I consider myself a writer. But there are a lot of days on which I don’t write anything more than a post on Facebook. Then there are days when I spend hours pecking away at the keyboard. But overall, I would love to write more, not less.
We all know some writers who are really disciplined. For example, Stephen King writes 2,000 words a day every day without fail. Why can’t I do this? What’s keeping me from writing? What’s keeping you from writing more?
You Can’t Find the Time
Whether it’s exercising or writing a novel, the most popular excuse is probably that you just don’t have the time to get it all done. I hear you. I have four kids. Two of them are homeschooled; one of them is still in diapers. I work part-time from home as much as I possibly can as a content writer. There is never enough time.
But the truth is that everyone has twenty-four hours in a day. No more, no less. And what you get done in that time period is up to you.
Of course, we have to meet our obligations. We have to pay the bills and shop for groceries. But we can accomplish our other goals, too, as long as we make them a priority. And maybe you can’t train for a marathon, write a novel, and start a new business at the same time. But having one major goal that’s not part of your daily obligations is definitely doable.
You’re Afraid of Failure
Nobody wants to fail. Everyone wants to succeed and be good at what they do. But we don’t become the best at something without practice. If you were afraid of failure when you were little, you would never have learned how to walk. It would have seemed entirely too difficult to be worth all that effort.
Fortunately, you don’t have to be a child again to conquer your fear of failure. But you have to be willing to step a little outside of your comfort zone.
How to Overcome the Obstacles and Write More
For many writers, writing is something they have to do. When I was a teenager, I wrote stories all the time. Then I was told to study hard and get a real job. I didn’t write for ten years. By the time I started my first nonfiction book and a novel, I was pregnant with my third child. What made me start writing again?
There were probably several reasons for my rediscovery of writing. I found a job with a content mill, which was work I could do from home and perfect for a stay-at-home mother. Then I decided to give birth unassisted.
And while I was learning everything I needed to know about pregnancy and childbirth, I felt the need to share my experience with others. So I wrote a book about unassisted childbirth. In the same year, I published a novel, which admittedly, is not my best work.
Since then, I’ve written a few other nonfiction books. I have one novel in the final editing phase. And I can’t picture a long stretch of time where I would stop writing again. But I still don’t write as much as I want to. The novel I’m currently working on has taken me almost a year. And it’s not good enough yet.
So what would it take for me and you to meet our writing goals?
First, You Have to Set a Writing Goal
If you want to finish a novel, write a nonfiction book, or publish a series of articles, you have to have goals. What are your writing goals for this year, this month, and this week? Without goals, you don’t have any idea where you’re going. You’re just floating around, and you will never feel like you’ve done enough.
So you should figure out the deadline for getting the first draft done. From there, you can calculate how many words you need to write each week (you can find the novel word counts publisher's expect here). Put your word count goal up in writing. Set a reminder on your phone. Put it on your fridge, or tape it to your partner’s forehead. Whatever it takes to get it done, you need to keep that goal visually accessible, so you can celebrate your successes.
Use a Strategy to Overcome the Obstacles
If you don’t have the time to write, then you need to schedule time. Find a babysitter, take turns with bedtime routine with your partner, cut down on working overtime, or order your groceries online. Get up an hour earlier, stop watching TV, and instead of reading a book, write your own.
If time isn’t really the problem, then your strategy might look different. If you’re worried that your writing sucks, then maybe you should hire an editor to review a small piece of your work. You could also take a writing class.
Do the Important Things First
You have to do the important things first. The kitchen will get cleaned eventually, because it has to get done. But your book can’t wait. So before you do anything else, meet your word count goals.
Writing in the morning is almost as beneficial as exercising in the morning. You’ll feel accomplished and energized while everyone else is still hitting the snooze button. And who knows, maybe you’ll go for a run, too?
What keeps you from meeting your writing goals? Share your answer in the comments.
PRACTICE
After you look at what keeps you from writing and what you would like to get accomplished this year (month, week), spend the next fifteen minutes making progress on your current goal. If it’s time to outline a new novel, do that. If you need to finish a chapter you’re working on, that’s your project. Write for fifteen minutes and share your work in the comments section.
