The Hague Online's 'Writer in Residence' Jo Parfitt is musing about . . .

Write it fast and write it slow

May column 2010

‘Cast n’er a clout til May is out,’ they say, which means don’t start packing away your winter wardrobe quite yet. And though we had a wonderful false start to the summer a couple of weeks ago, today, as I look out of my window, I see rain falling, the end of the pink blossom being blown off the trees and an overcast sky. It seems that I’ll have to patient.

All good things come to those who wait, they say. Another saying that has truth at its core. I am one of the most impatient people I know and so waiting is not my favourite occupation, whether I am waiting for summer or waiting for my current Work In Progress (WIP) to finally be ready to let loose on the world.

I guess it was this impatience that led me to focus my writing efforts on writing articles for many years. All it took was to have a good idea, send an outline of that idea to a magazine or paper, receive a commission and a brief (or a ‘thanks but no thanks’) in exchange, write a couple of pages, press Send and wait to see my words in print.

Now, thanks to the era of the blog, I can have an idea, write about it on my blog, press Publish and in seconds I am in print, albeit in cyberspace. It’s so quick and easy that I am now doing so three times a week.

Twitter has also been a godsend for my verbal diarrhea, and those teeny 140 characters are written and sent in a jiffy.

Thank goodness for articles, blogs and tweets. They let me feed my addiction to action. Make me feel as if I am communicating and doing something useful every day, something that flexes my writing muscle and keeps my brain on high alert for new ideas all day long.

Meanwhile, my impatience assuaged, I can allow the long term projects in my life to take their time, to simmer on the back burner of my mind until they are truly ready. Before blogs and tweets I swear I would race through my long term projects too, desperate to reach the finish line. Sure, they were published fast, but they were also imperfect. I’d go back and revise them forever.

I’ve two long term projects on the boil right now. My novel and my online Write Your Life Stories program.

It took me two years to write the novel and I’ve taken another year so far slowly trying to find myself an agent. No rush. When it happens it happens. I know it took JK Rowling about 35 rejections til she struck oil, so I ‘m not panicking as I plod along.

It has taken me two long years to construct my online Write Your Life Stories program from concept to completion. Two years during which I ruminated, discussed, got feedback, revised ideas and polished the workbook, audio and video until I was really happy with it. It goes on sale this week, but like I said it took two years.

As someone who has made my living as a writer for over 20 years I recognize the value in writing in a variety of styles and for a range of media. It keeps me on my toes and keeps my writing fresh. It also keeps my creativity alive.

Many writers become despondent when their long term projects seem too high a mountain to climb. My advice to you is to indulge in some quick and easy writing too, create a balance and renew your faith in yourself that you can do it. You can reach the end. And you will.

Jo Parfitt’s blog can be found at www.joparfitt.com
Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/joparfitt

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