For those of you who are (or who have hung around) a writer at any point in time, you've probably heard the terms "word count."
We are always striving for that elusive number. Be it a daily goal or the completion of a manuscript, we wordsmiths sure do seem to place a lot of importance on numbers.
And a lot of writers will admit that they hate numbers. Many of them hate math in general. So what is it with this obsession we have with numbers?
After much pondering (not really), I've decided to share my thoughts (or lack thereof) on this subject.
1. We need numbers. Life, and thus our stories, would be boring without numbers. (Who would be interested if the reader doesn't know how old our characters are, what year they live in, or how many half-decaf-caramel-lattes they drink each day?)
2. Numbers help you exaggerate in order to make your point more meaningful. (She rewrote the scene for the 5-trillionth time.)
3. Numbers help us with deadlines and parameters. (You'll never have a publisher ask you to deliver a manuscript of unlimited word count whenever you feel like it.)
So now that I have shared my abundance of wisdom on this matter of numbers, I must get back to my own word count after teaching my kids that "yes, you still have to do math even if you want to be a writer."
bet that just thrills, Miss Kayla, huh?
ReplyDeleteBut it's oh so true. Gotta love it. By the way, how much did you get in your word count over the weekend marathon?
Karen
awesome post! i didn't realize how obsessed writers were with numbers. now i know.
ReplyDeletebill
Bill, writers become so obsessed with numbers that by the end of the day if we haven't quite reached our word count goal yet, we keep checking the little counter doo-hickie on our word processor after every sentence!
ReplyDeleteHi, Kim and Kayla. Missed you at the ACFW conference this year. It was fan-tab-u-lous!
(((Hugs)))