how many hours do great writers write for?

Question

how much reading and writing a day did the best writers do - such as Hemingway etc. ?

Answer 1

The answer is "it depends." Usually, it's between 3 and 8 hours a day.

Hemingway wrote for about four hours a day, but there were periods of time when he didn't write at all.

Answer 2

A new writer needs to set themselves a goal, in order to establish a routine. Eventually, you will modify that routine to suit your lifestyle and inspiration.

Writers can be a strange lot. Some prefer writing at night, others in the daytime. Some require complete peace and quiet, others can't work without background noise.

One of my favorite stories has to do with Charles Dickens writing "A Christmas Carol", which was originally titled "Scrooge". He often worked late into the night at a time when his illumination would have been candles as a poor and struggling writer.

But so taken with the way his story developed, he wrote and wrote until he had finished the work, and then walked about the streets of London in the wee hours of the morning, in his own words, wringing his hands and by turns crying and laughing.

Like Dickens, when inspiration strikes, you will feel driven to finish your idea, chapter, plotline, etc. It's a good thing to indulge that impulse if you can, because it can be difficult to get back on track, or to focus on something else when your mind is pre-occupied with what you're writing about.

While it's a good idea to set a time frame that you will devote to writing, say two hours, it can be disastrous if you have writer's block, to sit there and literally bang your head against the keyboard. Get up and do something that allows your mind to work and wander, while at least employing you phsycially, whether that is washing the floor, or dusting everything in the house. Sometimes that physical exertion will help wear off the adrenalin that has built up from your frustration, and your mind is better able to expand its boundaries of thought.

Answer 3

That depends. Personally, I have set writing hours just like they were working hours. I only write during those hours - and I take breaks just like it was a job. I also try to read a book a day - or at least half a book.

I was taught long ago that the best way to write was to treat it like a job and work regular hours. Unfortunately, I am nocturnal and for me those hours are in the middle of the night. Fortunately I am a full time writer and don't have to worry about a job. I write 5 hours a day and in that time average 1500 - 2000 words. However a lot of times, my 5 hours is spent doing research and I dont write a single word. Research is as important as the words on paper - in fact MORE important.

There are exceptions - when deadlines loom large you will find yourself working overtime - just like anyone else. Pax - C.

Answer 4

Most writers I know don't measure time as much as production. Getting ten pages done in a day is a fair day's work. The author Robert Vaughan (Andersonville) typically does 20 pages in a day. Isaac Asimov was really prolific and would work on three manuscripts at once. In the days before computers, he actually had three typewriters with paper in them.

The average working writer likes to write first thing in the morning and is usually done with actual writing by noon. The afternoons are used in editing and marketing.

Answer 5

You should write a few hours a day but in one sitting, try not to go longer than one hour because people tend to reapet words and thoughts. Give your mind time to refresh. That way you will have fresh ideas and use more descriptive words.

Answer 6

I would think at least a few hours a day. If you want to become good at writing, you need all the practice you can get.

Answer 7

It depends on the writer, what they are writing, and how into it they are. I write scripts and sometimes it will take almost a full day.

Answer 8

For most it is a full time job and they write until they are finished. A lot of artists work for very great lengths of time without breaks or meals because they wish to suffer for their art.