Hey guys, I feel like I've a serious writing problem. I love to write. but I've a problem actually sitting myself down to write, over the last few years I've written hardly anything and I feel like I've so many stories in me that people will enjoy. I only have one life to live like the rest of you, and I'm not exactly short of time atm, how do I motivate myself to put these stories to paper in my spare time?
I find myself easily distracted. Set by a little time each day in which you escape all other distractions, TV, internet, phone, go somewhere quiet and just write. It really is the only way.
I think humans are natural storytellers. Starting as preschoolers, we tell our friends about what happened in our lives, often in the structure of a story. Thus, most people have one or more stories in them, I think, although many do not have the skills and/or desire or drive to put those stories into written form. In the end, there is no one who can motivate you to sit in that chair and do what needs to be done to write those stories. You have to have the self-discipline to do it. You have to make writing a priority. Maybe not the top priority, but it has to be up there, because if it's always relegated to the bottom of the list, even if it's enjoyable...then the writing will never happen and those stories will never be told.
You say you love to write, so presumably you've done a good chunk of it at some point in your life? So what was different then, compared to now?
You said that you love to write but you have a great problem in doing so, So i'm guessing that is because you have too many other distractions? I know how you feel, I have lots of hobbies and don't find the drive or energy to do some of them a lot of the time due to having the option of being able to lye down and watch TV. At the end of the day, you have to push yourself to do these things. I find that the hardest part is getting started - once you've started it's actually really enjoyable and time flies! I would recommend thinking about starting a planner - then you have no excuses
There are two different paths. One is writing, the other is story telling. I am a story teller...I hate to write. Mark Twain before he became Mark Twain was a writer for a news paper in Virginia City Nevada. His real name was Sam Clemens. I used to go up to Virginia City and read what he wrote. They have all his stuff there, and you can sit and read it for hours. Sam Clemens was not a good writer, or story teller. I think the only reason he got that job, he was one of the few people in town who knew how to spell. For some unknown reason he went to San Francisco. Sam had 10 cents to his name. How he met an un-named person, and why he moved in with him is unknown? Sam stayed with Mr X for one year. When he moved out on his own, he had some money, called himself Mark Twain, and was one of the best story tellers to ever come out of America. He started renting little play houses, and would sit on a stage, and tell stories. These stories went into print. His food money came from telling his stories. Back in his day there were no TV's, radio's, movies, or computers...so story telling was a good business if you had a load voice, and a good story. In my younger days my wife and I would take long rides here, and there. Along the way I would make up silly little stories. Years later I learned my wife remembered these little stories. I took the habit of telling little parts of stories before putting them down on paper. One of my story telling characters was Miss Quigly. Some times she was a school teacher in a little western town, other times she owned a book store with only two books which she would never sell...folks would pay her to read to them, seeing they didn't know how to read. In the publishing world there are story tellers, and there are writers. It is the story teller who has a best seller, not the writer. People like Dan brown are not good writers...they are great story tellers. Most writers spend years learning how to write, and very little time learning how to tell a story. It seems to me you fell on the side of story telling. I'd put my attention in that direction. Buy yourself a little recorder, and start brushing up on your story telling...after all, you did say you have a lot of stories in your head. Start of small, silly little 2-3 minute stories, and follow the path you cut for yourself.
Try a short story. Something simple. Even a scene. It's hard to pick up something after so much time has gone by so don't start off with a big, overwhelming project. You need a small success to build up your confidence.
Exorcise the idea that it has to be perfect the first time. That's why God gave us blue pencils. And/or computers with Delete keys. Check out my tag line. I use it to remind myself that I won't be producing a masterpiece simply by sitting down-- and that's all right. The fun is in the process.
Mountain - the only way to motivate myself is a nice mountains view with glintvein. Nothing else can help me.
how about you record yourself telling little snippets and write them up when you can/want to, or get someone else to write them for you?
I was asking because the receipt described in the article is about original "glühwein" of middle Europe.
My *limited* understanding is that it's called glühwein in Germany and Austria and Glintvein in Russia, but that it is essentially the same drink.
The writing process is different for everyone, so the solution to your problem is unique to you. You need to figure out why exactly it's difficult for you to write, come up with solutions, and then try everything and see what sticks. I have the exact same problem as you, and I realized that my problem was that writing was completely overwhelming for me, and that I get easily frustrated. I've been working on shorter stories using a timer, and it's been helping tremendously. What works for me, however, might not work for you. You have to know what the problem is and resolve it by trial and error.
