WHAT DO I LOVE ABOUT WRITING?
For me the rush that comes from writing is not only when I get the idea and get to start planning it, but also from writing the beginning and then the end. I'm addicted to words and they get me high pretty much every day. My name is Joey and I'm a word nerd. I'm addicted to writing and I love every part of it, from writing the first word, to moulding the plot and to typing that last phrase that will tie up the loose ends into a little bow and end the characters story.
However, these things do take time, but how much time? The short answer to that is it varies. I've been writing for fifteen years now and the long and short of it is that sometimes I'll start a book and it'll take me another six or so years to get it to the point where I can happily call it finished, as was the case with THE FRIENDSHIP TRIANGLE. I started writing that when I was thirteen, but it wasn't finished until I was nearly twenty.
Or, like with BLACKOUT, where from first word to last, only ten days passed. I originally only gave it ten chapters - and they were VERY long ones too. I wrote a chapter a day, starting in the morning, writing pen to paper (not like now where I can only type) and then spent the evening typing it up and editing as I went. However after some serious thought and consideration considering that it was a young adult book and the fact that I also prefer when chapters are shorter, I made it into the twenty-five plus chapters it is today. I didn't need to change anything, just used some of the natural stopping points. So, as far as that book was concerned, it was a short, quick and thrilling ride from starting the book to the rush when writing the last sentences.
It's always been something I have looked for in other areas of my life. When I worked a conventional job before I became ill, I didn't get that from my work. Don't get me wrong, I LOVED my job and I was good at it. Had I not become sick with M.E and the Fibro, then I would probably still be doing it now, some fifteen years later. However, life has a funny way of pushing you into things that you never even dreamed could happen. I did become sick and I did become a writer and now I don't just love my job, I NEED it!
I know what you're thinking, how can writing a few words on a page provide this "rush" I'm talking about? And what does that have to do with how long it takes me to finish a book? I promise you that I'm not just talking nonsense, there is a feeling of such elation when doing a job you love, and doing it well, that just can't be described in words, and I'm addicted to the words. It's also related because while I may experience, as many writers do, writer's block at some points, it's the rush I'm pursuing when I get close to the end. When I get close to starting a whole new story and entering a whole new world, meeting brand new (and sometimes old too) characters and hearing their stories. It's something that I would highly recommend you try to do in your life.
Sometimes, you want to push the thrill to see how long it will last. Life moves you round and while you thought that you'd manage to get this one book finished in a year, it turns into two and then three before you know it. That's life and while it still gives you some kind of buzz to actually sit and write when you can, it's not just about keeping the high going. If someone was to ask me what it is about writing that gives me this rush, this high, this thrill I couldn't really tell you. It's so much of it that contributes to it that it sometimes seems it's just the whole thing.
I love the beginning, setting the scene and giving the reader the idea of where you're taking them. I love writing the important plot points that I have written over and over in my head as I've waited for the chance to write them. I love the middle when you're knee deep in plot, with murders to solve, people to fall in love with and the answers to come to you. I love it when you're so close to the ending that you can almost see it, but it's not close enough to touch. I love writing the ending, knowing that the words have fallen where they may and you've done it, you've actually finished it! Going past the writing part, I love seeing the story after you've finished editing, I love making the promotional graphics and ordering bookmarks and assorted swag for giveaways. I love working with my artist who designs my front covers and seeing them stage by stage as my characters have a face. I love hitting "publish" when it's all come together and it's ready to send out into the world. I just love it all.
My name is Joey Paul and I am many things, but mostly, I'm a word nerd.
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