Artists who wait for inspiration to strike spend a lot of time waiting. I know this because I was formerly such an artist. I believed that I should not force my writing, but that I should let it come to me naturally. I thought that discipline was a bad thing; something that went against the grain of creativity. I believe that many people share this same misconception.
But any negative feelings I had towards discipline have been wiped clean from my mind because discipline was the very thing that enabled me to write and complete my novel. I decided to stop waiting for inspiration to strike, and to sit down every single day and write a minimum of 400 words of my book. I made my quota of words no matter how I felt or what was happening in my life. Eventually I got in such a routine of writing each day that sitting down to write did not require a great deal of discipline, and it became something I wanted to do.
I think that any great accomplishment is reliant on practicing discipline. Through discipline, ballerinas can stand on their toes; Olympian swimmers can win races; and writers can write novels.
This post is from my blog series, “Tips for Writing Fiction.” Be sure to check out my Greco Family Trilogy books, which include Olive Branches Don’t Grow on Trees, Discovery of an Eagle, and The Bird that Sang in Color. These books are available from all major online book sellers, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Apple Books.
