EB Duddles

You hear things like: “I write 2,000 words per day, every single day.” “I completed my twelfth book in three months.”

People who are that accomplished aren’t human. That’s the only explanation.

Maybe you like the idea of being published and have some ideas that should be out there in the world, but you get overwhelmed and frustrated with yourself when you think of sitting down to write, and so you don’t. Until eight months go by and the nagging has built up to the point that you tell yourself that you will sit down for two hours on a Saturday to make some progress. The Saturday comes and either A) you stare at the blank screen for two hours, trying to kick yourself but almost nothing happens, or B) something comes up that needs your attention and the promised two hours of writing time is traded for something that’s, let’s be honest, is easier.

Writing is fueled by two things and you absolutely need both. 

First, obviously, you need something to write about. 

An idea, premise, a mental image that’s interesting, a character that has a story, a what if question you want to answer, or a world that you’ve imagined that you want to put some characters into and see what happens.

Second, less obviously, you need the right emotions. 

Creativity will flow best when you’re excited by ideas or are feeling happy and content. True, you can still write when you’re not feeling “up to it.” But that level of discipline is something to work up to. Baby steps. Before inspiration, you need happiness (or whatever you call that positive emotion that makes it so impossible to frown). You could also call this emotion is playfulness. Having fun.

You need both these things to move from “wanting to write” to “writing.” 

So, what’s the advice?

Be intentional about getting excited about something. Fill your mind with ideas and media that are fun and exciting for you. If it’s not interesting or exciting, it’s not for you. What would happen if you combined the world or characters of favorite movie with favorite book? What if you changed the setting of __? What if these characters decided to __ instead, how would the story end differently? If only people knew about your nonfiction idea, their lives would be better. 

Fill yourself up until you’re overflowing and it feels impossible to keep yourself from writing. It might take days, it might take months. You’ll know you’re ready for when someone interrupts you because you’ve been gushing about nonsense, but you want talk about __ for two more hours!

Once you get to this point, write for 24 minutes and then stop. 

What do you write? Write run-on descriptions about the thoughts and ideas you’re excited about. Write an incoherent list to answer the what if questions that have been bouncing around in your head. Write the super juicy scene in your head when she sees him. Write the heart-wrenching moment when he discovers the truth.

Still having trouble? You might have anxiety about writing on the computer. Write by hand in a notebook you don’t care about or on the back of scratch paper. Don’t buy a beautiful notebook that intimidates the raw wild ideas that want to flow out. If you want to get a new notebook, get something that’s funny or something that, when you’re holding it, you can’t take yourself seriously.

After the 24 minutes is up, continue on with your day. Within two to three days, give yourself another 24 minutes to build off what you started. What if the magic locket didn’t just give her the power to see the future, but it also cursed her with __? What if the father wasn’t actually “dead?” What would happen if, instead of using words, they had to use __? 

Whether it’s tomorrow or next week, don’t wait too long between moments of writing/ brainstorming. You’ve found momentum. Use it. Five minutes once a week will get you further than three hours once a year. Try it. Before you know it, the little bits add up and up and up until you’re doing the impossible.

If you hit a bump and you feel like writing is an uphill climb, refuel with craft books, more stories in your favorite genre, and/or talk to the other writers in your boat. Try things that other writers/authors do that you like. Try a different story structure, writing method (pantser or plotter?) or even get out your shovel and pickax and mine a different genre for new ideas. Find writing help articles and books about character development, character arcs, writing dialogue, writing prompts... There’s so much out there. So much to explore! You never know what you’ll find that might spark something cool!

Working at home shines a spotlight on my lack of time management. I realized that I procrastinate because I get overwhelmed and because I have high expectations for myself that I'm afraid I won't reach. I also knew that I'm at my most productive when I feel happy and successful.

Here is a second system of time management that has worked for me: 

My system for staying focused uses a calendar, stickers, and a timer phone app (I like Multi Timer). I got calendar that only has month-at-a-glance pages from Target. The stickers are from Walmart.

I set a timer on the app for 24 minutes and I work until it beeps.

