WPS (Words Per Session)

[skip.knox]

A couple of recent threads set me thinking. How much is a "typical" writing session for you?

I'm finding that I top out somewhere around 2 hours, or about 1000 to 1500 words. I can do more, though I don't think I've ever reached 2000. I can sure do less!

But I wonder if there is something physical about it.

FWIW, it doesn't seem to matter whether I'm writing at the laptop or on paper with pen. I still get tired around 1300 or so. Also, I tend to write scenes that are about that long.

YMMV.

-= Skip =-

 

[Mectojic]

I work in 2 hour segments when writing -- when thinking and planning, it can go for hours, but I never push myself, and thinking isnt strenous.

In 2 hours I write approx. 2000 words. So basically, I have it all planned and ready when I go to write. I push myself to go fast, and quickly, while not having any spelling errors.
Once that is done, I will spend time later looking over what I wrote and refining it.
This process I feel is the best, because I get all the stuff down quickly before having to refine it.

With those speeds, and with a bit of extra work here, I have written a whole chapter over one weekend, without having to put everything else aside in my life.

P.S. when I'm tired, 2 hours can only give me about 1,200 words... especially when the chapter is a difficult one, so don't feel stressed to rush too much
Hope this helped.

 

[Penpilot]

I usually work in 2-4hr segments. I take tiny breaks as needed to mentally regroup. The number of words generated can vary wildly. Sometimes I'll only get 500 words down. Other times I'll get over 5000. It all depends on how firm a grasp I have on what needs to be done storywise. The firmer the grasp the more words I can get down, and the less of an effort it will feel.

On average my scenes are around 2500 words. I've done long stretches where I produced 1500-2000 words a day. When I was doing that, all writing felt easier. It felt easier to get started each day. It felt easier to push on when I was tired. It felt easier to work on multiple projects.

During this time, I was taking writing classes, producing a short story every other week while critiquing a bunch of others each week, so I was doing a lot of writing and writing related stuff. The more I wrote, the more I pushed myself to write, the easier the words came out. One time, while driving home after a class, I came up with an idea for a short story. When I got home I went to the computer to jot a few things down. Before I knew it, five hours had passed, and I had finished a 6000 word story.

 

[Chessie]

I usually work in 2-4hr segments.

This is me, too. My word counts vary from 1,700 to slightly over 3,000 words. Some days I write more, some days I write less (or even below 1,000) but on the days after, I try to catch up by soaring the numbers.

 

[Nimue]

I can't do anything near that... I tend to write for 1-2 hours at a time and average around 300-500 words, though on a Saturday or Sunday I can get up to 3-4 hours and over 1000. I am very slow. I definitely edit as I write, and while that may improve the quality, it really cuts down on speed and productivity....

I still don't think I've found my writing pattern. Unless it's just meant to be "write, feel guilty about not writing, doubt that I can write anything ever again, start writing late at night, realize that it sort of works, write more, etc"

 

[Chessie]

Nimue, when I first started writing, if I made it to 1,000 words that was a huge success for me. When I started learning more about story structure and plotting, my production of words increased. The only reason why I can write faster now is because I prepare my story for weeks (and sometimes even a month or two) before I start writing the first draft of my story.

 

[X Equestris]

I usually write at least 500 words a day. Typically I'm between 1-2 hours. Though if I'm really absorbed in what I'm writing, it can easily run into three hours and 2000 words.

 

[Garren Jacobsen]

I only have time to write once or twice a month. Reading, work, being a dad, and school often gets in the way of writing. However, I usually write in anywhere between 2-3 hour segments. When I'm focused and writing well I can crank out anywhere between 1.5-3k words. Right now I am experimenting with discovery writing and having a lot of fun just seeing where the story takes me. However, between sessions I am always thinking about what the next scene, chapter, or act needs and plan my writing accordingly, I just don't write it down. This has worked out well for me so far since I am always excited about the project, whereas other books I've written were outlined to death and became a slog to push through. I want to see if I can find a happy median between my pantsing and the loathsome over-outlining I did as a much more novice writer.

 

[T.Allen.Smith]

I work at a pace similar to Nimue.

