Wednesday, February 3, 2016

IWSG: Excuses, Excuses

 
            Time for another posting with the Insecure Writers Support Group, where writers can share their insecurities and encourage one another. IWSG was founded by Alex J. Cavanaugh and we share our posts the first Wednesday of the month. The co-hosts this month are:  Allison Gammons, Tamara Narayan, Eva E. Solar, Rachel Pattison, and Ann V. Friend.  
 
            Honestly, I have not really been thinking much about writing a book or even short stories this last month. I know, I know I was so goal-oriented in January’s post, but then I was sick, and then work got really hectic leaving me stressed and entirely too tired. This is becoming my biggest obstacle. I’m a procrastinator by nature, and since there is no deadline for my unwritten book ideas, I continue to put them off. Setting my own deadlines doesn’t really help unless I get other people involved. That’s why I managed to participate in the A to Z Challenge after a long hiatus from blogging and why I continue to post monthly for the Question of the Month and IWSG. I can do those because I’m signed up on a list and other people are expecting my posts. Of course, a book is a lot longer than a blog post and that is where all the excuses start rolling in. My job is an obstacle because it severely drains my mental and creative energy. I don’t search for short story contests with the deadlines I need and I think part of me is afraid to hold myself accountable to someone else for an entire book.
 
Maybe I am being too hard on myself: I just looked back at last month’s IWSG post, and I did say my first goal was to set more time aside for writing, which I actually have done. I’ve mostly been writing reflections and notes from my daily devotional reading, but any writing is better than no writing. I have also been getting excited about this year’s A to Z Challenge and I have been doing some research for me letters, which I think can also count toward my writing time because it’s a part of the preparation process :) I am taking a “staycation” in a couple weeks, so I hope that can help revive my creative juices and rework my writing goals.

23 comments:

  1. Hi,
    Setbacks happen and they are always unpredictable. So, don't beat yourself up. Concerning your book, a suggestion from me, put a chapter every two weeks on your calendar or every three weeks. In other words schedule your book as if it were a project to be done. It's just an idea but maybe it will help you.
    Shalom,
    Patricia

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  2. Hello Elizabeth,
    I completely understand what you are going through. I told myself last September that I was going to work on new poetry for publication and it never happened. It still hasn't happened, yet. However, I've begun planning my days, weeks and months out with an online Calendar tool and setting goals for each day. The calendar's alert lets me know when I need to move on to something else. It is really helping. Do you have an online calendar program? It could help you work out days to work strictly on the novel. Good luck!

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    1. Thanks Ravyne! I do use Outlook calendar and it sends me reminders to my computer, phone, and tablet, so I probably could schedule some writing time on it :)

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  3. Can you have someone maybe be an accountability partner for you that gently asks at scheduled times how your writing is coming along? Maybe that will help you set some goals that you might want to accomplish with your writing.

    Having the A/Z is a good thing too to keep motivated with writing :) I actually wrote 3 posts last night for it :)

    betty

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    1. Betty, I agree that A to Z is motivating, so at least I'm working on that :) I have a couple friends who would probably be gentle accountability partners, I may need to talk to them about that.

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  4. Interestingly, most of the IWSG posts I've read today have been similar...so there's comfort in knowing others are going through the same thing. Sometimes it helps to just set small goals. 100 words a day, maybe? Just taking it a little at a time...

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    1. That is comforting to hear, Stephanie. And 100 words is definitely doable!

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  5. Like Stephanie said, small goals. How long did it take you to write this blog post? Spend that much every day working on your story and you'll be surprised how much you write.

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    1. Thanks Alex, I'm sure you're right, small step-by-step goals are what I need :)

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  6. We're always so hard on ourselves when we don't meet our goals. But it's okay! Small goals and patient (toward ourselves) is the key. Don't give up!

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  7. I'm hard on myself when I don't meet my goals. I always think I should be doing better and accomplishing more. Like Stephanie and Alex and Chrys, I too would recommend small goals. I set goals for the day, the week, the month, and the year.

    And A to Z prep can absolutely count toward writing time.

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    1. Thank you, M.J. I think I am focusing too much on the overall goal and I need to break it down into monthly and weekly chunks :)

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  8. I like the juxtaposition of how busy and drained you've been feeling to the photo of the cat, on the couch, just looking out the window. Lovely, and so very "life" like... thanks for visiting my blog! Sorry it took so long to get to yours but at least I made it! I always try to keep my promises...

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    1. I'm glad you noticed that, Lisa :) I try to be somewhat intentional when I choose a photo to go with my posts. Thanks for visiting back!

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  9. When your muse is ready to have her story told, she'll give you a good strong nudge. Just do whatever you're comfortable doing. There's no rush. Have a great one.

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    1. Thanks Sandra, I think my muse is starting to wake up, she's just a slow riser :)

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  10. Sometimes you just need to give writing a rest and take care of yourself in other ways.

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    1. Lee, I definitely had to take a rest in January, but I think this month is looking better so far :)

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  11. The staycation sounds like an excellent time to get yourself back into the writing habit again. I recently changed jobs and the change in schedule is messing up my writing schedule. I'll adjust, but I understand where you're coming from. Just hang in there, you'll get back into writing when the time is right. No reason to feel guilty.

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  12. I think writers need downtime to let things simmer in their brains. Great ideas are forming under the surface, right? (Boy, I hope so.)

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  13. I think writers need downtime to let things simmer in their brains. Great ideas are forming under the surface, right? (Boy, I hope so.)

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