As wonderful as writing often is, it isn’t always fun. In fact, it’s not that uncommon to hear writers – sometimes very successful writers – say that they’re struggling with a novel draft and/or not particularly enjoying the writing process.

So why do we still do it? Even though it’s difficult and sometimes akin to trying to get water from a stone, we still carry on. We still want to do it and willingly put ourselves through the pain.

There are, I think, several reasons for this.

One is that we have something to say and we’re determined to say it through a novel, no matter how long it takes or how hard we have to work to do it. We have a story to tell or an issue we want to explore, and our commitment to the idea is more than enough to see us through the tough times.

Another reason is that when we do get to the end of the writing process, there is the immense satisfaction of a job well done. Finishing a novel you’ve spent months or even years writing is pretty amazing, and there is nothing quite like the sense of achievement. The buzz that you feel when you get to the end is more than reason enough to carry on whatever happens.

Also, there is often a practical side to continuing writing even though it’s not always completely enjoyable. If writing is part of your career and your income – even if just a small part of your income – depends on you getting your novel finished and published, there is a strong reason to carrying on writing.

Plus writing is just one of those things we have to do. It might be painful at times and we might sometimes wonder why we ever started it in the first place, but once you’ve got the bug, there’s not really any getting over it. We just have to write a novel. Whatever it takes, we’ll get there in the end.