Optimistic; or, Combating Self-Sabotage in Writing or Creating

Do you ever feel anxious about the idea of pushing through a “low-energy” piece of writing? Do you avoid sitting in front of your computer, drawing board, or easel and doing anything but that? Are you keeping yourself from moving forward in a creative pursuit?

ME TOO! HARD SAME!

I’ve mentioned in previous blog posts how I’m notorious for being a bit too goal-oriented, yet what I failed to mention was that I’m chronically moving the goal posts on myself by adding micro-goals or by extending my own deadlines. This severely impacts my ability to feel accomplished, since I’m spending so much time getting everything done except that thing I’ve swore up and down I was going to finish. What’s a gal to do?

First, determine if the goal or task is necessary. Are you avoiding doing something that you don’t want to do but no one else will do? Unless a boss, editor, or some superior has determined that you must be the person to complete the work, you don’t have to be the one. I know I’m bad for this in a work environment; I’m a “work-horse”, which is a Capitalistic euphemism for exploitable and I will frequently volunteer for more or extra work to be a “team-player”. Because of this, I’ll find myself juggling my own work plus the work that should be handled by our team as a whole or the manager of said team. If the task can be completed by anyone else, perhaps it should.

Second, if you must be the one to do it, does the completion of the task have a deadline or is a required part of your work? Are you the kind of person that always finds themselves distracted when you need to be focused? Why not break down your distractions into 15 minute sprints? Writing sprints work just as well for cleaning sprints; it’s how I’m surviving remote learning with my first-grader and keeping my house from rotting from the ground up. I get him settled and try to have him work in little 15 minute blocks and do dishes/make lunch/fold clothes/handle the baby in those increments.

Third, are you at a section of your writing with a need for exposition (i.e. the boring, non-action stuff), or writing about a topic in which you have no interest? For fiction writing, I notoriously will ‘skip around’ to the action sequences or parts that I have more of an active draw towards before I go back to those slower, exposition filled areas. Perhaps re-evaluate why that section is needed? Can the meat and potatoes of the story be included in a more performative way, or can the world-building be demonstrated instead of described? As for non-fiction, I would try to find details in something that can add more ‘photographic’ quality to your writing; it’s more interesting if you can imagine the scene rather than if you just download the words into your brain-machine for processing. I’m not suggesting ‘jushing up’ non-fiction, but by relaying the information in an actionable way, it can add a level of engagement for not just the readers, but for you, the writer, as well! If that’s not realistic, then my default is to find the most obscure nugget of information or detail I can that sticks out and research the heck out of it. Sometimes, inspiration can be found in the dust-covered cracks of history.

Lastly, is it possible you aren’t taking enough time for self-care? If you bottle up all of your anxiety, loneliness, and/or depression with out trying to alleviate those feelings in healthy ways, they don’t just go away — they compound. It’s critical for focus and drive to maintain that we remember that though we may be cogs in a big ol’ machine, cogs need maintenance to continue to function properly. So, take a bath or a long, hot shower. Go for a drive or a bike ride or a walk (safely, of course). Talk to someone about your feelings, friend or professional. Take a mental health day. Take a break. Give yourself a break.

I hope all of you are staying safe during this pandemic (the U.S. is a place of complete insanity anymore) and I wish you all the best in your writing!

–V. Raylean