Stacked—or, the reader’s dilemma

No, I don’t mean that kind of stacked. (Perhaps you have grown accustomed to following the The Write Transition and now expect all writing blogs to effortlessly—and humorously—combine discussion of bodily functions and body parts with writing wisdom.)

I’m talking about a stack that rises on the nightstand to a ridiculous height. Okay, maybe we shouldn’t go there, either.

Let’s try again. How about blog post headers piled atop one another to consume an entire in-box screen? Or the heap of unread New Yorkers on the floor beside my desk, a plight apparently shared by many and wittily described by Yuvi Zalkow on Writer Unboxed?

It’s great to be part of a writing community. I enjoy going to readings, celebrating the launches of fellow writers’ books, and following writing blogs. But I’m reaching my saturation point. When am I supposed to find time to read all these great new titles my friends have published? Not to mention review unfinished manuscripts, edit the next edition of the CWC’s Fault Zone anthology (still time for non-members to enter the Fault Zone contest!) and maybe, oh maybe, read a novel just because it looks interesting?

There is only one solution. I must ask my friends to stop writing.

Kidding. Instead, I’ll continue to do my best to plow through the stacks, piles, and heaps.

The dilemma of the expanding stacks has not only heightened my sympathy for the reader, it also has illustrated the importance of making my writing as compelling as possible. If a book is less than riveting, the reader can—and probably will—set it aside and move to the next one in the stack.

Do you have enough time to read everything on your “to read” list? (That’s a rhetorical question, but feel free to answer.) How do you prioritize?

If you’re a writer, do you find this problem overwhelming or motivating?

ReROWing

I haven’t checked in about my ROW80 goals since early in the month when I  finished my rough draft.

Thankfully, the next round starts July 2, because I am in serious danger of running off the rails. Sitting down and cranking out words every day seems easy. The hard part is going back and figuring out what is working or not working. Do I need to completely change the structure of the book? Possibly. Where are the plot holes? Everywhere. Which of the characters need stronger motivation for their actions? All of them.

But that work must be done. I’m looking forward to creating some measurable goals around those tasks and committing publicly to them for the next ROW80 round.