Don't Wait Till You Feel Like Writing (Or You Never Will)

For a lot of people out there, writing is something they do when the stars are right, the muse whispers, or the spirit takes them. Writing is an exercise done for fun, or when their imagination runs hot, and they go until they run out of fuel in the tank before they set it down, walk away, and wait for yet another creative cosmic alignment to occur.

And for some people, that's all well and good. However, if you want to be a writer professionally (or even if you want to improve yourself as someone who does this for a hobby) then you're going to have to learn to write all the time rather than just when you feel like it.

This is one of those hills to die on. I've got a tent staked out, and s'mores ready.

Before we get into the nitty gritty this week, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Lastly, to be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree!

Lastly, don't forget to check out my Vocal archive for additional fiction, articles, explorations of weird history, and more!

A Return to My Favorite Metaphor

Folks who've been to this blog before are aware that my favorite metaphor is to compare writing to exercise. Because both of these activities take discipline and commitment to succeed, and more often than not folks tend to think that natural talent and inborn ability is responsible for way more than it actually is.

6-month novel on average. Why you ask?

If you've ever been to the gym at the beginning of the year, then you've likely seen it completely full of people who are trying to make good on their resolutions. But after a week, two weeks, and certainly by mid-February, most of them have peeled off and stopped coming. And sometimes you'll see a few of those beginning-of-the-year folks come back a time or two throughout the year to try to start again, but it's very rare for them to actually maintain their routine and get closer to the goals they want.

However, if you've ever been a weightlifter, then you know that dedication, nutrition, and proper form makes a lot more difference in the long run than someone who was naturally blessed with a strong physique and a big frame who didn't properly utilize them. If you took two people, one of whom was naturally strong and hefty, and one who was on the smaller end, but the former works out a few times a year and the latter has a dedicated fitness routine they hit every day, then at the end of the year you're going to see exactly how much of a difference this kind of dedication makes.

Now, compare this to two writers.

The first writer might be naturally gifted. Maybe they have a particular flair for a certain genre, or they have really interesting characters, concepts, ideas, etc. But the second writer puts something out every day. Maybe it's just a little addition to their story. Maybe it's that they storyboard things. Maybe they work on their novel, and make progress or get it done. And at the end of that year, the person who has been working hard, studying, and practicing is going to show a lot more progress than the person who just did it whenever they felt like it, or when the spirit took them.

And that gap is just going to get wider the longer this goes on.

It's important to remember that this isn't just for professional authors, either. This isn't some kind of, "Professionals dedicate themselves to the craft, and amateurs just fuck about whenever they feel about it," kind of statement. Because whether you want to write bestselling novels, or you're just putting together short stories for your own enjoyment, the practice and routine are what matters. Just like it doesn't matter if you're lifting weights because you want to be an influencer or a competitor, or because you just want your body to be fit and strong in your day-to-day life, you're doing the same work.

So take a moment, and ask yourself if you want to truly dedicate your efforts to becoming a better writer. How much time, energy, and effort do you want to put in? Because the most important skill you can develop is being able to go to the gym when you're tired, when you're not motivated, when you'd rather be anywhere else, but you put in your reps anyway... because that's what it takes to get better.

Support The Literary Mercenary

If you want to see me produce more work, consider some of the following options!

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And if you happen to have some spare dosh lying around, and you want to be sure my supply doesn't run low, consider become a Patreon patron, or leaving a tip by Buying Me a Ko-Fi!

Also, if you're curious about how to write for tabletop RPGs, don't forget to check out my show Tabletop Mercenary, which you can find on both the Azukail Games channel, as well as my Rumble channel listed above!

Like, Follow, and Come Back Again!

That's all for this week's Craft of Writing! For more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, or at My Amazon Author Page where you can find books like my sci-fi dystopian thriller Old Soldiers, the Hardboiled Cat series about a mystery solving Maine Coon in Marked Territory and Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife, or my most recent short story collection The Rejects!

 

And to stay on top of all my latest news and releases, collected once a week, make sure you subscribe to The Literary Mercenary's mailing list. 

If you'd like to help support my work, then consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi, or heading over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page! Lastly, to keep up with my latest, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now on Pinterest as well!

Writers, Are You An Ant or a Grasshopper?

There is an old story about an ant and a grasshopper. During the summer months, the ant begins preparing for the winter to come, but the grasshopper is just jumping around, playing his legs like a fiddle, and doing whatever his little heart wants. The grasshopper even mocks the ant for his daily work, saying that he's just wasting his summer by spending all this time working. Surely the work will wait, won't it?  And while the ant reminds the grasshopper that winter is coming, the grasshopper keeps blowing it off. As the leaves change color, and the temperature starts dropping, the grasshopper realizes he's in real danger. And while he tries to throw something together at the last moment, he simply didn't have enough time before the snow began falling.

Now, this story doesn't take into account the way these insects actually work, and the fact that surviving the winter isn't always a thing. However, the point of the story is a simple metaphor that we should easily grasp as writers; if you want to prepare for the hard times, you need to do the work now, while the sun is shining. Because if the snow is falling, it's probably too late to get started.

