What’s Derailing Your Determination?
Why do we get derailed from the stories and poetry collections our hearts are yearning to write? Many writers stumble upon these five common booby traps while trying to finish a work-in-progress:
1. A Circle of Habits. Not writing has become habitual (a.k.a. your norm). The “Habit Loop” concept is pretty straight-forward: Cue → Routine → Reward. Thus, you may have established a pattern of behavior that results in receiving an intrinsic or extrinsic reward for actions that are completely disconnected from getting writing done. For example, you give yourself an extra 30 minutes to scroll on social media if you squeeze in a workout before or after work. But if that half hour of “free time” cuts into prime writing time after kids, partners or pets are in bed for the night, you have established a “loop” which is ultimately counterproductive to finishing your manuscript.
2. Stress IRL. Feeling overwhelmed by current stressors at home, work, or even the world at large can greatly diminish our creative energy and ability to focus on—well, anything else. This is when it can be helpful to remember that your writing is a form of self-care. Maintaining space in our lives to do what we love can be affirming and healing. So be intentional about redirecting your attention to creative projects that help boost your mood, decrease anxiety, and enrich your passion for storytelling.
3. Hacked By Hobbies. There’s no getting around the fact that eventually—for all of us—writing or revising a book (or poetry collection) is WORK. And like any job, at times, we’d rather be doing something else. For me, those alternate activities usually include yoga, hiking, perusing farmers’ markets and/or brainstorming holiday home decor. What default distractions easily derail your focus?
4. Social Sabotage. #PeerPressure. If you’re serious about getting your current work-in-progress published, you may want to spend more time connecting with other creators who are equally invested in their craft. (Check out our Lit!Commons community!)
5. The End Seems So Far Away. As a person who is extremely motivated by having set deadlines, I can really empathize with the internal lag that can occur when one has 25,000 words remaining to write rather than 500. But if you don’t keep sitting down to do the work, you will never finish a novel, poetry chapbook, query letter, book proposal or article pitch. This is why, even after having been a freelance writer now for 11 years, I still prioritize writing everyday. Even if it’s only 15 minutes of journaling before going to bed, it is better than nothing.
Bonus tip: Allow your writing process to be as organic as possible. If you’re not a “morning writer,” then do not try to force yourself to become one. I don’t care how many writers you meet who attest that getting up before sunrise for a year is how they finally managed to crank out a book (or two). That does not mean that strategy will work for you. (It certainly wouldn’t for me since my most generative writing time tends to be about an hour before, plus an additional hour or two after midnight.)