Writers' Self-sabotage - 10 ways to sabotage your writing

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Do you sabotage yourself? Of course you do, unless you're a writing saint.

Here are some ways you may sabotage yourself:

1. You always put off writing until tomorrow, when you have more time, don't have a headache, have made up with your spouse, your computer stops making that weird grinding noise, you can get a whiteboard for your mind maps...

2. You judge your writing. There are two parts to writing - generation and organization. Only two. Don't judge. You're a lousy judge of your own work.

3. You don't follow up. An editor asks to see more of your work, and you think it's just a rejection, so why bother? Follow up, please.

4. You don't communicate. If no one knows you're a writer, how will you get readers?

5. You never finish a piece of writing. You start an article, novel or screenplay and never get beyond page 1. Complete it, whatever it is.

6. You think everyone else is a better writer than you are. They're not. If you're interested in writing, that's a sign that you can write WELL, with some experience and practice. Rotten writers aren't interested in writing or reading.

7. You want to become a freelance writer, but you never send out your work to people who could buy it, or -

8. You stop at the first rejection. When should you stop sending out your work? When they toss the first clod of earth on your coffin.

9. You listen to the advice of people who are not writers, AND you listen to the advice of people who are writers. You know your work. Chances are that if you've only written a draft, most of your work is still in your head. Take your own advice. Listen to your intuition. Who should you listen to? To people who are paying you - editors, or clients if you're copywriting.

10. You allow yourself to be ruled by your emotions: you have to be in the mood to write. News flash: you get in the mood by writing. The writing generates the "writing mood". Try it. Start writing at a time you're "not in the mood". You'll shock yourself - after ten minutes, you'll be in the writing flow.

Technorati Tags: 100 ways to be more creative, be more productive, Motivation

Comments

[Anne Wayman]

Nice list... set it up to blog on the 1st at www.thegoldenpencil.com

thanks

[Angela]

Hi Anne

Many thanks.

Cheers

Angela

[joe flood]

A really useful book is On Writer's Block by Victoria Nelson. In it, she says that your unconscious is filled with wonderful techniques to thwart your demands. It doesn't like to be bossed around, and dictates like "sit on your butt and write!" only will make it dig in harder. Instead, you should try to recall why you began writing in the first place - because it's fun.

That was certainly true for me. The more I published, and the more "serious" I got about my writing, the less progress I made. I had to learn not to push myself. Once I stopped pushing, writing became easier and I got more done.