I'm still a somewhat new writer and not one of those who can write hundreds of pages in a week or even a month. I'm writing a trilogy based upon central characters travelling mostly in south central Ontario, Canada. It is a pivotal point in time of their lives as they establish the foundations of a great life together.
I have written part one and might make a few minor style changes. Part 2 is done and HUGE by my standards. Part 2 is 354 pages which clearly means it needs editing and at least a read through; possibly cutting some scenes or adding a little here and there to make it more readable. I'm a firm believer that challenges, struggles, crises, death and births shape who we are. They are certainly subtle shaping my characters. Food, water and aviation are themes in this trilogy. My last part is water centric and roughly a quarter done. I am so into my characters and so eager to see the end of my largest story ever at roughly 600 pages partially edited that I keep rolling along.
In the story and in real life I'm often reminded of the limitations of time and what is possible in those constraints of time and space. I never have enough time to write and my characters constantly have the responsibilities of daily life intruding on their fun. There are so many other story concepts and starts which I read in my doctors waiting room which I would love to explore and write complete stories.
One thing I am sure of after writing stories during the past 2 years and now writing over 300 pages; I will NEVER say a Tolkien or a Dune novel are too long. SOMETIMES a story needs all those pages to tell the full story and tell who the characters are. To other writers, keep writing and writing until the COMPLETE story is told and remember that the true art of writing is in the editing.