How to pace yourself when writing?

All Things Writing
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Heyo peeps, Angel at it again. I’d appereciate y’all’s help with a question.

As a writer, I tend to bingewrite, then burn out really quickly, or get writer’s block, or just plain old ditch the book. And in general, i’m very impatient when it comes to my writing. I rush projects and get irritated and frustrated with myself when i don’t hit enough big milestones in a certain period of time.

Additionally, I tend to push myself to and beyond my limits. Meaning: I HAVE make projects extremely complicated and high-concept or else they’re not interesting.

Combine these, and you get a disaster. I rush high-concept projects and then have a serious amount of underdeveloped things (characters, worldbuilding, etc) and then ditch the book because it’s no longer working.

I’m aware that most of this is probably due to writing being a coping mechanism for the stresses of life in various ways. Namely, writing is the only thing (besides some very important and helpful people) keeping me afloat right now, through a very challenging time in my life. It leads to me always being a perfectionist and thinking about the final product. When the thing i’m doing doesn’t match the final product, I panic and start rushing or start being very aggressive towards myself, which doesn’t help my goals to create a quality book.

I find this situation frustrating as it i’m unable to regulate myself and/or find a balance. Any tips would be appreciated :))

Thank you!

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I’m guessing you’re a pantser and don’t like to outline first? Outlining solves so many problems like this, and if you discover a better scenario while writing you can always change your outline. You’re not handcuffed to it.

When pantsing I tend to write a dozen or so chapters, then hit a brick wall. So I read the whole book from the beginning, and often when I get to the brick wall part it’ll occur to me what logically needs to happen next, so I can move forward again. You could also try just making a list of possible scenarios that could happen at that point and see which one sounds best to you. Or think of what the absolute worst thing that could happen right now would be. When stuck, adding more conflict will usually help. ¯\_(ﭢ)_/¯

Question: when you reread your work, do you usually like it? Or does it make you want to rip it up and start over? I agree with you about a project being complicated and high-concept or else it’s not interesting. The problem is how to get it to where you yourself love the concept and look forward to reading your own work. If you’re already there, then that’s at least one problem down. I know of writers who only like writing the book to discover what’s going to happen. Once they know the whole plot, it bores them and they don’t want to read it a second time. Is that you? If so, I’m not sure what to do to fix that…but will try to help! ( ˆ◡ˆ)۶ ٩(˘◡˘ )

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I deal with that, but it is due to my mental health making me that way.

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I can relate! Then you end up with so many ideas that are unfinished, but then you have too many elements that need fixing that just end up overwhelming you, so you start a new idea, but then the same thing happens and the cycle repeats and you end up with an endless list of unfinished projects~

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Exactly-

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true true., very valid.

for me it’s kinda the same. but it’s also a bunch of other things that can be fixed if you have the right skillset.

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yes :joy:

outlining makes me drop a book :sweat_smile: I feel like I already wrote it before I wrote it, if you get what I mean. I like figuring out what happens as I write. maybe i’ll outline a little bit in advance (the next chapter, for example), but mostly I don’t because it makes life boring.

i’m also a chronic underwriter. each chapter ends up 2 pages when it’s supposed to be 5 or 6.

this sounds really helpful! i’ll try that.

i’m head over heels with it. :))

ironically that’s part of the problem. I’m so obsessed over my concept in the beginning because I find it so cool and amazing that I can barely actually write it because it seems perfect as it is and there’s no need to change anything/am too attached to change anything that I find not working.

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yes! this is me too! I’m always so excited to receive feedback and then when it comes down to it, I realize I hate editing my own stories bc I get too attached to how I already wrote it :joy:

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There is such a thing as pacing?.. Shit! I think I missed that memo!

SD

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:joy:

yeah lol :joy:

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One of the things that helps me is to have multiple projects working at a time.
I tend to be actively writing on one or two projects. That gives me a choice on where my brain wants to put its effort for the day. That almost never is a full chapter of writing, however. I hit stumbling blocks all the time, or come to a part I’m not quite ready or comfortable putting down (got one in the current chapter of my current work as a matter of fact).

When I hit that wall or need time to mull how to approach the next piece of the story, I pull out several already written projects and work on editing.
See when I initially write a story, I tend to be focused on the major beats of the plot and getting from A to B. As you mentioned this leaves the details on setting and character description lacking. So I will pull out a previously drafted work (which can be weeks to even years old) and I start filling in those gaps.

I got great advice one time about writing with all the senses, (What do they see, hear, taste, touch, and smell) and it’s these previously drafted works where I apply that.

Also recognizing when I’m frustrated with a work, and learning to step away from that is very beneficial. (and it sounds like you recognize your stumbling blocks) Forced works do not read well, I know this from personal experience. And if you make writing a job rather than an enjoyable hobby, it will lead to dissatisfaction. Go where your muse takes you, even if it’s a direction you didn’t originally intend.

Having other hobbies besides writing will help you step away when it’s not working.
Having these things in my hip pocket helps me tremendously when those walls get in my way. It relieves the stress of “I gotta get this done!” and allows your brain to chew through the problems in the background.

I do not recommend throwing out the baby with the bathwater (IE trashing the entire work when you get frustrated). Set it aside perhaps, but don’t get rid of it.

Above all, be forgiving of yourself! Writing is a bit of a marathon, not a sprint, we cannot all be Stephen King and churn out four books a year (Which is probably a misnomer anyway those books were probably in production a long time before they got released). My quickest manuscript took eight months, my longest thirteen years. Most fall somewhere between the two. Our brains only have so much in them to focus on a specific task.

I write most often first thing in the morning on weekends, and usually by ten, my brain is done trying to chew through creation and I move on to things that don’t require that much calculating power.

I hope there’s something in that ramble that you can find useful for your writing journey.

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I feel this sentiment. I have difficulty writing a story idea on paper first and then typing it in my computer for the same reason. Though conversely, it DOES allow me to do some polishing before it gets in my computer.

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TYSM! i’ll definitely try these.

good to know it’s not just me then :joy:

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Not even maybe! :stuck_out_tongue:

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Some days are easier, most days are hard as hell for me!
I just do my best and take it with a grain of salt and not try to stress so much.

Stressing would ruin me and I am actually trying. I am just not in the mindset to tackle things yet. I will get there soon.

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thanks, this is helpful!

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No really… I think I missed that memo for real…

Pacing is something a just don’t do… I write when I feel the mood takes me, and I write what I feel at that time, and just how the info I’m writing portrays within that which is the subject of that moment…

It’s a fucking mess for the most part, but then I focus on the edits and it all seems good… Then the second edit raises it’s ugly head and I’m fucked once more with thoughts of how I’m getting this shit right for real…

I hate the battle within my head at this point…

SD

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well, then this thread might be for you :))

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No problem.

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