So I wasn’t really taught to brush my teeth every day as a kid. So I didn’t. I got to be an adult and realized “hmm teeth are expensive I need to start brushing them” and brushing my teeth twice a day has been on my actual to do list every single day of my college career. It’s a habit I needed to build.

Have I successfully done it? Absolutely not. I’m pretty good about doing it at least once a day, but some days it just doesn’t happen. It’s not that I forget usually, I just had some aversion I couldn’t figure out, until last week.

I’m at the grocery store, in the toothpaste aisle with my roommate, and I complain about how much I hate mint. I FUCKING HATE THE TASTE OF MINT. The taste and the smell, any kind of minty thing in any form, I HATE IT. But literally every “adult” toothpaste in the aisle was some type of minty disgusting nonsense. And my roommate was like “you know you could like get kids’ toothpaste? You like bubblegum right?”

And y’all, it was like the clouds parted. I got some strawberry bubblegum kids’ toothpaste. I brushed my teeth with it and it was a whole new experience. I have successfully brushed twice a day every day since, because the mental block I had towards it is gone! 

I thought my lack of brushing was just a moral failing on my part; I was too lazy, too undisciplined, to build a good habit. But really? I just hate the taste of mint so much I didn’t want to brush my teeth.

This made me realize that when presented with a change you want to make, a habit you want to build, if you’re encountering resistance in yourself, you should lean into that resistance and really investigate what’s causing it, then work on accommodating that. 

Say you hate washing dishes so they pile up and then you’re overwhelmed by how many you have to do. Why do you hate it? Deep down, what about it do you dislike? Is touching wet food super gross for you? Try thick rubber gloves while you’re washing. Does the sound of dishing clanking together grate your nerves? Do them with headphones in and turned up loud. Do you hate the smell? Light some candles, spray some air freshener. 

Do these things instead of gritting your teeth and forcing yourself, then ultimately failing and getting discouraged by your “lack of self-discipline”

If you’re finished with your first draft, you might be wondering how to cut down an overloaded novel. Chances are your novel isn’t exactly where you want it to be and you might need to trim the fat, so take the time to learn what should and should not be included in your story.

Here are a few ways to determine what should be cut from your novel:

First, let’s talk about filler. Filler is unnecessary information added to your novel that does nothing to tell us about your characters or advance the plot. In other words, your book shouldn’t have any filler. Your book’s momentum will be ruined if you add filler.

Does the scene explain your character in some way?

If a scene is necessary to character development, there’s usually no reason to cut it. However, if a scene doesn’t help build a character or doesn’t explain anything additional about your character, you should consider cutting it. There’s no need to repeat the same information over and over again. Consider combining scenes that spread the same message.

Does the scene move the plot forward?

Obviously your story needs to keep pushing forward. We need to see the plot advance and it needs to make logical sense. If the scene doesn’t move the plot forward, nor does it help reveal something about character, it should most likely be cut. Each scene should build on the one before it and should add something significant to your story.

Is your scene necessary for transition to the next scene?

Since you can’t just cut abruptly from one scene to another, you’ll need transitions in your novel. Even though they might not contribute to character development directly, it gets your characters from one place to another. If a scene bridges the gap between one important moment to another, you shouldn’t cut it.

Do all my characters play a part?

Sometimes certain minor characters can either be cut or combined with other minor characters. I’m not saying you shouldn’t have characters that play a small part, but they should at least play some part in your story. It can be hard to cut characters, but sometimes it’s necessary to make your story stronger. Anything that you feel will strengthen your novel and cut down the excess is something you should pay attention to.

Don’t be afraid to cut sub plots that aren’t working.

If there’s a part of your story that just doesn’t feel like it’s working out or doesn’t jive with your story, don’t be afraid to cut it. You can always replace it with something stronger, so don’t feel like anything you cut is a loss. You’ll be able to make your story more powerful.

And being good isn’t an innate quality - it’s an action that requires doing good for other people even and especially if you don’t like them, it’s hard work and you don’t want to. Bad impulses, bad thoughts don’t matter if you recognize them for what they are and turn them into positive action.

And the duty of the police should be to protect the people, not the power structure.

Oh damn, this is super interesting. Relatable, too. From the Coping book: