Procrastination

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Procrastination; How do you deal with it?
Topic Started: 10 Nov 2008, 06:50 PM (76 Views)
Ladie Luck	10 Nov 2008, 06:50 PM Post #1
Veteran Posts: 2,051 Group: Members Member #375 Joined: 26 October 2007 Country: United States of America Gender: Female	How do you deal with procrastination as a writer? At what point do you draw a line and put other things aside to create time for writing? Do you have to create time for writing or do you force other things to work around it? This is just a curiosity question. I myself have been working on a novel for quite awhile now but I’m stuck in a rut that I seem to subconsciously refuse to pull myself out of. I keep telling myself the age old lie, you don’t have time. I know it’s a lie and it’s procrastination at its purest but I keep doing it. I love to write and I love my current project and almost everything about it so I don’t know what my deal is. I don’t believe in writer’s block because I know for a fact that if you sit in front of the keyboard long enough your fingers will begin to move and form words. There’s a good quote of the subject of time. I think I'm going to try to take it to heart. "Don't say you don't have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michaelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein." H. Jackson Brown



TheInterloper	20 Nov 2008, 03:14 AM Post #2
Regular Posts: 260 Group: Members Member #1,207 Joined: 23 July 2008 Country: United States of America Favorite theme: RPA 2: Standard	I do have to admit that finding that willpower to write when you need to can be... difficult at times. And, while I can't always avoid that horrid beast known as procrastination, it sure does help when a deadline is set in front of you with something to gain or lose from it. I've taken Creative Writing classes, and deadlines have forced drafts from me much more quickly and efficiently than without it. But in a more general case, I just try, at first, to set goals within a time period and work toward it without making it seem to easy or too demanding. I got nearly 18,000 words that way once before. Also, I find that environmental factors come into play quite a bit. I find it difficult to work when even the least bit distracted, so I find quiet places to be opportune (my room, for instance, not that such isn't obvious for most). At certain times I think that music plays a big factor. If I'm thinking of a mellow scene, for instance, I'll play a song or tune that exhibits that tone. But then, I'm sure that method is fairly common, too. Reading other people's work, at times, seems to help out, but when reading a really good piece, sometimes it tends to intimidate me ('course, in the end, that's one way to become better at writing - to learn from those works). Other media (movies, games, etc.) do that to some extent, too, especially those with great storylines and character, but since I read a lot, inspiration from them tends to be more situational. If you can also keep yourself from editing near-constantly, that helps, too. Unfortunately I have been titled a Grammar Freak time and time again; not only that, I always feel like I missed placing in a detail or two, or might not have clarified something adequately, and then so on and so forth. I'm sure that if you can continue on writing without your consciousness bugging the daylights out of you, it'd help in keeping one's attention.



Virus Core	20 Nov 2008, 03:59 AM Post #3
Veteran Posts: 1,503 Group: Members Member #948 Joined: 24 May 2008 Favorite theme: RPA 2: Dark	Sometimes I'll put a story off for months before I finally do get started. I'm afraid it won't be good, or I'll lose the plot, or some other stupid nonsense. But I finally sit down and get started. The key is that once you start, you need to try and continue everyday at the same time. For instance, I write my story in my computer class during the last ten minutes if I have free time. Then I save it to my pen drive and wait for the next day. When I don't write I think of ways to improve the plot or characters so I don't lose my focus. ^^



Ladie Luck	20 Nov 2008, 04:13 AM Post #4
Veteran Posts: 2,051 Group: Members Member #375 Joined: 26 October 2007 Country: United States of America Gender: Female	Very helpful advice, thank you both. It's cool to hear how other writers deal with stuff like this. It helps me develop new ways to get myself back on the right track!



Raccoon	20 Nov 2008, 06:34 AM Post #5
Member Posts: 45 Group: Members Member #1,647 Joined: 18 November 2008	I usually skip the scene or the troubling spot and move on. Then I can come back later and fill in the blanks. Sure, the story might be a bit disjointed, but there's editing for a reason.



DeDanann	21 Nov 2008, 07:31 PM Post #6
Posts: 105 Group: Banned Member #1,653 Joined: 21 November 2008	The world of RP is a touch and go thing I have been doing it for more years than I can count and its hard to find good writers who are dedicated to write a story through from start to finish. Real life always creeps in. I think the secret is keeping it small and interesting, then you don't have to count on a handful of writers that may or may not participate on a regular basis. I don't know how we keep RP alive, but I wish I knew the answer. I never procrastinate if I am really into a story and my fellow writers. Edited by DeDanann, 21 Nov 2008, 07:31 PM.



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