Achieve Your Writing Goals
By Jim Dempsey | July 9, 2019 |
There are times when writing is easy, when you get through that daily word count without too much effort. And there are times when the final goal – that moment when you can type The End – seems very far away. There will be days when you think it will be impossible to reach, and it seems so much easier to check Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or even clean the house.
When you get to that point, however, there’s a better way to procrastinate. Follow this quick and simple process to overcome your writing barriers.
Identify your barriers
Make a note of all the things that hold you back from writing, from all the things that prevent you from getting to the computer in the first place to the things that distract you in the middle of writing.
Examples could be anything from work, illness, a crying baby, and the need to make dinner to thoughts such as ‘I can’t do this,’ ‘I’m no good at writing,’ ‘This is too difficult,’ and ‘I wonder if I can beat my record time on Solitaire.’ You might be writing something based on your own life experience and painful memories might make writing difficult or certain sections of the story make you feel uncomfortable. Whatever it is, make a list of each barrier you encounter.
When you look at the list, you will no doubt notice that, like the characters in your story, you have external and internal barriers.
The next step then is to note which ones are internal and which are external, and we’ll deal with each type separately
Dealing with external barriers
Most barriers are not actually barriers but only function as barriers. They might make it difficult to write at the times or in the way or place you had hoped to write, but they don’t really block your ability to write.
Some external barriers can be difficult to overcome. If you break both your hands, typing is going to be pretty much impossible (although you could try speech recognition software).
Other external barriers will take some effort to overcome. If your computer has crashed and died, that’s going to be a big problem. You’d have to try to borrow a computer, use one in a library, or go back to writing by hand and type it up later.
The point is that many external barriers can be solved with some thought and planning.
But maybe you’re just too busy to write. That could be true. It could also be that being busy is an excuse you tell even yourself.
In fact, your external barriers can often (certainly not always) be caused by internal barriers, and those internal barriers can be easier to overcome.
The next step then, is to find the internal barrier in your external barrier.
You can do this by examining your external goals a little deeper. Try to see if there could be any internal reasons why these external goals exist, and again make a list.
Using the example of being too busy, it could be that you’re trying to succeed at work and you feel that if you concentrate too much time on writing, it will affect your success. Or maybe you have a family to take care of, and you believe that by taking time to write would mean taking time away from your family commitments.
Add these extra internal goals to the list of internal goals you made earlier.
Dealing with internal barriers
Identifying the internal barriers is already a big step. You can now recognize them when they appear, and that means you have the choice to act upon them or not.
When you feel that urge to click over to Instagram or start a new game of Solitaire, you can now recognize that urge and decide whether you really want to click away from your writing or not.
Another strategy is to set smaller goals. For example, you can decide to browse the internet when you’ve written at least 1000 words.
When you have the thought that it’s just too difficult and you want to stop, write another 500 words and then stop.
If you’re worried about how much time writing takes out of your family life, you could explain this to your family and see if you can all work out how you can get more time to write.
Overcoming your resistance
Syd Field, the author of Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting, put it perfectly: ‘When you’re cleaning the refrigerator, sharpening pencils, or eating, just know that’s what you’re doing: experiencing resistance! It’s no big thing. Don’t put yourself down, feel guilty, feel worthless, or punish yourself in any way. Just acknowledge the resistance – then move right through to the other side. Just don’t pretend it’s not happening. It is! Once you deal with your resistance, you’re ready to start writing.’
And don’t be too hung up about hitting those goals. Sometimes life will get in the way. Don’t be too disappointed if your writing doesn’t work out as planned.
Just remember why you want to write, why you set out to tackle the huge challenge of creating a novel in the first place. Remember why that was important to you, and try to focus on that when your mind or the world is trying to get in your way.
What are your main obstacles to writing? How do you overcome them and keep working on your book?
Jim Dempsey (he/him) is a book editor who specializes in detailed analysis and editing of novel manuscripts through his company, Novel Gazing. He has worked as an editor for more than 20 years. He has a master’s degree in creative writing and is a professional member of the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading and is a trustee of the Arkbound Foundation. Jim is fascinated by the similarities between fiction and psychotherapy, since both investigate the human condition, the things that make us uniquely human. He explores this at The Fiction Therapist website. If you have a specific concern with your novel, send an email to jim [at] thefictiontherapist.com, or visit the website to ask for a free sample edit. You can follow Jim on Instagram @the_fiction_therapist.
I have resistance of another kind.
I have plenty of time to write. I write every day. My “opportunity for improvement” is internal and comes from a lack of (good) ideas. I get blocked. However, when I’m blocked I still write every day. I might “free write” from my blocked point to try to find my way out. I might move to a different project just to keep moving forward.
Usually, I get through the block (sometimes I don’t), but it might take three-six-twelve weeks to weed through so-so ideas until I find an idea that seems genuinely good.
Since my external goal is to write more quickly, this is pain-point for me.
I have five finished novels (so I can do the work) but it’s how long it takes me to develop ideas that I want to improve. So I’m not sure where the resistance lies with that (other than the possibility that my mind simply isn’t built for fast plotting).
I see so many authors say: I have more ideas than I know what to do with. That boggles me.
It makes me think of Luke on Dagobah. He knows it’s impossible to get his X-wing out of the swamp. Yoda does it.
Luke: I don’t… I don’t believe it!
Yoda: That is why you fail.
A (large) part of me feels it’s impossible for me. I see others do it, so I know it IS possible, but have no idea (pun/irony intended) how.
Sorry for the vent. I guess the moral of this story is that resistance can come from many places.
Gary – Sounds like you should get a writing partner!
Many who have plenty of ideas lack the discipline to do the regular work. If you have the ability to do the work but lack the ideas – get a partner with complementary strengths and weaknesses.
Heh. I’ve been trying! First reaching out to (writing) friends, but I’ll have to figure out how to branch out and find a stranger :) I assume approaching people on the street and asking them if they want to be my writing partner wouldn’t be the most efficacious process.
I’ve found writing friends and partners by taking part in things like National Novel Writing Month and Story-a-Day May. It’s a good way to connect with writers also struggling.
I’ve noticed that there’s always a reason why I’m delaying working on my project–need a break to re-think, etc. I give myself time and–like you suggest, Jim–I don’t get too hung up about it.
Thank you for this article. It’s a good reminder.
Thank you. Sometimes a break is a true need. Yes.
I appreciate this because external barriers are what get in the way the most, especially being so young because your friends want to go out and do this and that and go adventure. You have to be able to tame yourself and learn to sit and write, reaching that word goal is important to me because I want to finish this book and get it published.
I want to write because I have things I want to say, whether in fiction or non-fiction. I know I can do it because I have won some minor awards and have been in workshops where other writers (lots of them published) have appreciated my work. Yet my output is highly diminished by my belief that for me (not other writers of course!) ‘to write is to be self-indulgent’ . I can’t escape the vicious circle of beliefs: I need to be told my writing is worthy to feel that I’m not being self indulgent and to justify the time I spend doing it and to prod me on BUT I don’t spend enough time completing pieces to submit to get feedback that it is worthy!! And of course I’ve read all the stuff that says in order to BE a writer, hence to write, I can’t rely on outside validation. Off I go to some psychology websites….argh