24 minutes is specific and short enough that it feels manageable.

When my timer is up, I give myself one tally mark on a dry erase board. (It doesn’t have to be a dry erase board, but walking over to the board on the wall, choosing a fun colored marker, and making a tally makes the time feel more like an accomplishment to me). 

Then I set the timer for a 5 minute break. 

On the break, I stretch, get a drink, go pee, find a snack, pick up the socks in the living room, throw in some laundry, doodle on my dry erase board, stand outside in the sun and stare at the grass, make a to do list for the next session, whatever. Lots of options. The key here is to get away from a screen and move around. I like spending my 5 minutes on little spurts of chores because it makes me do something physical and makes me feel like I’m accomplishing something.

Sometimes I take longer than 5 minutes, especially if I'm feeling sick, but I try to stick to 5 minutes.

When my alarm at the end of the 5 minute break goes off, I go back to my computer, reset the 24 minute timer and work for that time.

Usually, I'm excited about what I've done in that earlier 24 minutes and I want to get back and finish my half-written sentence. Sometimes when I’m on a roll, I don’t take a 5 minute break. But I've found that I get tired in the middle of the second 24 minute period, so I try to keep the back and forth consistent.

When I get to 5 tally marks, this means I've done 2 hours and I give myself a sticker on my calendar!

24 minutes x 5 = 120 minutes, or 2 hours

The goal then becomes to get as many stickers as I can, and the day flies by. At the end of the day I have 3 stickers and am feeling very accomplished.

It took a few weeks of trial and error to get it to where it works the best for me. It might work for you too, if you have the same problems I have with procrastination and distractions. 

I don't use the timing system everyday. But on days when I need that little push, it helps me have a good day.

Besides, stickers are fun! :D

Working at home shines a spotlight on my lack of time management. I realized that I procrastinate because I get overwhelmed and because I have high expectations for myself that I'm afraid I won't reach. I also know that I'm the most productive when I’m feeling happy and successful. 

Here is what works for me:

I made note cards of mini schedules for each day of the week, plus some extras. Each note card has 2 to 3, sometimes 4 things, to do for that day.

Most of them have some combination of a physical activity, self-care or a fun thing, and work (with a twist).

But I have a few different ones

and these are the key to why this system works for me.

These cards give me permission to do what I naturally want to do when I'm looking for distractions. If I'm in the mood for a break, I can choose one of these days. This means that on working days I don't have to feel like I need to do everything at once. Feeling overwhelmed paralyzes me. 

These cards keep me from getting to that paralyzed stage because I have a day set aside for that thing. I don't have to worry about it today, because I can do the thing when I chose that day. I can worry about it later.

Another key thing is that I don’t limit myself to which schedule I decide to do. I simply chose whichever schedule makes me excited or keeps me sane.  

It took a few weeks of trial and error to get it to where it works the best for me. 

It might work for you too, if you have similar procrastination problems. If it takes some trial and error to get a note card schedule system that works for you, it’s okay. Be patient with yourself. Observe what works and what doesn’t, and do what works.

Writer: Practice everyday for 5 years.

New writer: I just wanted to know how to start.

Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly

Pros

Enjoyable characters. Isabelle’s struggle to understand herself in a world that doesn’t understand her is a beautiful message. Inspiring.

Familiar story. The story of Cinderella is inverted, with the focus on the stepsister’s struggles of being “ugly” in a world that prefers “pretty.”

Cons

Me: I got the next book in the Miss Peregrin's peculiar children, Map of Days. I even got Ransom to sign it!

In this YA medieval fantasy where talking animals work for their human families, a devoted rabbit named Jax finds himself in trouble when the little girl he raised is arrested by the nefarious wolf police and the masked men called shepherds, just after her father mysteriously disappears. But nothing is as it seems, as Jax tries to determine who is friend and who is foe, all while unearthing the mysteries behind these arrests and why the masked shepherds blame the disappearances on ancient monster called the wolfbat.

...too long?

Bookmark business cards for a writers conference in two weeks. :)