Do you ever have those times when, no matter how good your intentions are, somehow, getting started on your writing is far more difficult than it should be? You know that you need to put some words on the page, but somehow, you just can’t quite bring yourself to actually begin? This happens to me far more often than I’d like to admit, I’m afraid. I know I should be writing, and I turn up fully intending to get the words going. But then, I just don’t do anything, because not starting is much easier than getting those first words out.
Some days, I can trick myself into getting the ball rolling. I tell myself that if I just read through some of my writing, that will be good enough for the day, and before I know it, I’ve got an idea in my head, and I know what needs to come next, and suddenly those first words are right there at my fingertips. Or I’ll do something related to my book, like note down something I thought of for revisions later down the track, and slip my way in tangentially like that. Coming at the task sideways can be a good way to slip past the resistance.
Some days, I need other people’s help to get myself going. Being part of a community of writers always makes me feel more creative, and more motivated. Starting a writing sprint with a friend, or talking about my book with my sisters gets me all excited to get the words flowing. By myself, taking that first step and dragging myself away from the lures of YouTube can be very difficult, but with the company of other people, that social aspect can often be enough to get me fired up about being a writer, and to get me started on the thing I love doing, writing.
And some days, the only way to get going is to use brute force. Those words are going to happen, come hell or high water. All browser tabs get closed. The noise cancelling headphones go on. There’s nothing but me and my book, and it’s going to stay that way until there’s something new on that page, no matter how long it takes. Then I throw things at the document, whether it’s a complaint about how I don’t want to be writing, or a note to myself for later, or a terrible, terrible line in the novel. Anything, so long as it’s words. Getting those first words out is painful, but if I can jut get myself going, it always becomes easier in the end and then I can actually enjoy my writing session.
It doesn’t matter how much I love writing, there are always those days when I just can’t seem to get myself started, and on days like these, it’s very helpful for me to remind myself that it’s just that first step that’s difficult and that once I get past that first hurdle of beginning, everything is going to become much easier, and I’m going to enjoy myself again. It’s just a matter of pushing through and putting those first words on the page.
But I’d like to hear from you. How do you get yourself to start writing on those days when, no matter how much you want to be writing, you just can’t seem to get yourself to begin? Do you force yourself past that first step? What works most reliably for you? Or do you not have those days at all? Let’s chat!
