Hello again my writing friends!
In a change to my scheduled blog post, I thought it very timely to revisit the subject of a recent forum discussion I posted, now that we have once more entered lockdown.
A key part of us all once more being locked down is to maintain and safeguard our mental health.
One piece of advice I would give to my writing friends especially, is to go easier on yourself - I know the temptation to feel like you've failed if you don't bang out a chapter a day, a novel a month, or whatever your original intention was. Believe me, even the most famous & successful authors have bad days & are filled with self-doubt & loathing when they don't produce the goods.
Plan your writing as much as possible (not so easy in this modern world with all its responsibilities & demands, especially if you are working from home for a living too during lockdown).
Decide on what it is you want to achieve as an endpoint, then break it down into manageable chunks. Be realistic!
Make the chunks specific - 'I will write one page a day' - that's 365 pages a year - a complete novel!
Make them manageable - life will get in the way, but you can factor this in. You know your routines & responsibilities so plan your writing time around these if you have to. Remember; any progress is still progress towards your endpoint!
Make the chunks measurable. If you plan on writing a page a day for instance, plan a review every now & then (perhaps weekly?) to look back on your progress. Have you achieved what you set out to do? If not, why not? Do you need to rearrange something in your schedule, write at a different time of day, structure your responsibilities differently? Does the plan need tweaking? If you have achieved your target, well done you! What motivation could be better than the warm glow of success? Little wins are wins, and regular little wins help to refuel your tank for the long journey ahead of you. Trust me, an 80,000 word novel is not achieved in a few days.
Make the chunks achievable - don't try writing a novel in three days - that's ludicrous. Plan so that you begin with a target in mind but don't try to over-achieve. It's your plan - you can adjust it as you go along to match your progress. If one page every day is too much during the working week, change the plan to a weekly target. Some days you may write three pages, easing the pressure on the days when you can't achieve a page. Do try to stick to your targets as much as possible though, as resolutions can quickly disappear into the mists of time if you don't maintain focus & discipline in achieving them. That way entropy, disillusionment & abandoned projects lie. BUT, (caveat alert) if you do miss your target, remember that you are human, not a robot. Again, this is your plan. The initial plan will change through the lifetime of the project; it's an inevitability. Accept that. As long as you keep your focus on the endpoint, & make progress, you are moving forward. Well done you!
Be realistic - as with making targets manageable & achievable, ensure that they are based on the fundamentals of your life. Unless you are on a deadline as a represented author (lucky you!), you set your own deadlines. Do not add to the stress and anxiety of an already high-pressure life by adding too much onto your shoulders. I guess that like me you are writing for pleasure. Discipline, learning your craft & standards are definitely required if you are to be successful (whatever your definition of success is), but writing is not pleasurable if it places too much stress & pressure on you - that's negating the point of writing in the first place. Love yourself, & love your writing!
Finally, have a timescale in place. Telling yourself that you want to publish your memoirs before you die is fine. But without a timescale to work to, it will never happen. Trust me on this. Life will continually get in the way, and in the words of the song, tomorrow never comes.
Always remember though, we write because we enjoy it - don't ever lose that passion my friends!
Next week I will share my own personal writing plan for 2021.
Whatever you do or achieve during this lockdown, please friends - stay safe!
If you are in need of help with any Covid related mental health issues, not just during lockdown, you can find assistance and advice at gov.uk
If you need medical help, go to NHS 111 online
Comments