Conditioning

In any physical activity, there are two primary components: technique and conditioning. Your technique is your ability to make your body do the things it needs to do, whether that be catching a ball, playing the right note on an instrument, or putting your boot to somebody's head. Your conditioning is how long you can do those techniques.

You cannot succeed unless you have developed both of those qualities. No matter how excellent your technique is, if you cannot do it over a long period of time, then they will never be enough.

Writing is a physical activity and it is governed by these same requirements. Learning writing technique is tremendously important, as are there massive amounts to learn in that area, but no matter how effective your writing is, if you don't continue to write, if you can't get yourself to finish your stories, if you only do it every now and then, then you will be severely limited in what your writing will be able to do.

Work on your conditioning. Try writing in a 3-hour session. If you can afford the time, try an 8-hour session just to see how long you last. Try writing without letting yourself stop. It's very easy to try to gather your thoughts or edit as you type or come up with one more thing to add, but if you never let your hands rest, you will definitely be feeling it, and you know that you will have produced a great deal.

Along with conditioning and endurance writing, remember that you are always better off writing too much than writing to little. It is far easier to remove than it is to add. Even if you feel like you are just spinning your wheels, it is still good exercise.