Again, I went to my NARWA meeting … and again I was inspired by a great speaker. Jennifer Ashley talked about how to finish that manuscript and get it published. And as usual, I had to come back to Flagstaff and head straight to work when I wanted to go home and write.
Agents and the business of writing were on the table, but the most important take-home point for me was this:
Treat writing like it’s your day job and it will become your day job.
It sounds like such a simple concept … yet I’ve been guilty of writing only when “I feel like it” or when I’m inspired.
What I need to do is get in the habit of writing every day, whether I feel like it or not.
Hmm. Now that I think about it, discipline is a big problem in other areas of my life, too. I’m trying to lose weight, but I don’t always stick to my Weight Watchers plan — I do it when I feel like it. (That’s probably why I’m having trouble taking off the last few, eh?) … All too often, I feel like eating something I shouldn’t, like gooey, cheesy Italian or Mexican food.
But that’s another blog! 😀
Now, let’s get back to the subject at hand: writing. For the next week, I’m going to try something different. Every day, I’m going to spend at least an hour writing — preferably before I do anything else. (That includes hopping online, one of my biggest distractions. Darn that Bejeweled on Facebook! I pull up the screen to play one game and end up playing for an hour …)
I’m also going to finally finish my query letter for “Operation Snag Mike Brad” and start looking for the agent of my dreams. I got some great feedback from out chapter president and will be using it to polish up my query.
It’s time for me to make writing my day job.
I’ll be logging in nightly to report how many minutes I spent writing, so please keep checking in to keep me honest.
That’s great! I’ll be happy to check in on you! Where are you going to be logging your time?
Great, Arlene! Can’t wait to see how the “new job” goes. (I see you’re trying that *accountability* tip from Jennifer Ashley.) Keep us posted.
And willpower (or discipline, as you mention) has always been my difficulty, too. I’ll get into the habit of writing daily for a couple weeks, then a couple days of taking a break throws me off for the next month or two. The more you make it a habit, though, the easier it becomes. The most productive I was during all of 2009 was when I participated in the NaNo, so having accountability to something/someone definitely helps!
I’ll probably be checking in late, late … like around midnight.
[…] OK, that’s rare. These days, I don’t want to do anything else. Our NARWA guest speaker back in January, Jennifer Ashley, lit a motivational fire under my behind when she said, “Treat writing like your day job and it will become your day job.” (You can read my post-meeting blog post here.) […]
HI! I’VE BEEN IN THE HOSPITAL THIS WEEK SO NOT FEELING UP TO SNUFF… BUT I WANT TO SAY I ALSO WAS INSPIRED BY JENNIFER AND AM STARTING TO DO BETTER LATELY. KEEP GOING AND I’D LIKLE TO HELP WITH A TITLE OR TWO BUT NEED SOME INPUT ON MS,
LET ME KNOW IF I CAN HELP.
SEE YOU ON THE 15TH!
Sorry to hear you haven’t been well.
I’m looking forward to the meeting. (But I still don’t have a title … some of my Facebook friends from college are trying to help with that.)