Posts Tagged ‘creative writing’

Brain Blocked

Thursday, May 30th, 2013

If you're a writer of any kind…..blogger, book author or content writer then you know how easy it is to sabotage your creative flow.  Something as simple as checking your email or twitter feed can paralyze your writing for hours on end.  It's crippling to the mind and destructive to the process!

I know this firsthand.  I have some really bad habits and I realize it's time for me to get down to business.  For several years I've had the book itch.  I've tried everything to shake it, I've even started a few books and set them aside.  They linger there in my Word files.  So, what do I do?  I ignore them!

At night I fall asleep with great intentions.  Tomorrow, I will wake up and write.  I will blaze a word trail that others will follow and fall in love with me forever.  But that's not the reality.  I wake up and get distracted immediately.  I disguise it as my morning routine but all it really is … is my lack of discipline.  Why write when there is a long feed of Facebook posts to browse?  Mindless chatter and time sucking distractions are everywhere on and off the internet….and I can find them if I wander around avoiding writing long enough.

I end up not writing a word.  Just thinking.  Which is dangerous for a brain like mine because I have a natural gift of over-thinking and turning all my good intentions into mush.  It's time for this queen to take charge and stop this procrastinating.  How am I going to do it?  I'm glad you asked.

 — Avoid distractions.  No reading on Facebook, Twitter or email until I've nailed down something creative in the mornings.

 — Write in time segments.  Set a timer, block off 30-60 minutes or make a date with my laptop.  Then stick to it!

 — Incubate the brain.  When nothing's coming….walk away and do something else.  Oftentimes, the mind just needs a little boost of energy that can come from a change of pace.  The trick is to NOT go looking on the internet.

 — Be accountable.  Find someone to hold me to the fire.  I've heard some writers even pay others to keep them on track.  That's incentive, for sure.

 — Remember WHY.  Why do I write anything at all?  Is it for myself only?  Do I write because it's my duty?  Or do I love it?  

 — Pray first.  One of my reasons for ever writing a word is to bless others.  I know I can't do that when I'm disconnected from God.  Prayer helps me feel which is key to blessing others.

There are no magic tricks to writing.  I've been blogging long enough to know that I can't pull a post out of a top hat.  It takes work.  It takes discipline and time.  So, pardon me while I get my passion on and start writing like there's no tomorrow.

Brain block be darned!