Writing a book is an endurance contest, and a war fought against yourself, because writing is beastly hard work which one would just as soon not do. It’s also a job, and if you want to get paid, you have to work. Life is cruel that way.” ~ Tom Clancy

Stumbled upon today’s timely quote at Tricia Goyer’s WritersQuotes.

Timely for me, since a friend recently remarked ‘how nice it is’ to sit home all day, writing and daydreaming, “while the rest of us are slaving away at work.” Since this friend isn’t a writer, she got only a quiet stare from me. Writers never say that sort of thing to another. Still, most folks think writers hang out at Barnes & Noble with their laptops, pecking a few words out at their leisure while sipping on frothy lattes. I’m not even gonna go there…

To churn out good writing on a consistent basis is tough. Try it sometime. “Beastly hard work,” as Tom Clancey puts it, is exactly right. If you’re a writer, you’ve probably hit the wall a time or two when there was more perspiration than inspiration. Whether we craft thoughtful essays or well-researched articles on deadline, or labor over that daily word-count goal for the work-in-progress, writing doesn’t come easy. A labor of love, yes, but real work.

Or maybe it depends on whether or not we approach our writing as business, or a personal, creative endeavor. Just ask Mary Yerkes, who posted an excellent piece on this topic at The Artist’s Way.

I have worked nonstop for almost three years now, moving from one freelance writing assignment to the next with little breathing room in between. After all, I needed the clips to build my resume. But maintaining my priorities and balancing the demands of living with chronic illness, working my “day job” (as a writer for a trade association), and ministry responsibilities proved exhausting! When, in April 2006, an editor asked me if I would accept an assignment for 24 articles, 4 articles per month for 6 months, I found myself consulting with a few close writer friends and ultimately saying, “No.”

Mary shares that after churning article after article on assignment, she felt at risk of writing by rote and losing her creative edge if she didn’t step back and reconnect with her “writing roots.” And so she asks herself: “Why do I write? What do I want to accomplish through my writing? Important questions.

Mary Yerkes brings balance to the writing picture with five conclusions in the post, The Business vs. Personal, Creative Sides of Writing. Our answers may vary individually, but I agree with Mary. It helps to periodically reassess our motives, and clarify why we labor as we do.

Thanks, Mary, for understanding not only the mechanics of writing, but the heart of the writer.

Establish the work of our hands for us—yes, establish the work of our hands. ~ Psalm 90:17