It’s Not How Many Words You Write — It’s How Proud You Are Of Them

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Abstract

ression and loss of skill are really a thing, and in that direction “be dragons.”</p><p id="0556">The key, I think, lies within understanding your limitations and practice in the areas you’re weakest. If, for instance, your pain point is relating to headlines, are you going to get better at those by penning fluff pieces and listicles? Or would you be better served by spending a few days writing and rewriting headlines until you felt much more comfortable?</p><p id="1aa2">Those first words your readers see are not only the wrapping on the gift you’re giving. They are the one and only thing that’s likely to give you a chance at being read at all.</p><h2 id="c286">Movement is essential.</h2><p id="797d">In the end, how many words you do per day does not matter a whit if they’re not getting you somewhere. That “somewhere” can be as simple as an improvement in skill, or as complex as moving your career forward from where you’re at right now. Pride in what you <i>can</i> get out is a more potent achievement than mere volume.</p><p id="cb0e">Life’s full of struggles. Between health issues and mental health needs alone, it’s hard for some of us to sit at the keys and get things done. If you’re only able to get out 500 words in a day, that’s amazing. You did something few others do. If your best is 100 in a day, that’s just as amazing. You made progress in some way.</p><p id="2d80">Just ask yourself if you’re proud of them. That’s the only thing that matters.</p><p id="b699">Don’t compare yourself to another wr

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iter. Despite what your brain might try to say, your <b><i>only competitor</i></b> is who you were yesterday.</p><p id="e169">Make yourself proud. Everything else will fall into place from there.</p><h2 id="f0be">Thank you for being you.</h2><p id="48e5">Keep striving to “be the best you that you can be” at this moment. Remember, no matter who you are or what you’re going through, you are worthy of being loved. Don’t let anyone teach you anything different.</p><p id="6372">If you like my work and feel inclined to support it, <a href="https://ko-fi.com/blinddaddoes">please consider supporting me on Ko-Fi</a>. For free fiction stories, you’ll find nowhere else, grab my <a href="http://irarobinson.substack.com/">Original Worlds Substack</a> newsletter. Any funding goes directly to helping this blind man feed his family.</p><div id="9c7a" class="link-block"> <a href="https://irarobinson.medium.com/list/b2c1ec9e298a"> <div> <div> <h2>Writing - Advice, Successes, and Fails</h2> <div><h3>I've been writing and publishing for ages. Here are some things I've learned along the way that might help you out…</h3></div> <div><p>irarobinson.medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*7683287f5dace86fe7626e53da9390af5208f37a.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div></article></body>

Being prolific doesn’t mean a thing if you’re not proud of it.

Photograph by author

There are days my writing is crap.

I know. Hard to believe, right? My detractors would probably posit I fill every day with detritus from my keys, but we don’t pay them any attention.

I’ve always felt myself lucky I am “prolific.” Most of the time, I can pump out 6000 words I would consider usable. They’re divvied up between articles, flash and short story fictions, and filling up my latest novels or scripts.

Words, thankfully, come easy, but that’s not what is important to me.

What matters is the quality of them.

The quality is the ultimate key.

See, I could write thousands of words a day, but if they’re not ones I am proud of, I find myself sinking into despair. After all, repeating, “The quick brown fox jumped over that frigging cow and never looked back,” over and over would be “words.” Whether they’re useful is another matter entirely.

It’s important for every writer to know what their best really is. We don’t have to always be on our A-Game, but we should strive to at least try to get there every time we’re at the keys working. Regression and loss of skill are really a thing, and in that direction “be dragons.”

The key, I think, lies within understanding your limitations and practice in the areas you’re weakest. If, for instance, your pain point is relating to headlines, are you going to get better at those by penning fluff pieces and listicles? Or would you be better served by spending a few days writing and rewriting headlines until you felt much more comfortable?

Those first words your readers see are not only the wrapping on the gift you’re giving. They are the one and only thing that’s likely to give you a chance at being read at all.

Movement is essential.

In the end, how many words you do per day does not matter a whit if they’re not getting you somewhere. That “somewhere” can be as simple as an improvement in skill, or as complex as moving your career forward from where you’re at right now. Pride in what you can get out is a more potent achievement than mere volume.

Life’s full of struggles. Between health issues and mental health needs alone, it’s hard for some of us to sit at the keys and get things done. If you’re only able to get out 500 words in a day, that’s amazing. You did something few others do. If your best is 100 in a day, that’s just as amazing. You made progress in some way.

Just ask yourself if you’re proud of them. That’s the only thing that matters.

Don’t compare yourself to another writer. Despite what your brain might try to say, your only competitor is who you were yesterday.

Make yourself proud. Everything else will fall into place from there.