NaNoWriMo - Being Motivated as a Writer
1. Be separate.
As
writers, our workspace and homespace overlap. Instead of leaving our home and
personal projects or issues there to heading into an office, they are always
around us. Here are some tips that can help you create that divide:
·
Create a separate writing workspace at home. While it may not be
possible for everyone to have a full room dedicated as a home office, it is
important to have a separate workspace where you can go just to write. This
would preferably be in a part of your house you don’t usually need to go to
frequently so you can walk away and “leave work” when it’s time to do so.
Creating this kind of space tricks your brain to switch into writing mode when
you are in the designated workspace and switch off when you complete your
writing session.
·
Include inspirational items in your workspace. Add decorations or
quotes around your writing space that inspire you to write or dive into the world
of your current WIP. Put up maps, flags, or other pieces of importance to your
story. Having the visuals around you can assist you to click into your session
and keep you motivated to do what you love.
·
Set ground rules for the individuals who come in and out of
your space. Everyone
has some type of interruption from people (or animals) at their home – whether
it be a significant other, children, pets, or delivery workers bringing meals,
groceries, or Amazon orders for Christmas to your door. With whoever may be a
distraction, set the rules for them to follow while you’re in a writing
session. Schedule a specific time for them to leave you to your work and times
for breaks when they can talk to you. Define what would constitute a good
reason for interrupting when it’s not on a break or outside your session. This
is something that I utilize while I train new hires – if the participants know
that the morning break is at 10:30, lunch at 1, and afternoon break is at 3:30,
they aren’t as likely to interrupt the training with extra bathroom breaks or
need to deal with other personal issues as they arise because they have a
timeline they can rely on to judge whether an issue needs urgent attention or
can wait until a designated break. While having a schedule may not solve all
problems or interruptions, it can help set up the routine.
· Create a ‘commute’. Heather Yurovsky said, “Commuters often take for granted the time they have in the car or on the train to wind down from a hectic workday and mentally prepare themselves for their evening routine.” If you try to jump directly from your usual day and into your writing session or vice versa, your brain doesn’t have time to hit the reset button, which can make turning off what happened in your writing session or what’s happening at home difficult. Build transitions into and out of your writing session. This can be something as simple as listening to music or a podcast as you’re preparing to start a session and ending your session by making dinner or going on a walk around your neighborhood.
2.
Be connected.
While writing is generally a solitary activity, it’s important to create a community and connect with other writers, readers, and the people who matter most. Make sure as a part of your daily routine to schedule a time to pop onto social media to connect with your audience, start conversations in the comments or on a blog, send a text or call to a family member or friend you haven’t spoken to in a while, or go to a public place for a writing session (if possible). Being a storyteller can be isolating, so we need to be intentional to connect with the outside world occasionally.
3.
Be outside.
I don’t know about you, but being a writer means I don’t spend a lot of time outside. Now that I’m working from home again, I very rarely have a need to get out of the house. I don’t have to get in my car to commute to work, walk into the building, take walks around the track we have at our office on breaks, eating on the outside tables, waiting in the wind for lunch from the food truck on Friday’s, or am surrounded at all times with windows to see the city around me, before heading back outside to drive home or run errands where I will go between stores and my car until I return home.
With
COVID, the options to get out of the house are limited, and with the weather changing
(I’m in Utah and we’re entering winter at a rapid rate), getting outside can be
more of a challenge, but it’s still important to get out when you can:
·
Take a quick break to get your mail or take a walk around the
block.
·
Spend part (or all) of your writing session in your yard or
porch, at a local park, or outside a café.
·
Open your blinds.
· Get house plants to bring the outside in.
There’s a great interview with Sir David Attenborough about the importance of nature on your mental health. Click here to check that out.
4.
Be active.
One
of the struggles we can face as writers is that we can become sedentary. We
have to create times to get up and move, whether outside of our writing
sessions or to break up your sessions. Here are a couple ideas to help you
become more active during the day:
·
Set an alarm to get up and stretch every hour or so.
·
Only have the snack/drink at your desk that you’re currently
consuming. This
will require you to get up to get another snack or drink as you need it.
·
Keep your trash can on the opposite end of the room from your
workspace. It’s
common to have trash cans near your desk, but by putting the rubbish bin on the
other side of the room, you have to get up and move which is what your body
needs you to do if you have to sit a lot.
·
Do your laundry during your writing session. Any time the buzzer goes
off, get up and switch loads while actually putting away the items your pull
out of the dryer.
· Do your dishes. If you have a dishwasher, load your dishes and run it while you are in a writing session and use a break or the end of your session to unload and put your dishes away. If you wash dishes by hand, wash them before you start writing and set them out to dry. When your session is over, finish drying them (if they aren’t completely dry) and put them away.
It’s also important to be mentally active – read books that inspire you to write, entertain you, or help you become a better storyteller; look for training opportunities; do a puzzle first thing in the morning; find quizzes to challenge you to remember something you’ve already learned or teach you something new. Make sure you keep your mind sharp, which will help you as you work.
5.
Be healthy.
While we’re still dealing with COVID and re-entering cold and flu season and it’s important to keep yourself physically healthy, it’s also important to focus on your mental health.
Cut yourself some slack. Writing isn’t easy and some sessions will go better than others. Make a schedule and try to keep to it, but forgive yourself if you don’t achieve what you’d hoped to. Life happens which can impact your writing, so don’t be hard on yourself if you aren’t where you would like to be in your writing routines. Make a little more progress toward the end goal every day.
I
mentioned this a little before, but it’s important to take breaks in your
writing session. Set timers for yourself and stay away from your desk for your
full scheduled break – whether for five or fifteen minutes. You need that time
to get away from your work, take a mental break, stretch, and then come back
with a fresh perspective.
Don’t be afraid to ask for what you need. Don’t let yourself burn out. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, reach out to your immediate support system to let them know what’s going on and how they can help you. If you need additional help, reach out to a professional therapist or psychologist. They can help you by providing tools to help you cope and sometimes just having an unbiased third party listen to is all that you need to talk through things.
“Today is your opportunity to build the tomorrow you want.” – Unknown
What
are some things you do to stay motivated as a writer?
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