I’ve blogged before about my New Year’s Resolution to write a page a day and, so far, I’ve done it. Every. Single. Day. That’s 75 days in a row, for anyone who’s counting.
Some days the words come out easily and I kid myself that it’s always going to be this easy now I’m in the habit of writing every day. But then there are the other days… The days when I’ve had less than two hours sleep the night before and I’m so tired, I’m almost falling asleep on top of the laptop. The days when I’m sick and can barely think straight. The days when I’ve already put in 12 hours in the day job and it’s 8pm before I haul myself to my laptop and try to convince myself that I really do care about writing tonight.
So what am I doing? Why am I forcing myself to sit here and write – something, anything – when some days I really couldn’t care less? On the good days, I tell myself it’s about forming a habit, about being professional, about making progress. On a bad day, it all comes down to stubbornness and that damned New Year’s Resolution. Maybe once we get a little further into the year I won’t care quite so much about achieving my page a day. Maybe I’ll even give myself an occasional night off. But right now, on this night, I will write my page. If stubbornness is the only reason I have today to keep going, I’ll take it.
We all have days like this. As much as I love writing and the thrill of creating a new world or of bringing a character to life, there are days when I wish I’d chosen an easier craft. Something that perhaps doesn’t take everything I have and then a bit more. And it’s on those days that it’s so important to have a reason to push on. Even if tonight that reason is only stubbornness. After all, if I’m stubborn long enough, I might just make it.
Where does your spoonful of stubbornness come from when you need it?
I have no doubts. You’ll make it. Stubbornness has to pay off eventually.
Keep going! I agree, some days you have to force yourself to sit down and start typing. I love writing, but it is easy to get distracted or feel like you lack the drive or the energy to dive into the creative process.
Sometimes I have to remind myself that I love writing, that at times I had less writing time available and I longed to sit at the computer this often and write. That helps me motivate myself and utilize the time I have (or make) to write.
Thanks Colette.
Frank, I agree that it’s too easy to get distracted. I’ve started getting up early to write before work and I find I need to not let myself check emails/facebook/twitter etc before I start or that will suck up an hour and my writing time will be over and done with before I do anything productive. I’m finding it much easier to get through my writing for the day by leaving all those other things until after I’m finished.
I have to schedule time for both. If I leave my writing until my emails are taken care of, I don’t get enough writing done. But if I leave my emails off, I get into my writing and never get to my emails. So, on days like today, where I know I’m going to have a busy day, I go through my emails first. I don’t want forty or more piled up on me the next day. On other days, I write in the morning, and schedule a time later in the day for my emails. Sometimes it works.