And if you share, please be sure to give feedback to a few other writers.
Happy writing!
Thank you so much. This really is going to help get me motivated!
What keeps me from writing? I’ve asked myself this question many times and the answer is always, “I’m too busy writing to write!”
I blog every day, plus I follow a number of blogs and like to interact. I don’t always write something new; I’ve been doing more recycling lately, but it still takes hours every day. On Thursday I usually do a 100-word tale for Friday Fictioneers. Some of these have been quite popular, generating a few dozen comments I must reply to.
On Fridays lately I’ve been heading over to WordPress’s “First Friday” and assisting newbie bloggers.> There I seem to be typing the same advice over and over, things I wish I’d known when I started: “Use Categories and Tags if you want people to find your posts.” “To install a Recent Posts widget, click this, then this…”</em) Etc. I like tutoring. In fact one of the most enjoyable volunteer activities I ever engaged in was tutoring ESL students, and this is down that line.
In spite of all the "build your author platform" advice I see online, I have never gotten into social media. No Facebook, No Twitter. No time. I do have a house that needs cleaning. Not done often enough. And I sew. I've a dozen projects that need finishing. Sigh…
Another bit of advice given to would-be bestselling authors that I do follow religiously: Read. I do read a LOT — especially if you count blog posts. And that takes time. 🙂 I was up until 2am last night finishing one of those books you just can't put down. Excellent writer! Oh that I could do so well, if I ever find the time to write.
The biggest problem is in my brain. Lack of focus. My attention bounces from one project to another and it takes real effort not just to finish something, but to even remember what I needed to finish. This has been a life-long trial, one my co-workers have commented on at various jobs I’ve held, and I’m sure it’s far worse now after chemo last year.
So I flounder along, but I really do best with short hops, which is why I’ve come to love flash-fiction. And the exercises we’re given here on TWP. 🙂 But when, oh, when! will I get my novel written?
well i guess i’m just to lazy
Danico, I’ve used that reason! I was labeled as such as a child and I allowed myself to carry that false identity far too long. It’s so easy and concise. Not writing really is the path of least resistance. It is so much easier to be passive, but fact you are on this site says you have an interest in writing, so follow your bliss, maybe let yourself have, even indulge in that interest?
Good article! Now I guess I should stop reading and write something.
i am afraid of failure. Of thinking i am not good enough. Do i even have what it takes to be there!!
I think too much, and i have stopped writing. can’t seem to get in touch with with. I am feeling disconnected from writing. And i know i should. I have so many doubts right now. Maybe i am looking for someone to tell me you are good enough. I will start with smaller targets. And if writing has chosen me. I will find my way stumbling and bumbling.
I am struggling on how to schedule dedicated writing time when I am a single mother with a handicap child who now is 22 and it is harder to keep the routine going and manage his needs and dedicate time to focused writing. I am experimenting with a new schedule and have ready a back up schedule when caretaking over takes me in the rip tide.
Jennifer, your situation trumps any lame excuse I’ve ever come up with, including the one I currently use. But if you enjoy writing, and you know that caretakers need to find a way to care for themselves, maybe writing could be that way for you. Also i learned recently not to think about how much time I have, but what I choose to do with that time. I am sure that tending to the needs of a handicapped child consumes lots of time and energy, but maybe there are other things you could choose not to do. I know that I need to think of writing as something I do to relax, instead of watching too much streamed films and tv shows.
Good luck with your efforts and I imagine your experience as a single mother with a special needs adult child is something many others in similar circumstances would love to read about, or maybe they need to read about a fantasy that someone like them has written as an vacation of the day to day responsibilities of necessary care-taking.
Anita… I wrote for many years for a boss who wrote me back a cheque — so I learned to throw something at that empty page without too much second guessing. And to get a final draft by the deadline. I had no time to worry about whether I was good enough. But these days there are so many ‘how to’ writing books out there, that I wonder if beginning writers feel threatened by the apparent amount of writing science they must learn. My suggestion is to travel light through the first draft — hell, travel naked! — and just get that thing written, never mind that it’s right. I’m beginning to see after all this time that successful writing is about ENERGY more than anything else. Just give ‘er hell. ~ PJ Reece
love your line “travel light through the first draft — hell, travel naked!” You could write a book about writing, and maybe those books are ways we procrastinate writing. I just find other things to do. But I am recently retired, so maybe my life long goal to be a writer has no more excuse room. Yet I find myself very busy doing lots of things besides writing!
