Components of writing

In some interview about his writing methodology the genius novelist Tom Robbins once said that his primary responsibility in writing was to show up. He had to show up at his writing desk each morning because that is when his muse showed up. (Like me, he was mostly a morning writer.) We can characterize a muse as an artist’s inspiration and passion. His muse showed up in the morning so if he wanted a good writing session he had to be there, too. He was the scribe who followed the direction of his muse; his inspiration and passion.

So essentially he had a good ‘work ethic.’ He showed up on time and put in the work. But he couldn’t do it without his muse — his inspiration and passion. And he had one hell of a great muse.

I should point out that Tom Robbins is a total weirdo. He is one of the greatest novelists of the last 50+ years and he doesn’t even know how to type! How thoroughly insane is that? None of his classic novels were written on a laptop keyboard or even a typewriter. They were all written by pen on a legal pad. His novels take between 3 and 6 years to write. He will spend an entire day on just one paragraph! Every paragraph had to be utterly perfect before he would move on to the next. Talk about ‘work ethic!’

And his novels are dripping with inspiration, imagination and passion.

Writing like that would completely drive me cuckoo bananas.

The point is that showing up (work ethic), inspiration, imagination, and passion are all necessary. It is folly to put any one of those over the others. It is tantalizing, however, to discover the importance of each of those. When they all come together mojo happens. And I can tell that it has happened for you.

Sorry if I was a bit harsh in my response. I can be a bitch sometimes. Just ask anyone.

For me work, inspiration, imagination, and passion don’t always come together in an harmonious synergy. It’s actually the work part that I have down. To get the other three to fall in line takes a bit more surrender. So I, unfortunately, get frustrated to see authors like Stephen King, Danielle Steel, J. K. Rowling, James Patterson, Robert Ludlum, and others churn out books like a factory assembly line and produce ridiculous wealth from it. In the time it takes me to write a chapter those novelists have already come out with a new book.

But we must never, ever judge ourselves by other writers! Never! There can only be two entities in a writing relationship: the writer and her/his muse. The reader also has to be outside of that relationship. It’s a very intimate relationship. And, as with any relationship, showing up and putting in the work is always the first step.