1.) You must write.
2.) You must finish what you write.
— Robert A. Heinlein

Writing is writing. Nothing is writing that isn't writing. Planning to write isn't writing. Researching isn't writing. Outlining isn't writing. "Organizing my thoughts" isn't writing. Editing isn't writing. Going through a morning routine isn't writing. To write, one must write; everything else is something other than writing.

There is no shortcut to the drudgery of writing. Writing means making letters, words, spaces, punctuation appear on the page – physical or digital – in a meaningful order. It doesn't matter what you use: pen, pencil, crayon, marker, keyboard, typewriter; ink, graphite, blood, carbon paper, photons; paper, cardboard, stone tablet, LED screen. The instruments of writing change, but the process itself is the same. To write requires placing one letter, word, phrase, sentence, paragraph after another. Repeat until finished.

And finishing should the goal of any writing. Of course, it is up to the writer to determine what "finished" means for a story – at least, until you send it off to be published. But the one thing you should never do…in fact, that you can't do…is try to trick yourself into claiming something is done when you know it's not. If you don't know whether something is finished, then it probably isn't; if it feels complete, then it probably is. And "finished" doesn't necessarily mean tying up every loose end or telling the story until every character dies – some of the best (and most complete) stories are those that leave plenty of room for imagination at the end.

Heinlein had more rules than these, but they actually have nothing to do with writing (they are more about selling what you write). You can look up the rest if you want, but these are the two most important rules, which is why they are up front. If you write and finish what you write, you'll be in a better place than most writers.

Heinlein's rules for writing
Image: Public Domain Pictures
Quote: "On the Writing of Speculative Fiction" by Robert A. Heinlein

Monday Motivations

August 21: Make Your Own Luck
August 14: Dusting Off
June 19: Write Your Magic
June 12: Enthusiasm
June 5: Tolkien on Persistence
May 21: Unleash Yourself
May 14: Writing to Perfection
May 7: Create Yourself
April 24: Wake Up and Write!
April 17: Benjamin De Casseres

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