Sheila… I did write a book about story structure — but I wonder if these manuals aren’t better left until the rewrite stage. That’s when we need to make art of the mess that is our first draft. I hope you get a start on your writing!
What keeps me from writing is my own perfectionism. I used to write short stories for fun, but now I always have to pick the right words, the right sentences, the right word length; everything had to be perfect. It became too much that I virtually stopped writing for months. I wish I can get over perfectionism, but I can’t, and it’s making me down in the dumps.
Matthew, thanks for sharing here. I want you to know that you CAN get over perfectionism. But if you believe you can’t, then you can’t. Our imaginations are incredibly powerful tools and with them we create our experiences via our beliefs, the pictures we paint for ourselves about ourselves. You may need therapy or a spiritual path or something that jogs your psyche out of this belief that you can’t, but it is a false belief, not a fact. Imagine yourself writing without a need for perfection. Explore what that looks like in your imagination. Then write, and when perfectionism creeps up and attacks, create in your imagination a picture of what that beast looks like, then imagine what you look like defeating that foe.
GIVE YOURSELF PERMISSION to write a DRAFT. Just let the writing flow. THEN you can go over your words and refine them. Give this a try.
Hi Anita, Thank you for this informative and timely article. I have no excuse whatsoever for not writing more than I do. Thanks to The Write Practice coaching that I’ve even started anything at all.
My slow progress in writing more is because of old habits of procrastination, inability to set priorities, and getting easily distracted. While I’m making progress with tackling procrastination and prioritizing, the issue of distraction is proving more challenging than I expected. I enjoy reading the wide variety of articles, comments, and feedback on TWP website so much that I get carried away. You won’t believe how much time I waste following the links on whatever materials I’m reading. I know I need to work harder to solve this problem. I really appreciate your great suggestions,
Best wishes, Jola
Yes, I totally get it. Getting sidetracked on the Internet is too easy! But you can do it. 🙂
I dont write because I am very scared that my plot is not interesting. And it is not. Because I cannot harm my characters. I am so sensitive. I dont like bad things happening to people. I can’t structure my plot. I am impatient. I can not wait to finish.Maybe I am not made to be a writer. But when I write,my language flows, the words find their place, every word is special and the sentences make you want to read more.I edit again and again and then I dont want to change even one word. However the writings remain private, a page or so and then I get overwhelmed and stop
I relate. Although I don’t have trouble making bad things happen to my characters, I am not yet good at resolutions for those bad things. I become bored with my own stories. But as I wrote in my prompt piece, I enjoy and think I have some skills, so i just need to hone them, and write for my own enjoyment everyday, until something comes out of me that does interest me and that I find worthy of others interest.
I completely understand. This is the same exact problem I have. I’m way too sensitive. When I write, I have to add emotion which I know people don’t like because people want to skip the feelings an et to the action. While I love action, writing how someone feels is just so much easier. But unlike you, words don’t flow out very easily. When I think I’ve come up with a beautifully poetic piece of writing, when I look at my work and think, “that was a stroke of literary genius,” I look at writing that my friends do -which is amazing – and then my work becomes crap. Ideas just fill my head. I’m always bursting with all these ideas that I love but it’s so hard to get it all out on paper. And when I do, the writing sucks me dry. When I write what I’m feeling or thinking, I take out all my enraged or boisterous energy and put it on paper but then I’m left with feeling nothing and lose all motivation and creativity to write. Honestly, the hardest thing about writing is not being able to put my thoughts on paper and being too sensitive. I love writing so much but I’m not a good writer. That’s what’s killing me.
I struggle with that as well. Sensitivity. In a horrible scene, am I horrible enough? Scenes visit me as I lay in bed at night, I remember them ok when I awake but hen My words don’t do the scenes justice. I’m discordinated that a’ way… and then the words that Do come out, I tend to want to own them. Crazy feeling. Joining this writers group has been amazing for me. I have confidence that writers can/will bring about the shift in people’s perception. I want to be part of the movement. Let’s be here together Elina.
