Those of you who follow my Facebook author page (link in top right corner of this page) know that each Sunday I post my word count for the previous week, plus a teaser in the form of my current area of research. I use these posts as a way to hold myself accountable, to demonstrate progress. The word count varies a lot. Sometimes that reflects how much time I've carved out of my waking life: working around a full-time job, other hobbies, and (most importantly) spending time with friends and family. Not always, however. Sometimes a writer spends a considerable amount of their "writing" time not adding to their work-in-progress's word count. So what else are they doing?
Leaving aside the obvious and self-deprecating answer - procrastinating - it could be any number of things. Those who lean towards the "plotter" end of the spectrum may be developing or tweaking outlines or timelines, or writing character and location sketches. Even the "pantsers" who eschew such formality still think about plot, who is doing what and where, while fingers hover over keyboards. And once the first draft is completed, we all turn right around and begin the editing process, likely multiple passes through depending on factors including professional help, ARC reader feedback, and the extent of our perfectionism. Published or soon-to-be published authors spend considerable time promoting their work, on social media and otherwise. Finally, there's the actual publication process itself, which for a self-published author is incredibly time-intensive even with help, professional or otherwise.
It's a lot.
I don't regret or fault myself for my weekly word count metric, but it doesn't tell the whole story. Pun intended.
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