DETOUR – When Things Get In The Way Of Writing

Hooooold up. Rein in that pony, partner. So you think you’re going to write today, huh? What about that sink full of dirty dishes? Or the overflowing laundry hamper with clothes-moat around it? And then there’s that college class that has you folding paper origami-style in your spare hours away from your full-time job.

Then there’s your car that has something wrong with the transmission and that’s taking up time because you’re worrying about it. Where’s the money going to come from? Will it be worth it to get it fixed? How will you get to work in the mean time? Hope you have enough toilet paper until you can get back to the store…

Let’s face it. It can be HARD to find time to write. It’s no longer about procrastinating. When will you get time between dawn and dusk to sit down at the computer and peck out a few pages of your current work in progress?

Writing has to be a priority. It’s a relationship and commitment. You have to “meet” with it daily and spend time really working to understand it. Sometimes the best time to write is in the wee hours of the morning when everything is at rest. The day is still slumbering with all of its distractions. Put the coffee on, listen it to percolate while its fragrant scent swirls around you in the newness, and hush, of the day. If not then, pick a time when you can close the door on the commotion of daily tasks and spend some focused time on your current story.

If writing it is important to you, treat it as such. Make time for it like you do American Idol. I once read something that encouraged new writers to write for ten minutes a day. Just ten minutes. The idea behind that logic is that you are making a conscious effort to find time to write, and you’re getting in practice. You will soon find that the original ten minutes easily turns into thirty minutes, or an hour. Sometimes writing in short intervals works best for a busy schedule, or just as a means to brainstorm about plot. So try to work in a minimal time frame to write. You may find that you have a little time after all.

The Journey Tryst



The Appalachian Mountains



It is said, “The journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step” (Lao-Tzu). As an aspiring writer, the journey towards finishing a novel with hopes of future publication is an arduous one. It takes determination and hard work.

Like many hopeful writers, I’ve been writing stories since an early age. During the second grade my teacher would give the class a random photograph of an animal, landscape, or object in which we were to write a story about it. I still have those construction paper bound early works.

In a way, that first step for me was at the age of seven, while in another way, as I become more serious about making this love into a livelihood, I feel that first step is a much more recent one.

In writing, peak after mountainous peak must be reached with celebration as you crest each one. For there you are, with many steps behind you, a lesson learned, a skill better harnessed, and for a moment, a clear view of where you are going. So as aspirants begin to descend into another writing valley, remember the single step that began the journey of your tryst with writing.

Photo taken from free-extras.com