I wrote a 1088 word essay yesterday, based on the writing prompt from July 4th. I edited it today. I enjoy writing, but I put other things first. The only reason I wrote and edited over the past 2 days is because I have a writing group this evening and needed something to present. I especially needed something because I complained about my group cancelling meetings for holidays or because only half of our 6 member group was available. I need my group to put the pressure on me that I don’t put on myself.
So the question then stands, what keeps me from writing on my own, for myself. The first answer that comes to mind some might interpret as “fear of failure” but what it is in fact is my critical mind telling me that I have nothing really worth writing about and that my writing skills are not that great anyway.
I read a ton of great literature and I know what good writing is, and mine is not that.
But as I typed this, I came up with an answer to my critical mind, which is:
If you want to hone your skills and be better at writing, you must write daily. And maybe you don’t have any story or creativity worthy of writing, but some day you might, so you need to ready yourself for that day. And in the meantime, you enjoy writing and you enjoy the research that writing requires of you. You enjoy learning, so keep writing and researching, and give yourself the enjoyment that you deserve.
I struggle with perfectionism. But, I am writing more since I started getting prompts from The Wright Practice. I don’t participate in comments very often because I still struggle with what I feel are my failures. I used to write once or twice a month. Add my thoughts one day and edit a few days later. Or add more thoughts before I edit. I wrote 2,000 words and edited 200 words on my nonfiction book this week. Writing 2,000 words used to take six months for me to write. Perfectionism can be overcome. It takes time (20 years for me).
I can be lazy. I can get discouraged. I have to be a Mom. I get tired. My books aren’g selling like I want. I write a little at a time. I write when inspired. I have a love/hate relationship with grammar….
I used to write to fill the emptiness all the time. I wrote when people close to me passed away, when I went through breakups, when life threw a bunch of disappointments my way… I wrote as a way to deal with it all. Then I started doing this adult thing – job, husband, children, dog, home, taking care of elderly parents, and I let all of the obligations consume me. At least that’s what I tell myself most days.
The real reason I stopped writing is rejection. I’ve asked other people to read my writings in the past, and with the exception of my mother (who always thought anything I wrote was beautiful), I was pretty much told, “Ah, don’t give up your day job.” I battle the negative scripts inside my head telling me that my writing isn’t good enough for others to read. I lose my focus, forget where I was going with something, and before long I walk away and never return to that thought.
Thanks Anita for the push. I need to schedule time and stick to it to get my writing done.
You’re welcome. 🙂 We all need the push, including myself.
Thanks. A good wake up call. I’m currently taking leave of absence from my novel to write a short story that’s peeked my interest. Tonight I’ve gained a great insight so have been researching for recipes for Lamb’s tongue pies. True, it’s important to this story, but did the research have to take up the past 2 hours? That is one of my hiccups.
I followed my own advice and worked on editing my WIP instead of writing articles for clients. 🙂 It feels good to do something on your own book, and I have to keep reminding myself to do this every day, even if it’s just a little bit of time each day. After all, the work with deadlines always gets done somehow….
Hello Anita,
I’m also editing my novel of 80,000+ words, and i agree, it does feel good to think I finished the novel and can work on it.
Best of luck with your writing.
Thanks for the article. And thanks to all who posted comments. Everything posted here helps. A lot!! I started calling myself a WRITER this year. I like what it sounds like and I like the way it rolls off my tongue. I struggle with confidence. Lack of it. I worry that what I have to say will remain unheard/unread even if I say it; I want to say it and I do, but does it resonate? I try to keep my words simple. And then I end up sounding childish (I think) then the spark dies. I have a WIP right now. 100DayChallenge. Loving it enormously. I don’t have it all worked out yet. Story’s leading me. I love the feeling. I wonder though if I’m fooling myself here. There again is my lack of confidence. And the words ‘your voice’ ‘your style’ ‘niche’ ‘show, don’t tell’ ‘your audience’ ‘your author website’ make me tremble. That’s where I stand today. But here I am world. I like it here. I’ll try to go with the flow; it will eventually lead me somewhere better I hope. Thank you all for allowing me to say this here. Selma.