Left... left... left, right, left...

Before we get into the nitty gritty this week, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Lastly, to be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree!

Lastly, don't forget to check out my Vocal archive for additional fiction, articles, explorations of weird history, and more!

No Summer is Eternal

I want to open with a little fact here. According to some, author Terry Pratchett only wrote an average of 400 words per day. A prolific novelist whose work had a rather large impact on literature as a whole, he managed that with an output that's shorter than some people's Facebook posts. The key here is that he did it every day, rain or shine, sickness or health. Because it may not sound like much, but 400 words a day is easily a novel a year. Two, depending on the length of the genre you're working on.

But you have to roll up your sleeves, and do the job.

You don't get here over night.

There are a lot of writers out there who do things for the love of the craft, or the enjoyment of the exercise. And, to be clear, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. If you are someone who just wants to create when the urge strikes you, or when the project is fun, that is perfectly fine.

However, it is highly unlikely that you will be able to write professionally.

I say that because, at the end of the day, writing is a numbers game (as is making YouTube videos, TTRPG supplements, audio dramas, or any other creative endeavor out there). The odds are not in your favor that the first book you write, or short story you tell, is going to be the thing that explodes. It's possible, absolutely, but not likely. And while the numbers vary depending on genre and conventional wisdom, I've seen it said that you need at least 10 novels in genres like sci-fi and fantasy, or 20 novels in romance, before you've built the momentum it takes to take your foot off the gas a bit.

Let's return to that earlier example. In fact, let's say that you were a little more ambitious than Sir Terry, and you wrote 500 words per day. This is my personal writing speed, and it allowed me to put together my dystopian sci-fi thriller Old Soldiers in 10 months, and the first book of the Hardboiled Cat series Marked Territory in about 7 months. So if you had roughly the same amount of fixes and changes that I did, you could hit that 10 books in 10 years. If you were a little more put-together and focused (or maybe you're more skilled than I am), you could hit it in 5 years. And if you were writing romance novels, you've got 20 years on average, 10 years if you're a tight writer.

That's how long it would take for someone who has a plan, and who has dedication to work on their stories every day, using a perfectly realistic word count. But now ask yourself how long it would take if you only wrote sporadically? If you only wrote a handful of weeks, or months, and then didn't get back to your manuscript until after the holidays? Or, worst of all, what if you wrote half the book, then just set it aside in favor of a new idea that had seduced you away from your original manuscript because it was young and fun, and it hadn't yet become a daily slog?

If that's the case, then you may only put out a book every 2 years. Or 3. Or it may take you 5 years to finally get it done. And if that book hits big, it's all good! But if it doesn't... well, as the words of House Stark say, Winter is Coming.

Final Thoughts

I want to be clear, here. This is not some kind of sigma-grindset, up-at-dawn, work-16-hours-a-day message. The point of this week's entry is to remind folks out there that if you want to make a living as a creator, then you typically have to make a lot of stuff... especially if you're not already famous for some reason (Instagram influencer, former national politician, film star, etc.). But making stuff takes time, and as they say, time is money. So if you're depending on the money your work earns to pay your rent, keep the lights on, and buy you food while you work on the next piece, you need to either produce your work quickly enough that you build up a suitable backlog, or you need to have some other source of income in order to keep the wolf from the door.

Lastly, this isn't about who's a real writer. If you write things, then you're a writer, plain and simple. But if your writing cannot pay your bills, or if you aren't able to make yourself produce that work reliably enough for it to satisfy a fan base, it's important not to put all your chips on a single number and let the roulette wheel ride.

Have You Ever Wanted To Be a Professional TTRPG Creator?

A bit of a hard segue, but I wanted to let folks know that I recently started a show titled Tabletop Mercenary, which can be found on both the Azukail Games YouTube channel, as well as over on my Rumble channel The Literary Mercenary. On this show I talk about the business side of tabletop RPGs, what it takes to find success in this little corner of the publishing industry, and how folks can avoid the pitfalls I've dealt with for the past 10 years or so.

If that sounds interesting to you, then check it out, and subscribe to my channels so you don't miss a beat!

Support The Literary Mercenary

For folks who just want to do their part to help keep me making more content, please subscribe/follow me in these locations:

- My Facebook

- My LinkTree

- My Weekly Newsletter

- The Azukail Games YouTube Channel (where I contribute video content)

- My Rumble Channel (longer videos that won't show up on YouTube)

And if you happen to have some spare dosh lying around, and you want to be sure my supply doesn't run low, consider become a Patreon patron, or leaving a tip by Buying Me a Ko-Fi!

Like, Follow, and Come Back Again!

That's all for this week's Business of Writing! For more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, or at My Amazon Author Page where you can find books like my sci-fi dystopian thriller Old Soldiers, my gangland noir thrillers starring Leo the Maine Coon Marked Territory and Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife, or my most recent short story collection The Rejects!

 

And to stay on top of all my latest news and releases, collected once a week, make sure you subscribe to The Literary Mercenary's mailing list. 

If you'd like to help support my work, then consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi, or heading over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page! Lastly, to keep up with my latest, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now on Pinterest as well!

