Write Often And In Varied Ways
Of course we all want to write a novel that
grips the collective attention of the world around us, but for most writers
this goal is too far in the future to satisfy the internal need to create. So, instead of focusing on that final goal, turn
your attention to what can be accomplished today: putting fingers to keys or
pen to paper.
Write something right now and at this very moment!
Stop wasting time reading this insightful and terrifically written blog and go
create something amazing. Send an email, tweet a funny remark, write a letter
(if you have any stamps), inscribe a short story, or scribble on the sidewalk with
chalk. Trust me, you’ll feel better about today if you just take time to
create.
Read Everything—Not Just Books
This is easier said than done for many writers whose
lives are spread too thin by work and responsibilities to worry about much of
anything else—especially reading. After
all, we have to hit our word goal, blog, tweet, network, be a functioning
member of society, and rinse and repeat.
This is the cluttered stage that writers and non-writers act on these
days. It is an era of keeping busy and
staying distracted, so pausing to read can feel like it gets in the way of that
frantic pace.
Trust me, if you take even the smallest amount
of time to sit, stand, lie down, or kneel to read you’ll be happier for
it. Any skilled writer will encourage aspiring
authors, myself included, to read, read, and read some more. Books are of course fantastic and you should
gobble up as many as you can, but online articles, twitter feeds, magazines,
and countless other reading options are easy to access from anywhere at
anytime. So, if you have a couple of
free minutes just stop and read something. The great C. S. Lewis said it best, “We
read to know that we are not alone.”
Enjoy The Process
Stephen King once wrote, “The scariest moment
is always just before you start.” It’s
the perfect quote for understanding what goes on in the mind of a writer. Ideas for a great story, a stirring poem, or
a pulse-pounding screenplay can keep any writer up a night. Yet, when the time comes to actually write it
down the creative door can often slam shut without warning.
My advice is simple: Enjoy the process! There
will be mountaintops of euphoria when you write that perfect scene that explains
your idea for a story so perfectly. There will also be the valleys where you
can write the same sentence over and over again until you decide, for a brief
moment, that your story is terrible and everyone will surely hate it. When you inevitably get to that point take a
walk, read a book, listen to music, and just let your mind be free for a little
while. Then come back and try that same
sentence again and you may find yourself climbing up to that mountain peak once
more.
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C. D. Kearby
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Follow me on Twitter @cdkearby