Stay with it, Selma.No one is an accomplished anything when they first start! Join a critique group if you can find one in your area. Or look for one online. Feedback always help. And, every writer I know has doubts about their abilities. You are not alone.
Thank you MaryJoM for the words of encouragement. I wish you the best too. Blessings. Selma.
Why does my post keep disappearing? Was it that bad?
Good Post and a best question you have asked in the end. I didn’t notice this, i will take care of this next day. Thanks
I write short stories. I write personal stories. I am working on a book about them and I want to call it Reflections From the Porch. I read the stories that I have written to a group of older women once a month. Many of the ladies have saved and have a collection of my work. I also have a group of people that know that I write and they ask me for copies of my latest. Now I am wondering why I keep postponing getting them published. Do I not believe people when they tell me I should get them published? What should I have on my first draft? Thank you
What keeps me from writing? Uumm.. many reasons or say excuses are piled up. First and the foremost is, I lack ideas to write about. Secondly, I think a lot before writing, which makes me confused and then I end up writing nothing, not even a single word.
I want to write like professionals; YOU as an example. But I don’t know why am confused whether to write fiction or current affairs.
The truth is, I want to write. I want to speak my mind to people out there. I want them to know that what’s actually floating in my mind but probably unable to convey the way I think. Unfortunately, whenever I start writing something or anything, I quit it after a sentence or two. And then, l feel like a failure who gives up without even trying.
I want to write but what to write about? I don’t know what am good at! Though, I have been writing at niume.com (Hajra Javed). I am not satisfied with what I have written over there.
Yes, I want to become a writer of any genre, any niche, or any sort.
Regards
Help Seeker
The only thing that is keeping me form writing is that I already know the whole story. And well sometimes, I don’t enjoy writing or reading something over and over again. But then again, I have a special power inside me that pushes me.
“Do my readers, know the ending? Don’t I want to share the world what a magnificent book I thought of? If I do then write and show how special the book is? Not just only a figment from my imagination, but a world formed inside my head. A portal, which others may enjoy.”
So that is what I do, or at least try to.
Anyway, this is the story I was able to come up with in 15 mins :
(P.S. I did not edit it. I just did a quick sentence check and word spelling. Other than that. It is formed staight from my mind. And yes I know its not perfect. Nothing what I write is.)
The storm raged on throughout the night. The clouds covered the ground, showing nothing but the shadows of the deep land. Nothing rushed through the sky, but lightening. A gulf of yellow-red and white light, shocking the ground with zaps and fire. Raging flames rose high into the sky and seeping into the green objects, planted in the forest floor. Smoke caught onto those afar, later forming balls of fire.
Hank, eyed the ground of where the fire struck. Flames grew higher and higher, with each green it ate. Animals echoed throughout the dense forest. Shouting and yelling through the night. Alerting other animals to run from the burning enemy.
Carbon Dioxide shrunk through the air, and seeped into the lungs of its victims. Choking them, with no struggle. And leaving them without a print.
Playing a game of hide and seek, oxygen ran out in Hank’s lungs. His blood oozed out of his nose. His mouth gasped wide open for air, to flow in. But the flames gurgled all that was left into its belly. Gasping for air. Hank held his arms in the air like a wild animal. Hungry for air. Blood, red veins popped out of his eyes. Losing his control of sight. The cells in his throat enlarged. Forcing every entry and escape closed. His diaphragm collapsed soon after his lungs did. The blood in his ear exploded. Echoeing all sounds in and out of his body down his eardrum. A faint, but growing sound played over and over agin in his ears. Thump . . . . . . thump. . . . . thump. . .
The sound continued to race all through his body. Louder and louder each time. Till, the fluid inside it, raged it no more. And the heavy strong muscle relaxed. Tension squeezing and forcing the last drops of blood out.
With no sight to imagine the scenery before him. The only thing Hank felt was hot, steaming, coals under his body. Amercing into his flesh. His hearing died out along with his body, and no more did he move, hear, or breathed.
A damp atmosphere licked Hank’s body. Forming dew drops, fresh from an early spring day. His mind, started to regain a push of life.His scent stronger than before filled into his lungs. . . .