Ain’t got that writing feeling? – By Melinda Carroll
You’re a writer, you sit down at the computer to write, but nothing happens. The prose isn’t pouring from your fingertips onto the page. You’re frustrated. You can’t find any inspiration. You’re not motivated. You just don’t feel like writing.
Most writers have experienced a lack of writing energy at one time or another. I know I have. Salon.com has some good advice for writers needing motivation.
“You know, to me it seems possible that all the dire things you imagine could be true, and you could still write. You might very well be lazy, afraid of failure and undisciplined and still write. You might lack the urge and still write. You might not be a writer and still write. After all, a writer is just someone who writes. If you're writing, you're writing. It's a verb.
As a writer, you are dependent on others. Why should you believe that you can write without any external stimulus? If you need to meet with a writers group, enroll in a class, arrange with a mentor or writing friend to share work on agreed-upon deadlines, or if you need to work out a schedule of deadlines with your editor or agent, then please do so. This is often the case. The idea that a writer works only from inner inspiration is, I think, a bit of a romantic myth, rooted in the idea of writer as solitary and mysterious hero. The writer may be that, but he is also a person in a web of community, and he is also fallible. He may be lazy and unable to meet deadlines; he may be, as I am, fearful of completion. So there is nothing wrong with building into your life some structures that compensate for your weaknesses. We are not supermen. We all need a little help.
There will be times that you have to write even though you don't feel like it. In that sense, writing is like your other roles in life: It requires you to do things you don't want to do. You do it because that is your role.”
(Read the full article)
So Writers, treat writing as a role in your life. Something you have to do instead of a talent you use when you feel like it. Writing is a verb after all. And Noveltown is waiting for your finished manuscripts.
Most writers have experienced a lack of writing energy at one time or another. I know I have. Salon.com has some good advice for writers needing motivation.
“You know, to me it seems possible that all the dire things you imagine could be true, and you could still write. You might very well be lazy, afraid of failure and undisciplined and still write. You might lack the urge and still write. You might not be a writer and still write. After all, a writer is just someone who writes. If you're writing, you're writing. It's a verb.
As a writer, you are dependent on others. Why should you believe that you can write without any external stimulus? If you need to meet with a writers group, enroll in a class, arrange with a mentor or writing friend to share work on agreed-upon deadlines, or if you need to work out a schedule of deadlines with your editor or agent, then please do so. This is often the case. The idea that a writer works only from inner inspiration is, I think, a bit of a romantic myth, rooted in the idea of writer as solitary and mysterious hero. The writer may be that, but he is also a person in a web of community, and he is also fallible. He may be lazy and unable to meet deadlines; he may be, as I am, fearful of completion. So there is nothing wrong with building into your life some structures that compensate for your weaknesses. We are not supermen. We all need a little help.
There will be times that you have to write even though you don't feel like it. In that sense, writing is like your other roles in life: It requires you to do things you don't want to do. You do it because that is your role.”
(Read the full article)
So Writers, treat writing as a role in your life. Something you have to do instead of a talent you use when you feel like it. Writing is a verb after all. And Noveltown is waiting for your finished manuscripts.
Labels: Bakersfield, DIY, inspiration, Literature, motivation, Noveltown, Salon.com, Writing
This entry was posted by N.L. Belardes, on
Friday, March 02, 2007.
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Sometimes I think the best way to get any writing done is to buy a pack of cigarettes and take them along with your laptop to some place that offers a bottomless cup of coffee and the opportunity to chain smoke while your pound away at the keyboard. Then again, I quit smoking.
Maybe you could just sit there with a Crayola in your mouth...
Writing ruts are hard to get out of. But when you get out of them, watch out. Words are like water...
Melinda, I hope this means you're getting ready to release Killing Cinderella! You have lots of fans just waiting for a chance to buy it!
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