link for mental health reasons
It’s very… honest. I almost typed “self-lacerating”, but actually, it genuinely is. Eek.
I couldn’t get past the first sentence! 😂
Because I spend a lot of time in indie publishing forums, I’m constantly berating myself for not being able to produce copy at the rate of these writers. They’re doing 5-10k words a day! But even if I could get to 5k words (which I can just about do with dictation) I have to recover the next day. HOWEVER, totally agree it’s like building muscle. I am so much better at it now because I’ve built stamina but also accepted I need the rests in between. (The same is also true of dictation, which is like any learned skill and improves with practice).
(Ps SO lovely to meet you last night and share teeth pics 😁)
Some people can be WILDLY productive - and to some people, I’m the wildly productive one. (I was talking to someone on Saturday who asked how I write so much, and my honest answer is that I don’t think I do - but everyone’s workrate is different.) It also depends a lot on what the words are: I knew someone who split their day into mornings for writing Amazing Unlimited erotica (highly formulaic, I think they completed a “novel” a fortnight), and writing their own fiction (a book a year maybe). I don’t think I could do that without burning out, but it’s a good illustration of how the kind of writing affects the quantity that’s possible.
Yes, the fact that many of them are writing police procedurals or romance helps them churn out the (actually very high quality considering) copy, but they'd all be the first to admit they're not writing great masterpieces.
I was talking to James O Malley about this the other day. It was reassuring to hear how long his Substacks take him, since mine take me far too long. He, meanwhile, was intimidated by how much copy Matt Yglesias can fire out. Some people are just crazy productive. (I once asked Stuart Dredge to write up a piece for me as I wouldn't have time. We chatted over messenger (Skype - it was the old days) and he sent the copy while we were still chatting. It would have taken me bloody ages and he did it while chatting to me! I have sat next to him liveblogging as well and I cannot believe how well and how quickly that man can write.)