Distractions. They get the best of us—encouraging us to procrastinate when we know there’s a ton of work to do. Maybe that’s part of the problem. We don’t want to work when we know there’s a lot on our plates. Writing doesn’t have to be a chore but if you’re struggling to pull yourself back into work, try these tricks!
Turn off your phone
It sounds easy, doesn’t it? Turn off your phone and be productive! Naturally, writing is a lonely activity so when you are constantly responding to messages or picking up phone calls (who even calls anymore?), you are allowing distractions to break through your writing time. Do yourself a favour and shut it off.
Write by hand
Go old school with a pen and paper! This eliminates technology’s distractions so you can really get to work.
Writing spot
Do you have a place you go to write? If you don’t, find one. This place offer you the right mindset when you’re ready to dive into your story. A location can be incredibly important to our writing process, so find one that is entirely your own. Then you won’t have to worry about games or social media creeping in to your scheduled writing time.
Prep
If there are things you need to flush out—characters, plot holes, time issues—look at them first. Make sure you have a charger for your laptop, pens with ink, paper, and any other materials you need. Get yourself ready to write.
Headspace is everything
Have the right headspace. You can: take a hot shower, eat a good breakfast, or maybe have a coffee/tea while you create this new world (you can try all of these before you begin). Everyone has something that motivates them to write, so the excuse “I’m not in the mood to write” simply doesn’t apply. Find something that inspires you—something that leaves you feeling refreshed and ready to go, and then do it already.
Music
Music doesn’t have to include lyrics. It can be a form of white noise or a genre that zests up the scene you’re working on. It can have lyrics (the songs I listen to usually do) as you play around with different genres until you find one that sticks. Music has a way of placing us in the moment… arousing a particular emotion we need for a scene or keeping us in the scene we’re writing. Writers can find many uses for music throughout their process.
Finish with an incomplete sentence
You don’t always have to finish your day of writing with a “.” because, sometimes, leaving something open-ended has a way of encouraging us to jump back in where we left off. It provokes us… so we refuse to leave things unfinished.
Distractions linger everywhere and often make wanting to work, whatever your work implies, seem like a chore. It doesn’t have to be. Find your motivation and avoid distractions, so you get back to enjoying what you do!
