I’ve been feeling out of sorts for the past day or so, and having difficulty getting much of a flow going. So, I’m thinking about ways to combat this and keep some forward momentum going.
I realize that I am in no way someone who can advise on ways to maintain output. After all, book one took me five years, give or take. Book two, more like seven. That is not really a progression I want to add to, rather one that I want to reverse. So I’ve been trying to come up with some things that I have found that seem to work for me lately and I’m putting them down here. Maybe they’ll be of use to someone else, maybe not. But for better or worse, this is what’s in my head right now so that’s what I’m talking about.
I’ve already talked about free writing, which has helped me a fair bit, although I’ve been less than diligent about it yesterday and today. I expect, once I shake off whatever this is that has me all muddled, and get back to that, that things will pick up again.
Another thing which seems to have helped is switching things up. Different stories, different characters, different perspectives. This month I’ve been bouncing back and forth between three different pieces and I think that’s going to help me in a couple of ways. First, if I get stuck, I can just switch to one of the others until I get out from under. Second, I like to think experiment with different ways of writing will make me a stronger and possibly more disciplined writer. That’s why I’m considering the monthly challenge I mentioned last time.
Going back a few weeks, I started writing by hand again. There seems to be something almost visceral about scribbling away, more so than typing at a keyboard (Irony: I’m typing this, not hand-writing.) It seems easier to get things going with a pen in hand. Book one was mostly hand-written, book two was mainly typed direct, so there might be something to that… Plus there is also the benefit that when you do come to type it up, you can revise and edit as you do so.
And, of course, there is the one I have the hardest time with. Staying positive. I’m not sure whether it’s a matter of my self-confidence issues (or any of my other issues) but every so often I get hit with a voice in my head saying ‘What’s the point in writing?’ I do think I’ve been getting better about ignoring that voice but not yet enough to banish it completely. Still, telling myself it’s worth it, I’m worth it, does help keep me going.
Like I said above, I’m not sure if this will be of use to anyone else but, if nothing else, it’s helped me get this blog post done.
The Scribblings 