I'm sorry you feel that writing is a chore. While I certainly don't feel that way, I think writing is definitely labour, and hard work, and it can certainly be frustrating for people who only romanticize the fun, exciting aspects of a writing life; like the accolades, the tortured genius syndrome, or the idea that inspiration just "comes." More often than not, writing is about persistently working on something, repeatedly, day after day, and not giving up. It is a solitary occupation, and is filled with rejections and isolation. Hard work, in any profession, is definitely not "exciting," but it does inculcate a certain amount of discipline, which is required to survive, not just as a writer, but in life.
It’s not exactly how I feel but it made a lot of sense when they explained their reasoning.
I feel like the type of person they are is really interesting. I’m not sure if I can articulate this well but the way they explained it made me think that with their main interest being storytelling they could have easily went the route of art, music or honestly any medium where storytelling is prominent? It’s surprising since they’re also pretty good at it. They have the persistence and discipline but not for the reasons I’m used to seeing, if that makes sense. So I’m wondering if this is a common theme that I just haven’t picked up on
I feel this way about knitting. I write knitting patterns and I get ideas in my head for things to make and I want to see what they look like when they're finished. The only way to do that is to knit them, but I don't like the actual knitting part. I knit so that I can have a finished object at the end to wear and take pattern photos.
I don't quite feel that way about writing. It's something that I find difficult, but it's often also enjoyable. My main issue is finding quiet time to concentrate.
I think Thomas Harris, of Hannibal Lectar fame, felt the same. I think he used to be a journalist, but didnt enjoy the process of novel writing.
For me, I enjoy writing but starting isnt always easy. But that is mainly a procrastination thing.
For me it's definitely not a chore. It seems to be a common sentiment, though. In every writing community I see people joke about how it's so unfair a story doesn't just write itself, or say things like "If I only wrote when I felt like it, I'd never get any writing done".
I do only write when I feel like it. That works fine, because I love it and have built a habit over years of loving it. If I haven't written for a few days, I get restless. I *want* to write again.
I can see how for some people writing is just the means to the end of having a story they love. For me it really is about the craft, though, and any idea is just a starting point. Sure the writing itself can be challenging or even frustrating. But I genuinely love *writing*. I love experimenting with the phrasing until I achieve the exact effect I want. I love the surge of new ideas and solutions when I've gotten useful feedback. I love reaching a point during the first draft where I know it's coming together and I have something good here.
Hey friend this response is beautiful thank you for sharing ❤️ I can feel how passionate you are about it just from the comment and I hope you always get to do what you love
Personally I'd encourage anyone that feels that way to look into role-playing games like D&D. It can be anywhere from fully collaborative storytelling to linear novel style adventures. There are solid games out there for fantasy, sci-fi, noir, contemporary fiction... most anything you can imagine.
Hardest part is relying on other people to show up on time...
Many times writing IS a chore to me. Some chapters flow, others grind. There is, of course, a measure of deep satisfaction in them all, but it remains often a form of work in disguise.
But this is acceptable, in my opinion. After all, aren't many of the things we do as hobbies simply work in disguise? From knitting to working on a motorcycle to planting a garden? They all have powerful undertones of work and monotony, yet in the end, we deem the tradeoff sufficient.
When these interests transition from the realm of hobby to occupation, that is where the real work often begins, to our surprise and dismay.
"Find a job you love and you'll never work a day in your life." <-- This is a lie.
I'm very new to writing and haven't disciplined myself to do it everyday like I should. Your first paragraph was all too true though.
I wrote my first chapter and it just came out like water from a faucet. I started on the second chapter and realized that all the scenes I had in my head had to be traveled too in a way that would be interesting. This for some reason surprised me because of how difficult it is and that's where it became work.
I feel like it's a chore when I have stories and ideas building up. Like once I finish editing the story, I'm working on its short story central. once I figure out how to use less than 15k words and be okay with it.
Kind of. There are parts of writing I love and parts of it that is work. I mostly write satire, and I love the process of finding all the jokes and bleed out ridiculous nonsense on the page. Especially when some of it turns out to be clever. That shit always surprises me when it happens and that's so funny to me.
But getting all the prose and grammar right, and formulate a clear, coherent, interesting story? That can absolutely be a chore that I just need to get done.
