How To Start Writing
A statement I hear a lot is something to the effect if, “I want to write but I don’t know where to start, because there’s just too much going on in my mind. I have so much to say…my thoughts are completely overwhelming me to the point where I can’t write anything at all.” Which of the thousand and one story ideas should I start with? How do I know which one will make a good story, in the end, and which won’t?
My advice is, just start writing. Don’t worry about the end result. As is so often the case, the good news and the bad news are the same news: you won’t know, until you’ve written it, whether your idea made for a good story or not. I talk about that idea more here, in “Mistakes New Writers Make.” But to help you in taking the plunge, here’s a list of things to remember:
The first thing you write isn’t the last thing you write. If you’re lucky, as much as 5% of your ideas will make it into the first manuscript you complete. Probably none of them will. And that’s okay, because the best ideas often come to us while we’re writing. It’s the writing process itself, that most feeds creativity. Writing, in this respect, is exactly like training for a sport. Mental preparation is important, but you learn and evolve as an athlete through practice.
Your other ideas aren’t going anywhere. Keep a journal. Write them down as they come to you. Use them when you need them. Your ideas are in service to you, not the other way around; they’re supposed to aid you in your creative process, rather than you slavishly trying to encapsulate them on the page. Trust me, this is something it took me a very long time to learn.
You won’t become a writer, good or bad, through wishful thinking. You have to be disciplined. Set aside time every day to write. Yes, every day. Commit to that time. Spend it writing. Yes, it’ll suck at first. It’ll be impossibly hard. But it’ll get easier–with practice.
Be honest with yourself about what your priorities really are.
Invest in the process, not the end result. Remind yourself, as much as it takes for as long as it takes, that you’re doing this because you love to write. Because you want to write. Writing, especially professionally, is a pretty thankless job. If you’re doing this to make money, or become famous, then do yourself a favor and pick another job. Whatever your goals are, whether they’re to write the Great American Novel or just become better at journaling, you have to love the act of writing itself. It’s the only thing that’ll get you through.
I hope you’ve found this helpful. Questions? Comments? Something I missed? Let me know!
