Setting down a novel, picking it up again

I have a "completion problem," so I'm probably not the best person to offer ideas on this one. However, I have read lots of tips on this subject, and one of the strategies that seems to come up repeatedly is "discipline," as in: Sit your butt in the chair and write.

Lots of accomplished writers start their days writing for three or four hours straight, without fail. For example, like his work or not the prolific Stephan King runs his life on such a schedule.

I think it was the writer Annie Dillard who said something along the lines of, "A schedule is a net for catching days." I guess it can also serve to catch words.

If the word "discipline" bothers you, the original meaning of the word may help: To be a disciple is to be a follower of a vision. When we commit ourselves to our writing, we are followers of our own visions.