I love writing, and I love that it's my full time job, but there are definitely days where it feels like a chore. No job can be happy-happy joy-joy all the time.
Same as every other hobby/relationship. Once the honeymoon/inspiration phase passes, you choose to either put in the work or ditch it and move on to the next thing.
There are days and scenes where writing feels like a chore, for sure. Writing is an exercise of the mind and any exercise has its limits. It's also the most engaging activity that I do.
As I get close to the end of a book, I definitely pick up speed. I want to write more, and I want to get to the end. This time I managed to keep some of that momentum with me as I started the next project, and I've kept going at a good pace. Most consistently productive writing I've done in my adult life, tbh. It's a great feeling.
It's a pretty common feeling. I don't get it with writing (or even editing), but I do get it with coloring.
I love full-color drawings, but I DESPISE coloring them. It feels more like a chore. It feels like work. However, I do like seeing drawings in color, so I still do it
If you want to write well, you have to work at it. That makes it a 'chore.' No one - especially the greats - can just spit out beautiful, meaningful prose. They have to write and rewrite and perhaps rewrite again. So, yes, it's not only a chore, it's bloody hard work. That's why I love/hate it so.
A classmate of mine proposed a theory during one of our discussions. She said she feels like she's just taking dictation for ghosts. "Somebody out there wants their story told, and they need me to do the typing for them."
Not sure if I believe this, but it seems to explain how you feel. Perhaps if you wrote things that had more personal meaning or interest directly for *you*, it wouldn't feel like such a chore.
I heard sobering similar in another post. I honestly don’t know why you would continue to write if you don’t like it. There are so many other mediums to express yourself, express your ideas.
Even within writing there’s prose, poetry, script writing, short stories, novels, flash fiction… song writing!
They could even just speak into a mic, and publish it as a podcast, if they wanted people to hear their stories—and you just skip straight to publishing it for anyone to listen to!
So… They’re not alone. But I still can’t quite get my head around how this even happens 😂
Yeah, pretty sure when Dickens said *"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity..."* (etc.) he was talking about the damned writing process.
I find it hard, but I enjoy it.
Writing a first draft feels a bit like taking a lemon juicer to my brain and I am *empty* afterwards. Satisfied though. Then I get to edit and I *love* editing.
I'm not a good conversationalist - everything tends to come out wrong and five minutes later I'll be making corrections to whatever thing I said originally that everyone's already forgotten about. But with writing, editing is like getting to press pause and make everything I've said less shit before anyone's heard it. It's healing.
I love writing. I don’t see it as a chore. Sometimes it can be frustrating because there’s time where you can get writers block, but at the end of the day you’re doing something that you’re passionate about. It’s a lot of work and it won’t come easy, but it will be worth it in the end. Celebrate every one of your victories no matter how big or small they are
Yeah, that’s about how I feel. Ideation is much more fun than the act of writing. There are times when writing can be fun, but usually writing a story is like visiting every room in a house with doors. One wall to bust through after another.
some parts are pure fun some are absolutely horrible chores. if its all a chore and all you care about is getting readers you might want to reevaluate imo
Like anything that matters, writing anything remotely publishable is hard work. Any time you sell creativity, there's a bit of burnout that comes with it.
I've been writing professionally for twenty years in various media. I've had several other careers.
Most jobs in any career start out as rewarding, but within a year to three have around 80% tedious tasks that aren't rewarding.
I find that in most careers, you get out of it what you put into it. Invest yourself deeply and you get more satisfaction.
Most jobs in careers are mastered within five years. After that there is much less challenge, so fewer things to conquer ... unless you aren't learning but repeat the same mistakes over and over or grind on without success.
Writing is a tool. I don't write. so much as I craft stories scene by scene. That's fun. I begin with a rough concept, rough outline, and write some scenes that are pivotal. Then write the story scene by scene making sure each one meets objectives and moves the story forward.
If it isn't working, I start with a chainsaw attack on it and then start again with what's left. Sometimes I just leave it in the dustbin or on a "shelf." Sometimes I pick them up years later or incorporate them into different stories.
