Your
novel isn’t going to write itself (I mean, if it were, it probably would have
finished itself a long time ago!). Here are the five things you need to stop
doing immediately if you want turn yourself into someone who stops
asking questions about how to write a manuscript and starts bragging to friends about how you completed
your manuscript.
1. Nix the excuses. We
get it, life is busy and writing is hard work sometimes. Still, excuses never
changed anything, never inspired anybody, and never made any dreams a reality.
Goals like writing a novel don’t die on their own. We suffocate them
with our excuses.
2. Stop trying. Your
novel needs less “trying” and more “doing” from you. Like Yoda said, Do or do
not. There is no try.
3. Stop the Inner Critic’s crazy rants. Shut
it down. Duct tape its mouth. Stand on its neck. Whatever you do, don’t let the
Inner Critic make you doubt yourself. There’s no reason to. This is open range
and there are no rules, no right and wrong. You can do Whatever. You. Want.
4. Don’t overdose on caffeine. Seriously.
I’m sorry, but it has to be said. Call it tough love if you want, but more
writers go stark raving mad in espresso-fueled rages than any other artists
(with the exception of polka musicians, for obvious reasons).
Trust
me on this. You don’t want your neighbors finding you crawling through their
pet door at 3am in search of more coffee because you ran out at your house two
hours earlier. Not that that’s happened to me. I’ve just heard stories.
5. Stop thinking it should be easier. That’s
like hoping gravity will get less gravity … er … ish. Less gravity like. OK,
poor choice of words. You know what I mean. Bottom line: writing is what it is.
Sometimes it’s easier than at other times. Expect it to be work and you’ll be
thrilled when it doesn’t feel that way.
***************************************************************************************************************************
Get reading for NaNoWriMo by downloading Book in A Month, the
step-by-step guide for writing your novel in 30 days. By Kevin Kaiser, who is the author of @WriMo: A 30-Day Survival Guide for Writers, the profits of which go to support the
future of NaNoWriMo. He blogs about how to write for a living without losing your soul. Follow
@KevinSKaiser on Twitter.
Great post! Reminds me of the saying: Work is called work for a reason. If it was fun, we'd call it play.
ReplyDeleteSo true, Melodie... one would think it should get easier . . . lately I think it's become harder!
DeleteGet off of Facebook. LOL
ReplyDeleteToo funny! Rita
DeleteBut then I would never have found these sage pieces of advice. But you're right, too much thyme on social media interferes with work.
DeleteAlison ... love .. love you comment! It made me smile! Rita
ReplyDelete