Procrastination

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So here’s what happens. I sit down at my laptop, determined to write that next chapter.

And then I think, “Maybe I should check my email. Just quick. Oh, look, I have new messages on Facebook. And Twitter. And I really should post that Goodreads review.”

And it snowballs from there into Pinterest and Youtube and reading another chapter of the book I just picked from the library. Before I know it, my kids are up from their naps, my laundry is beckoning, the kitchen is piled up with dishes, and it’s time to make supper.

Even though every day chores and social media interfere with my productivity, they aren’t the reason why sometimes days (or weeks) go by and I haven’t written anything.

No, the underlying issue is (drum roll please)….

PROCRASTINATION. 

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This is nothing new for me. I’ve always procrastinated when it came to writing assignments. Some of the best essays I ever wrote were written the night before they were due.

And this certainly isn’t new to other writers. Just read an author interview or memoir, and it becomes clear that even though they LOVE to write, many will go out of their way to avoid it.

Why???

I think it all boils down to fear.

Fear that your writing is crap.

Fear that your ideas are bad, that you aren’t “inspired” enough.

Fear that no one is going to like it.

Fear that you’ll never finish it.

Fear that you’ll never be as good as your favorite author.

Fear that your words won’t do justice to the story in your head.

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I know there will be days where I struggle with writing, where my first instinct will be to run in the other direction and distract myself with something else. Because that’s safer. I can’t fail if I haven’t tried.

But on those days, I just need to remember to tell my fear to just shut the hell up and let me write. 

Every writing book or author biography I’ve ever read says the same thing over and over again:

WRITE. EVERY. DAY.

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The ideal time or conditions may never arrive. Write anyway.

You may not feel inspired. Write anyway.

You might be intimidated by that blank page and the goal of writing 90,000 words, and are wondering how the hell you’re ever going to get there. Write anyway.

You might feel like your writing is horrible, and you’re just shoveling shit from a sitting position (thanks Stephen King for that awesome metaphor). Write anyway.

You might be eaten up by fear. Do it anyway.

Writing is a learned skill. And like any learned skill, the more you do it, the better you will be at it. Now go out there and write, even if it’s only 100 words a day!  What are you waiting for?

- Chelsey