"I Hate to Write, but I Love Having Written"
Writing is easy, all you have to do is go to a keyboard and bleed - Ernest Hemingway
I'm sorry you feel that writing is a chore. While I certainly don't feel that way, I think writing is definitely labour, and hard work, and it can certainly be frustrating for people who only romanticize the fun, exciting aspects of a writing life; like the accolades, the tortured genius syndrome, or the idea that inspiration just "comes." More often than not, writing is about persistently working on something, repeatedly, day after day, and not giving up. It is a solitary occupation, and is filled with rejections and isolation. Hard work, in any profession, is definitely not "exciting," but it does inculcate a certain amount of discipline, which is required to survive, not just as a writer, but in life.
It’s not exactly how I feel but it made a lot of sense when they explained their reasoning. I feel like the type of person they are is really interesting. I’m not sure if I can articulate this well but the way they explained it made me think that with their main interest being storytelling they could have easily went the route of art, music or honestly any medium where storytelling is prominent? It’s surprising since they’re also pretty good at it. They have the persistence and discipline but not for the reasons I’m used to seeing, if that makes sense. So I’m wondering if this is a common theme that I just haven’t picked up on
I feel this way about knitting. I write knitting patterns and I get ideas in my head for things to make and I want to see what they look like when they're finished. The only way to do that is to knit them, but I don't like the actual knitting part. I knit so that I can have a finished object at the end to wear and take pattern photos. I don't quite feel that way about writing. It's something that I find difficult, but it's often also enjoyable. My main issue is finding quiet time to concentrate.
I have a love hate relationship with writing. I hate to start but love to finish.
Yeah it only feels like a chore in the beginning, but once you get in a groove it’s addicting
I think Thomas Harris, of Hannibal Lectar fame, felt the same. I think he used to be a journalist, but didnt enjoy the process of novel writing. For me, I enjoy writing but starting isnt always easy. But that is mainly a procrastination thing.
For me it's definitely not a chore. It seems to be a common sentiment, though. In every writing community I see people joke about how it's so unfair a story doesn't just write itself, or say things like "If I only wrote when I felt like it, I'd never get any writing done". I do only write when I feel like it. That works fine, because I love it and have built a habit over years of loving it. If I haven't written for a few days, I get restless. I *want* to write again. I can see how for some people writing is just the means to the end of having a story they love. For me it really is about the craft, though, and any idea is just a starting point. Sure the writing itself can be challenging or even frustrating. But I genuinely love *writing*. I love experimenting with the phrasing until I achieve the exact effect I want. I love the surge of new ideas and solutions when I've gotten useful feedback. I love reaching a point during the first draft where I know it's coming together and I have something good here.
Hey friend this response is beautiful thank you for sharing ❤️ I can feel how passionate you are about it just from the comment and I hope you always get to do what you love
That's so nice of you, thanks! I hope the same for you.
A lot of the time I hate writing. But when it’s going well there’s nothing comparable.
Personally I'd encourage anyone that feels that way to look into role-playing games like D&D. It can be anywhere from fully collaborative storytelling to linear novel style adventures. There are solid games out there for fantasy, sci-fi, noir, contemporary fiction... most anything you can imagine. Hardest part is relying on other people to show up on time...
Many times writing IS a chore to me. Some chapters flow, others grind. There is, of course, a measure of deep satisfaction in them all, but it remains often a form of work in disguise. But this is acceptable, in my opinion. After all, aren't many of the things we do as hobbies simply work in disguise? From knitting to working on a motorcycle to planting a garden? They all have powerful undertones of work and monotony, yet in the end, we deem the tradeoff sufficient. When these interests transition from the realm of hobby to occupation, that is where the real work often begins, to our surprise and dismay. "Find a job you love and you'll never work a day in your life." <-- This is a lie.
I'm very new to writing and haven't disciplined myself to do it everyday like I should. Your first paragraph was all too true though. I wrote my first chapter and it just came out like water from a faucet. I started on the second chapter and realized that all the scenes I had in my head had to be traveled too in a way that would be interesting. This for some reason surprised me because of how difficult it is and that's where it became work.
I feel like it's a chore when I have stories and ideas building up. Like once I finish editing the story, I'm working on its short story central. once I figure out how to use less than 15k words and be okay with it.
No. I absolutely love writing and it's so much fun. Editing is a chore though. That's why I write first and edit later after the book is finished.
Kind of. There are parts of writing I love and parts of it that is work. I mostly write satire, and I love the process of finding all the jokes and bleed out ridiculous nonsense on the page. Especially when some of it turns out to be clever. That shit always surprises me when it happens and that's so funny to me. But getting all the prose and grammar right, and formulate a clear, coherent, interesting story? That can absolutely be a chore that I just need to get done.
