Kimfair wrote:
See, what I find interesting is not writing for pleasure, which I consider both my travel blog and the postcard columns, but writing for work. I could do it, I've had to write various short things for work before, but to write about whatever someone tells you/pays you to write about, that could be more difficult.
There honestly isn't that much difference, once you've trained yourself to just sit down and
work. People have this impression of writing like you have to be inspired and motivated to do it, probably because for most people that really is the only time they write -- and that's totally understandable for most people -- but it's like any other learned skill in that it becomes a reflex. "Time to sit down and work. Have to get X done." So you sit down and do it.
Like this month, my freelance workload consists of 34 articles and 20 beer reviews. (Yeah, I actually get paid to write about beer. That's neat!) That means I need to average more than an article a day, averaging about 500-550 words each.
Sounds like a lot more than it really is.
While I'd like to think there is some inherent
something you have that other people don't, the truth is that 90% of it is work and practice. It's like, in order for me to golf well and at length and consistently, I have to stay focused and practice a lot and really keep my head in it. You have to treat the hobby like work. I'm well out of practice, so just getting me out to the driving range takes a big force of will.
Meanwhile, Phil Mickelson gets up in the morning and drives 100 balls by breakfast, because for him it's all just muscle and mental memory. It's a reflex. He's done it so often for so long he doesn't even need to
think about it.
Writing is no different. You get to a point where it's like, "Okay, it's 8pm. I should get something done tonight." You sit down. You slam out a couple of articles. Then you fire up Skyrim and play until you fall asleep.
A good number of people here are talented writers when they're in the zone. I have absolutely zero doubt that if put in the situation where they had to write daily and consistently, any one of them could be in the zone ALL THE TIME. Shit that used to take you three hours would take you 45 minutes.
'S'all just practice.