An Examination of The Chivalric Hero

I've been on something of a character archetype bender of late round these parts. I started with an examination of classic anti-heroes, and then moved onto the barbarian hero, but there's one more archetype that I think is worth examining. One that I think we're all familiar with, even if we know them by other names.

The Chivalric Hero.

My strength is as the strength of ten, for my heart is pure.

While we often ignore or ridicule Chivalric Heroes in the modern-day, there's a lot we could learn from them by reading between the lines. Both in terms of understanding what makes their stories work, and what makes these heroes appealing in their own, unique ways.

Classic Heroes, and The Age of Chivalry

I've talked about this in the previous installments of my explorations into heroes, but just so no one has to backtrack and we're all on the same page, a Classic Hero is not just the story's protagonist. The term refers to certain traits that were shared by characters who fulfilled the role of hero within the story in antiquity.

These traits include, but are not limited to:

- Unique Birth: The children of kings and gods, Classic Heroes are special from day one.

- Surety of Action: Classic Heroes did not doubt themselves, and they acted quickly.

- Lack of Flaws: Classic Heroes often lacked flaws, or simply had a single, Tragic flaw.

- Were Attractive: Whether charmers or not, Classic Heroes exterior beauty reflected their power.

And so on, and so forth.

So where does chivalry come into this?

As time went on, and we entered the Romantic period (that is to say, stories written in common language, which also happened to feature knights, ladies, courtly love, and other hallmarks that grew into today's idea of the romance genre), we developed the Chivalric Hero. Characters like Lancelot and Arthur, Gawain and Galahad, as well as historical figures like Charlemagne and Alexander the Great were fitted into this mold when their stories were written around the heyday of John Milton.

While there is a lot of overlap between the Chivalric Hero and the Classic Hero, there is one notable difference right off the bat. The Classic Hero (characters like Achilles or Cu Chulainn, for example) fought almost exclusively for themselves. While they could be claimed by their nation or their people after death, in life their deeds and struggles belonged only to them. Chivalric Heroes, by contrast, fought for something higher than themselves. They fought for a lord, they fought for a code, and in many cases they fought for the idea of a nation, or for a god.

That difference in cause is, in some ways, one of the most significant things about the Chivalric Hero. It also explains where they draw their power from, and why the challenges in their stories are often of a baser, and more inner-directed variety.

You Need To Build Up Your Power (And You Can Lose It)

One of the most obvious aspects of many Classic Heroes, as well as the Barbarian Hero archetype, is their raw physicality. From Conan, to Tarzan, to Enkidu, these characters draw their strength from within. Their bodies and their skills are the wellspring of their ability to affect the story, and it is through them that they triumph over those who stand in their way.

For Chivalric Heroes, though, that often isn't the case.

A vow, inside a steel shell, is strength eternal.

Chivalric Heroes are often powered by external forces that are dependent on them performing certain tasks, or avoiding certain temptations. Dedication to a code, subservience to a king, or a willingness to keep oneself pure even through great hardship, are all common themes of these characters. And it is their actions that builds layers of strength around them that helps turn them into heroes.

Heroism is not something that most Chivalric Heroes have simply by virtue of existing; it has to be prompted by something. The character has to dedicate themselves to the service of god, to their lord, or to the code. They draw symbols and protections to themselves as well, layering them on in order to gain strength from those things. And when those symbols break, it is as if a part of the Chivalric Hero has also broken.

As an example, a Chivalric Hero's sword snapping in a duel would be devastating to them, if that sword was part of the layers that built up their strength. In many cases it isn't just a tool, but rather an extension of the character. Whereas someone like Kull or Conan, infamous barbarian heroes that they are, would simply toss the broken weapon aside, and snatch up another from a fallen foe. For a Chivalric Hero, that moment of their steel breaking is often symbolic of failing a test of some sort, and of being rocked to their core.

The threat of losing their power if they make a false move is a central theme for many Chivalric Heroes. Even Marvel's Thor (at least in his early comic incarnations, and his first film), had to prove that he was worthy to wield his powers. If he became cruel, or ruthless, or gave into vanity, then his strength would desert him, and his hammer would refuse to be wielded. This is not dissimilar to how characters like Lancelot or Galahad were considered titans in battle as long as their hearts remained pure, and they upheld their vows and oaths. It's also why temptation tends to be a central theme to their stories, and how resisting it is the true act of a hero.

From Tristan and Isolde, to Lancelot and Guinevere, to one could argue Samson and Delilah, to Gawain and the Green Knight, the true test of a Chivalric Hero is rarely in how many foes they can fight, or how mighty their blows are. It's whether they can resist temptation to do what it is easy, what is pleasurable, or what is beneficial to themselves over what is right. And the point that those stories make is that it is your ability to endure these things without giving into them that underscores you as a hero.

Like, Follow, and Come Back Again!

That's all for this week's Craft of Writing! For more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, or at My Amazon Author Page where you can find books like my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife!

If you'd like to help support my work, then consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi, or heading over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page! Lastly, to keep up with my latest, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now on Pinterest as well!