My daily production depends entirely on how much free time I have that day. Typically, that is only about 2 hours. However, being a prodigious writer who always begins by reading and doing minor edits to the previous day's session, I average between 500 and 600 words per day. The most I've ever done was 2500, and man did I ever feel studly, but that was on a day where the family was away and I forced my ass-in-chair for four 2-hour sessions. That gives me an idea of what I could accomplish if I wrote full-time. The pace of words/hour doesn't change.

My scene lengths normally fall in the range of 2500-5000 words. For the most part, one chapter is a complete scene, with a few exceptions in a novel-length work. However, I'm now experimenting with multiple-scene and POV chapters for a couple of stories in planning...going out of my comfort zone to challenge my sense of style.

I'm a creature of habit. Or, should I say, "I'm a creature who needs habit if I'm to be successful". I wish I would've realized this earlier. Over the last few years, I've learned that I'm at my most productive when I stick to a regular schedule. I protect certain hours in the day and everyone knows that 95% of the time, I'll be writing between 10 & 12 every weekday night, and on the weekends there'll be two sessions...a short 1 hour session in the daytime (whenever it fits into family events) and the standard 10-12 at night.

I typically write every day, but I do allow vacations from writing. These writing vacations coincide with day job vacations. I also give myself a 2-3 week break every time I complete a project. I keep my hunger to constantly improve alive by allowing myself distance from the pursuit, but it must be earned.

These practices combined, reinforce my belief that, "If you want to be a professional, you must act like a professional."

To answer your question, Skip...I believe there is a physical/mental link, but I think it's more about how we train ourselves based off where we've found success. Once we start developing a style that works, and people start to appreciate our efforts, we probably have figured out the best path to achieve those results again. That can take a considerable amount of time.

 

[buyjupiter]

I'm probably on the high end of the spectrum, words per day-wise. I usually only have a 1-2 hour chunk that is (mostly) respected, by virtue of everyone being asleep, but sometimes I manage to carve out a 20 minute chunk in the middle of the day. Having to carve out time randomly during the day and sometimes night, means that I've had to learn how to be super productive within that time.

That said, in my first hour I usually hit my 2k goal. I spend the next hour finessing it some and then moving on to the next good "break" point. I don't always get to my next break point, but that's the goal.

My best word day was ~6k. I zoomed through 4k in a couple of hours, took a long break doing family stuff, and then came back to the writing later on in the day and did another 2k.

There are some days where I don't hit my 2k goal, but that is mostly when I start to hear myself go "but what if it's not any good" or "gosh, I'm going to be spending forever fixing these issues that I know have to be there because I'm not that good of a writer". (The critical story-destroying issues that I obsess over instead of writing, perhaps not surprisingly, turn out NOT to be there upon re-reading it/editing it.)

I think this might be partly a result of going the short story route, as projects are "quicker" to finish and you have to create a ton of stuff all the time to get any results in publication. My novel(s) tend to slog along, until I get a good "outline" in my head, and then I can zoom through 2-3k in a short amount of time.

 

[ThinkerX]

Usually 400 - 700 words per session, which is something on the order of 1 - 2 hours. If things 'click,' I can double that, sometimes even topping 2000 words. Problem areas...even 200 - 300 words is a good session (I have these things happening here that have to mesh with these events in the past and those events off to the side type stuff)

 

[skip.knox]

Just a quick note of thanks to All&Sundry for their replies on this thread. I find it reassuring to see so many people falling into a similar range. Perhaps that was the wrong verb. *Producing* in a similar range. There.

 

[MineOwnKing]

Age seems to be a factor for me now that I'm over 40.

Lot's of high output early in the morning only. I save my editing time for the afternoon crash.

I can't imagine writing anything of real quality or quantity after midnight as I've read that some people do.

 

[Russ]

I take time when I can steal it, because it is hard to come by.

If I get two uninterrupted hours writing I can do about 1500 words or so. If I wake up 45 minutes early I can usually get 500 words or so in.

I find I am writing faster and better as I get older. Let's hope it continues.

Addendum:

After I posted this I thought while it might be interesting what I write, it is not much of a useful marker. Fortunately I know a number of people who write for a living and what they do might be of more value.

My wife writes both fiction and non-fiction for a living. With fiction she is happy with 1000 good words a day. A great day for her is about 1500, with non-fiction she can triple that.

Many of the professional fiction writers I know target about 1000 good words a day and are very happy if they have a 2000 word day. These are folks who write for a living full time and are very successful at it.

I think even Moorcock has slowed down from his previous 15000 words a day insanity