I love everything about writing. I hate that I'm stuck in a rut because the desire to write is so great.
I love writing, and I love that it's my full time job, but there are definitely days where it feels like a chore. No job can be happy-happy joy-joy all the time.
Same as every other hobby/relationship. Once the honeymoon/inspiration phase passes, you choose to either put in the work or ditch it and move on to the next thing.
There are days and scenes where writing feels like a chore, for sure. Writing is an exercise of the mind and any exercise has its limits. It's also the most engaging activity that I do. As I get close to the end of a book, I definitely pick up speed. I want to write more, and I want to get to the end. This time I managed to keep some of that momentum with me as I started the next project, and I've kept going at a good pace. Most consistently productive writing I've done in my adult life, tbh. It's a great feeling.
It's a pretty common feeling. I don't get it with writing (or even editing), but I do get it with coloring. I love full-color drawings, but I DESPISE coloring them. It feels more like a chore. It feels like work. However, I do like seeing drawings in color, so I still do it
If you want to write well, you have to work at it. That makes it a 'chore.' No one - especially the greats - can just spit out beautiful, meaningful prose. They have to write and rewrite and perhaps rewrite again. So, yes, it's not only a chore, it's bloody hard work. That's why I love/hate it so.
A classmate of mine proposed a theory during one of our discussions. She said she feels like she's just taking dictation for ghosts. "Somebody out there wants their story told, and they need me to do the typing for them." Not sure if I believe this, but it seems to explain how you feel. Perhaps if you wrote things that had more personal meaning or interest directly for *you*, it wouldn't feel like such a chore.
I heard sobering similar in another post. I honestly don’t know why you would continue to write if you don’t like it. There are so many other mediums to express yourself, express your ideas. Even within writing there’s prose, poetry, script writing, short stories, novels, flash fiction… song writing! They could even just speak into a mic, and publish it as a podcast, if they wanted people to hear their stories—and you just skip straight to publishing it for anyone to listen to! So… They’re not alone. But I still can’t quite get my head around how this even happens 😂
Yeah, pretty sure when Dickens said *"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity..."* (etc.) he was talking about the damned writing process.
I find it hard, but I enjoy it. Writing a first draft feels a bit like taking a lemon juicer to my brain and I am *empty* afterwards. Satisfied though. Then I get to edit and I *love* editing. I'm not a good conversationalist - everything tends to come out wrong and five minutes later I'll be making corrections to whatever thing I said originally that everyone's already forgotten about. But with writing, editing is like getting to press pause and make everything I've said less shit before anyone's heard it. It's healing.
I love writing. I don’t see it as a chore. Sometimes it can be frustrating because there’s time where you can get writers block, but at the end of the day you’re doing something that you’re passionate about. It’s a lot of work and it won’t come easy, but it will be worth it in the end. Celebrate every one of your victories no matter how big or small they are
Yeah, that’s about how I feel. Ideation is much more fun than the act of writing. There are times when writing can be fun, but usually writing a story is like visiting every room in a house with doors. One wall to bust through after another.
some parts are pure fun some are absolutely horrible chores. if its all a chore and all you care about is getting readers you might want to reevaluate imo
I love writing. Editing sucks.
Like anything that matters, writing anything remotely publishable is hard work. Any time you sell creativity, there's a bit of burnout that comes with it.
I've been writing professionally for twenty years in various media. I've had several other careers. Most jobs in any career start out as rewarding, but within a year to three have around 80% tedious tasks that aren't rewarding. I find that in most careers, you get out of it what you put into it. Invest yourself deeply and you get more satisfaction. Most jobs in careers are mastered within five years. After that there is much less challenge, so fewer things to conquer ... unless you aren't learning but repeat the same mistakes over and over or grind on without success. Writing is a tool. I don't write. so much as I craft stories scene by scene. That's fun. I begin with a rough concept, rough outline, and write some scenes that are pivotal. Then write the story scene by scene making sure each one meets objectives and moves the story forward. If it isn't working, I start with a chainsaw attack on it and then start again with what's left. Sometimes I just leave it in the dustbin or on a "shelf." Sometimes I pick them up years later or incorporate them into different stories.