Remember The Joy Of Writing

I always like to remind people of this every now and then. When you first started writing and telling stories, the odds are you did it out of complete personal pleasure. You would immerse yourself in the lives of your characters. You didn't worry about anything except for telling the story. Once people become focused on making this a career, sometimes that joy disappears.

If you find yourself struggling with your latest work in progress, you have to take yourself back to that time when writing was fun. No, this does not mean to write with a wild abandon and not caring if the story was good or not. Just try to remember that pure pleasure.

One of the biggest issues I see with writers and projects that just are not that amazing, is that they spent too much time trying to force the story into doing the right thing. They spent countless hours trying to craft the right phrase, the right scene or the right transition. In the end, they came up with something, but in reality, it probably was not the right thing. The reason, they forced the story.

Look, I get that you will have deadlines to meet and editor or agent obligations. There is a pressure to produce and always do so at a high level once you become a professional writer. But, when we force a story it will come across as forced.

So, when you find yourself in this situation, step back for a bit. No, I am not talking days but a few minutes. Run an errand, clean a room, have a snack, walk the dog. Do something to distract you for a bit from that scene and that stumbling block. Now, while you are taking that break, send your mind back to do those days of writing for pure fun. I promise, the answers will appear, you will be in a better place and the writing will be good!