Every Day I Write the Book

I bet many of you have heard this expression, "writing is like a muscle; you have to use it to become stronger." That statement is true. The more you write the more you exercise that mental muscle and the better your work becomes. I've noticed writers who spin in circles declaring their intentions to write and yet the actual time spent working on the task is nil. They talk about it more than they do it. Sometimes you just have to put your seat in the chair and just do it. Quit thinking about it. Just get to work. The other common idea is that the magic is in the rewrites. So, the first intention to just sit down should be to get it out of you. The second act should be the rewrites. One of the reasons I encourage writers to participate in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) is because the contest gets writers to move and write and just get it down on the computer screen. Also, if you think you have a "block" (which I don't believe in writer's block so don't get me started) then the very act of just typing and getting the words flowing helps move you forward. NaNoWriMo begins in November. For details on how you can participate go the NaNoWriMo website.