You Might Be Writing Too Much, Not Too Little
Learn when to cut back on starting new projects
Yes, it is possible to write too much.
However strange that might sound, it’s true. I personally came across this realization several years ago when I was writing a novel for publication, short stories for competitions, a web publication as a hobby, and blog posts for fun — all at the same time. The symptoms came up mere weeks after starting those projects. I was low on new ideas, low on motivation, and was barely able to write content consistently. Strangely enough, I thought at the time that the reason for my lack of motivation and ideas was because I wasn’t writing enough. It never occurred to me that the problem could’ve been that I was writing too much.
In hindsight, it seems only natural that I made that assumption. That’s because, for better or for worse, a majority of the writing advice on the internet covers how to create ideas and how to start writing. Unfortunately, what’s missing is the balancing advice of how and when to stop writing.
If you’re feeling stuck with your writing right now, here are some signs that you might be writing too much and how you can overcome that mental block.
You have multiple works in progress (WIP) in the same category
It’s alright to work on multiple pieces at the same time, but you’ll most likely start running into problems if you’re working on multiple projects in the same category. A lot of problems, actually. An example of this is if you’re writing two books or two short stories at the same time.
Here’s the hard truth: very few people can properly manage such a large workload without burning out and there are many reasons why. Managing such a creative output requires uncanny time management skills, excellent organizing ability, and consistency that is iron-clad. Unfortunately, for most people, achieving that level of management is extremely difficult.
For that reason, having multiple WIPs in the same category creates several issues. For starters, it disrupts your creative immersion. Writers have a consistency-keeping mechanism whether they know it or not. This takes the form of writing playlists, specific times they like to work, or places where they like to work. This mechanism allows them to immerse in their writing, but with multiple different WIPs, that creative immersion is broken.
The second issue is time management. If you’ve been writing for a long time, you’ve probably experienced having your responsibilities leaving little to no time for you to write. This leads to prolonged breaks in your writing which significantly dampers your progress. If you have two pieces of writing, then the problem becomes twice as worse. Now, not only do you have to balance your time between life and writing, but you also have to balance your time between your different pieces of work. That is why it’s honestly best in many cases to focus on just one piece of writing instead of multiple.
That is why it’s honestly best in many cases to focus on just one piece of writing instead of multiple.
You’re sacrificing quality for quantity
Ah, yes. You’re writing at three a.m. in the morning and you’re exhausted. So after finishing your last sentence, you go to sleep even though you know there are a million things wrong with what you just wrote. This is very similar to what happens when people overwrite: they begin sacrificing quality for the sake of “just finishing.”
We tend to overestimate our ability to produce quality content consistently. We set unreasonable deadlines for ourselves and when we can’t keep up, we sacrifice quality to try to catch up.
One of the major pitfalls that all writers encounter at some point is that they begin sacrificing quality for quantity — this is especially true for writers who write in serials like a weekly blog, weekly web novel, or other mediums. This often happens because we tend to overestimate our ability to produce quality content consistently. We set unreasonable deadlines for ourselves and when we can’t keep up, we sacrifice quality to try to catch up.
Fortunately, the cure for this is fairly simple. First, set reasonable deadlines. Use the first couple weeks of a project to test how much content you can handle producing consistently and give yourself enough leeway. It’s always better to strive for consistent quantity with high quality than high quantity with low quality. Second, establish a consistent working schedule. This will help you not only write when you’re in your “flow state,” but also while you’re not feeling the writing mood. Additionally, having a consistent schedule is one of the best ways to improve.
Your writing isn’t improving
Writers should strive to improve. Even writers who have made it big with their writing continue to improve and have room to do so. It’s a similar line of logic to billionaires who still read self-development books even though they’ve already made it big. Improvement is a healthy sign that your writing output is balanced and challenging. If your writing isn’t improving, you’re most likely writing too much and not giving yourself time to improve.
If your writing isn’t improving, you’re most likely writing too much and not giving yourself time to improve.
Lucky for us, there are many great ways to improve writing. First, study the writing of great writers in your genre. I personally found that this helps more than studying the “best writers” in general because it is more specific to my writing. Second, get serious about writing. Though the fact that you’re skimming through blogs on how to improve your writing is already a good indicator that you’re fairly serious, here’s a gentle reminder to treat writing as more than “just a hobby.” Set hard deadlines for yourself, take the time to get critical about your writing, and practice consistently. The results will most definitely show. Third, learn to look for criticism. Even if it’s just your family or friends, criticism will help you grow as a writer, open your mind to new possibilities, and keep the writing process interesting.
Writing is exciting, but it’s often overwhelming. There’s a reason why many “writers” somehow don’t seem to write a single word for months on end.
When I encountered the problem of writing “too much” several years ago, I went through quite the depressive slump. Writing felt like such a chore and I couldn’t find any inspiration to keep me going. The worst part of it was that I couldn’t figure out what the problem was, so every time I tried getting back into the groove, I couldn’t keep it going. That’s why in my experience, one of the most important qualities for a writer is knowing their own limits and staying consistent. Consistency and discipline don’t bow down to emotional and creative slumps, and it keeps us going even when other things try to drag us down.
