Working Toward Inspiration

It’s been years since I saw this quote from bestselling author Stephen King, but it stuck with me: “Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration; the rest of us just get up and go to work.”

A corollary appeared in a collection of inspiring quotes published in Inc. magazine. It came from Robert Collier, whose The Secret of the Ages was popular in the latter 1920s: “Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day-in, and day-out.”

Such observations—particularly King’s—can sound heartless, almost cruel. Yet they apply to would-be authors who can never move from an abstract concept to words on paper (or screen).

I first encountered this phenomenon in the mid-1990s at a major Christian writers’ conference.

One speaker was the editor of a magazine I queried a dozen times, but who bought only a single article from me.

Their standards were so exacting that just getting them to look at a story was an accomplishment. Yet, the editor said that 50 percent of the time when they said yes to a pitch, the writer never sent the article.

I’ve seen this happen more recently. In late 2024, I received an inquiry from a woman with an idea for a book she thought could lead to several more. It sounded fascinating; I expressed my interest in a phone conversation and follow-up emails.

Several months into our correspondence, she moved back to her home area. Then she said she had to put the project on hold. Possibly forever, it seems; my most recent message went unanswered.

Pacing Yourself

Pulling together words into a completed manuscript represents the fight of your life, one that can only be won with grit and determination.

Author Polly Campbell addressed this in her perceptive article, “Pacing Your Writing Process: Keep creative momentum when you have little time to write.” It appeared in the March/April issue of Writers Digest.

Campbell, who also hosts a podcast, offered a series of gems about fighting through distractions, day jobs, social media posts, and other minutiae.

Even as a full-time writer, she said, distraction-free hours to write are hard to come by. She works on a novel between marketing, bill-paying, and other freelance assignments that actually pay the bills.

“I don’t know of a single full-time writer who has unlimited time to write and develop their own passion projects,” Campbell wrote. “Still, I fell for the myth of If I Only Had More Time, I’d Write the Book. But that, I realized, was just another excuse to avoid the work.”

Time Challenge

Long ago, while struggling to survive as a freelancer, I heard bestselling author Jerry Jenkins talk about his time challenges.

By then, he had already produced a series of New York Times bestsellers, and would go on to write the megahit “Left Behind” series. But he still wasn’t on Easy Street, he said, reviewing the myriad of details constantly vying for his attention.

At one point, with tongue in cheek, he talked about the procrastination you had to build into the process.

Every writer or editor can relate. There are days when the keyboard monster seems so daunting … well, I do need to run to Office Depot for ink, Walmart for copy paper, and the post office for stamps. Maybe play a game of Spider Solitaire too.

Like Jenkins, I’m joking. But inspiration doesn’t strike often during daydreams. It’s more likely to happen while researching material, tapping on the keyboard, or sweating over a difficult paragraph that has you ready to quit.

As King says, sometimes you just have to go to work.