The best time to write is usually in the morning before the rush of the day and stress of everyday responsibilities. However, if you’re not a morning person, whenever you have a few minutes to spare use them to jot down feelings, a list of story ideas, describe what’s going on around you.
Try Blogging
Everyone is blogging so why not you? Think about what you spend most of your time doing – shuffling the kids to and from school, practices, recitals, buying the groceries; filing papers and answering phones; volunteering – whatever it is, look for the story in the routine and shoot off a two-paragraph blog once a week then forward them to family and friends.
This way you practice your writing and have a built in readership that expects your installments. Garrison Keillor once said, “Nothing ever happens to writers. It’s all material.” Begin looking at events around you through a storyteller’s eyes.
Become a Web Writer
A little pressure might be encouraging. Sign up to write for a website, such as Suite101.com or demandstudios.com. Certain websites have deadlines that the writer agrees to and even offer the topic which makes it easier to narrow down your subject. Deadlines might help set a little fire to a dormant writer.
Let Other’s Writing Encourage You
Many times positive thinking is not enough to get you to sit down and get to work. A myriad of excuses find their way into your brain – “Did I let the cat out? I really should wash those dishes. Should I be writing down the grocery list instead? Who am I kidding anyway? I’m not a writer and I never will.”
If ever you have read anything that you enjoyed, learned from or provoked critical thinking, you know writing is worth it. Can you imagine if Shakespeare let doubt control him, or he got too busy cleaning his cottage to ever sit down and pick up that quill?
You Gotta Have Faith
Take an honest inventory of your talents, abilities and gifts. If in your gut you still feel that you’d be more miserable without writing than with it, it’s worth pushing yourself out of your comfort zone. Join a monthly writers group. Check out the site meetup.com to find one in your area.
The book The Creative Call by Janice Elsheimer is a great resource book to help any would-be artist find and nurture their creative God-given calling. It is written in the style of The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron, another valuable book in tapping the artist within.
Be Realistic
Know that when you are ready to send out those manuscripts, get ready for several no’s. The first person’s no, however, you need to get over is yours. If your only motivation is making money rather than for the love of writing, you will feel disappointed to learn all writers, whether famous or not, have experienced rejection.
It would be unrealistic to not acknowledge mistakes and failures. But to be frozen by fear and regret will not help you move forward. Learn what worked and what didn’t. This is what’s called constructive criticism – it’s supposed to be helpful and productive.
The bottom line is to keep writing. If this creative expression is truly your calling, who are you to ignore your heart’s desire? Rather than seeing it as a task, teach yourself to find the joy in following your heart.
 |
