The Writing Muscle

"The Writing Muscle".

It's an interesting title, isn't it?

You might be wondering where I'm going with this blog post, but the title is pretty self-explanitory.

I'm going to be talking about the writing muscle.

Yes, I know, there is no actual muscle called the writing muscle.

I'm not talking about something literal.

I'm talking about it in the figurative sense.

So let's talk about the writing muscle.

What is the writing muscle?

When you exercise muscles, they get stronger.

The same goes for writing.

The more you write, the more you exercise that muscle, the better you get at it.

Writing is like a muscle.

Taking care of it, like a muscle, is good.

How do we keep this muscle strong?

Exercise.

Just like I said above, you have to exercise muscles to get stronger.

To get better at writing, you have to write.

And you can't just write a little bit every month. That's one way to finish a novel, but it's no way to actually get better at writing.

This doesn't mean you have to make progress on your current book—if you have one—every day. It simply means you need to try to write something every day or every other day.

I'm not talking about writing in a super productive way every day.

I'm talking about sitting at a computer, thinking up a random scene that sounds fun to write, and writing it.

This gives you practice writing.

Doing this could even lead to the start of a book.

To build that writing muscle, you have to write.

Try writing a little bit every day.

Do this for a few weeks.

See if you notice a difference in your writing. See if the quality gets better or you suddenly find it's just a bit easier to write a few paragraphs than it'd been before.

Stretch.

If you work out, you know you need to stretch to keep your muscles loose.

Same goes for writing.

You need to stretch outside of your writing comfort zone and write things you don't think you can write. This is another way to keep that muscle strong.

Stretch yourself.

Write what you don't think you can.

This is a good way to get better.

Make time.

Maybe you're busy and you feel like you don't have time to write every day.

You just can't find the time to do this.

And that's okay.

But....if you are going to really focus on working and building that writing muscle, you don't "find" time to write every day. You make time.

Whether that means waking up a little early just so you can write a thousand words or taking a break in the afternoon to sit down and write, you have to make time to write.

You won't get anywhere by only writing if there's a little time.

If you want to build that writing muscle, you have to make time.

Now, if anyone knows that life is busy, it's me. So I understand that making time to write every single day sometimes seems impossible.

Let's talk realistically.

You do not have to write every day (although that would be preferable).

A lot of people have schedules for when they workout. You can do the same thing for writing.

Let's say you want to write 6 days a week. Leave one day as a break.

This works great!

Then, you'll have time to work on building that writing muscle but also have time to mentally recover and prepare for the next day.

Another great way to make time to write is not setting a certain day as a "writing-free" day.

If you keep it flexible, you can just write as many days as you can in the week and leave the one day (or two days depending on your schedule) when you don't write as something you can use any day of the week.

You could be at Tuesday and just think, "You know, I think I want to use my 'writing-free' day today." Or you could get all the way to Saturday without using it and suddenly think, "I don't think I need my 'writing-free' day this week."

When you make your schedule less rigid, like that, it allows you more freedom. This works well if you have a busy schedule.

And know that if you miss a day or two, it's okay. It's not the end of the world. Don't beat yourself up if that happens.

You can't build muscles just by working out.

Yep. You heard me.

You can't just exercise and expect to gain muscle.

It doesn't work that way.

You have to have a good diet that is filled with proteins to help your body have what is necessary to build that muscle.

Just writing is not all that goes into building that writing muscle.

You have to read as well.

I talked about this in the blog post "Read to Write". (If you haven't read that, I'd recommend you go check that out now.)

Reading is so beneficial to your writing in the fact it helps you learn what makes a good book and what makes a bad book. By reading other's work and looking at it with a writer's perspective—like I talked about in "Read to Write"—you are learning all about writing and the different things the author of the book did to make it good or bad.

You can't better your writing without reading.

This is just like how you need to intake a good amount of the protein that's needed to build muscle.

If I were to workout and not eat a good, protein-filled diet, would I stay fit? Yes. But would I build a lot of muscle? No.

If you are going to write and not read, you might not be bad at writing and you might still be able to write, but you're not going to learn and gain the knowledge needed to build that writing muscle.

Remember, talent alone can get you nowhere.

There's a quote that goes like this:

"Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated failures. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent."

- Calvin Coolidge, U.S. president

This quote really resonated with me because this is so true about writing.

You can be talented, but if you don't write and have the persistence to continue to write, nothing is going to come from that talent. You can be so educated that you think you know every in and out writing has, but if you do not have the determination to actually write, to work that writing muscle, you won't get anywhere.

Writing is less about talent and more about the determination to buckle down and write—even when it's not the most fun or convenient.

Not all good authors were talented at writing.

But you know why they're authors?

Because they had the persistence and determination to write.

The only way you learn and grow is to write. And talent without the ability to learn and grow is not beneficial.

This brings me to my last piece of advice.

Write when it's hard.

Like I said above, writing is less about talent and more about the determination to buckle down and write.

This same thing is true about having inspiration.

I know a lot of writers, including me, don't like to write unless they have inspiration. They think, "Oh, I'll work on this book tomorrow because I'm not feeling inspired right now."

But you also have to keep exercising a muscle for it to stay as strong as it is. You have to do this same thing for writing.

Exercise that muscle. Don't let it get weak.

Writing is less about having the illusive inspiration and more about having the strength to write when there is none. That's the only way you can get a book done.

Write it.

Remember, you can edit everything—and I mean everything—but there is one thing you can't edit.

A blank page.

Don't get stuck with a blank page.

Work that writing muscle. Write when it's hard.

I hope you all enjoyed this blog post! If you have any questions, comments, or just want to know how I exercise my writing muscle, feel free to message me in the contact bar below! I wish you all the best of luck on your writing journeys.

As always, happy writing!

-Jocelyn