What on earth are you talking about now?

I’m fed up. As an aspiring author I am a member of several writing sites/Facebook groups etc etc.

So? What’s that got to do with numbers?

Well. Everyone seems obsessed with word count. How many words do you plan to write today? Oooh, I’m so pleased. I wrote 15,000,000 words today. It’s such a rush. Etc etc.

Well. Isn’t it nice that people are happy with aiming to achieve things and are pleased when they reach their goals?

No. It’s bloody annoying. Writing is art. How many artists do you hear saying they’re going to paint ten pieces today? How many musicians tell you their goal for the day is to compose an album? It’s daft. I’d rather write one good sentence than 2000 words of crap.

Ummm. You may have a point.

Shut up. I’m trying to write….

9 thoughts on “I’m a writer. Not a bloody accountant.”

  1. Loved the article! I actually recently found out a local businesses directory which shows top rated local businesses including top accountants in your city, it’s named Pajix , this is their website http://www.pajix.com , I found my personal accountant (which is top skilled) on there, you can read other customers reviews, check location and accountants prices and then book your appointments online! It’s really convenient

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  3. I’m not sure if you actually know someone who writes 15k words a day, but if that person really exists, then good on them because 15k words a day is damn near impossible. The obsession with word count is mostly about keeping track of how much you write. Word count has nothing to do with quality until the end, and then it becomes about shortening it rather than extending. Many of the “good” writers — thinking of Stephen King here — keep track of their word counts, and encourage writer hopefuls to write x amount of words a day. In the end, word count is what you make it. It’s either something you must meet in order to publish a work or satisfy an assignment’s requirements, or it’s simply the number of words in your piece of art. I totally get your frustration, but do remember people write for different reasons, and word count is more or less important depending on that reason.

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    1. It’s not really frustration. I just get a little fed-up of hearing about it all the time. I’m an awful, arrogant self-publicist and always want people to read and appreciate my work. I just don’t really understand why the number of words make all the difference. I know writers under contract have dead-lines, requirements etc. but they don’t bleat on about it on social media. Well, maybe some might but I suspect they wouldn’t because their professionality may be called into question if they did. I’d rather read something that’s actually been written than just hear how many words it adds up to. Just my opinion anyway.I’m a sour-puss. 😉

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    2. Oooh – And I do know people who say they have attained the magical figure of 15k in one day. I personally don’t believe them. And I like that you mentioned SK! I’m waiting to hear about a short-story competition I entered. The winner will be chosen by the man himself in early Feb.

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      3. Depends on the work, really. I spent a whole semester on a 2,000 word creative piece for class but banged out 10k words of my novel in a week. Plus there’s more detail getting packed into fewer words in a short story, so it’ll ultimately take a lot of revision and planning.

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      4. You can read it if you like. It’s not healthy to swap personal details online but if you find me on FB I’ll PM it to you. As long as you don’t steal it. – Carl Baumann.

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