Stuck? Let us cheer you on!

It’s really easy to get into a negative headspace when it comes to creative writing. You set daily writing goals you don’t meet, you feel stalled out in a story, you feel overwhelmed by life—especially during these tumultuous times that give rise to troubling existential questions about whether art matters, about health and safety concerns, and political turmoil. So how do you keep writing?

There is no one-size-fits all answer, of course, but we wanted to share a few tips and tricks that have worked for us:

·       Try to let go of the guilt. So much about writing is engaging with your inner self and it’s that much harder to access that inner self if you feel crappy. It’s not helping you or anyone else to beat yourself up thinking about what you’ve failed to do. So, while it is much easier said than done, do your best to be kind to yourself and forget those missed days (or week, or months.)

·       Take baby steps. When you’re feeling overwhelmed, sometimes it’s easy to fall into the trap where you create elaborate plans (spreadsheets included) in which you’ll dash off ten pages a day for a week, and by the end of the week, you’ll have seventy pages, which is basically a novel. Might we suggest an alternative? Instead, take one small step toward your goal. Take baby steps. Start with just opening the document or your notebook. Read a sentence of what you’ve written. Treat that as a victory. You’ve started to engage with your writing!

o   Bonus tip: Tell yourself you only have to work for 10 minutes—nothing more. If all you manage to do is ten minutes of jotting down fragments and ideas and interesting-sound phrases, brainstorming, or even thinking about your story, that’s another step in the right direction. The key is to keep those ten minutes uninterrupted. Try to avoid looking at your phone, emails, or that stack of mail you’ve been meaning to sort. Gazing out the window is permitted, given that you are thinking about your story.

·       Think about what excites you about the story you’re trying to tell. If you find yourself bored by what you’re writing, stop. Take a breath. Think about what you love about the writing process—is it working on a really good sentence, trying to find just the right words and rhythm? Let yourself do that. Is it thinking about what your character is wearing? Then write about that. Is it trying to capture what a particular, nebulous, emotional moment feels like? Then, go for it! Give yourself permission to have fun while you write.

This advice isn’t revolutionary or groundbreaking—we’re sure you’ve heard it all before, but we hope this was a helpful reminder. Go out there, create, and have fun with it!  

(And if you want even more encouragement and the structure of a class to help achieve your writing goals, check out Finish Your Work! In this class, you’ll be assigned an accountability partner, have one-on-one meetings with your instructor, and time in class to devote to writing. Finish Your Work! starts Monday, October 12.

We’re also offering a weekly virtual writing club, called The Treehouse, which meets every Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. Join us every week for inspiration, prompts, and some focused writing time.)

Happy writing!

Arshia