Sssh
Have you ever heard someone talk about their latest project endlessly with so much excitement, only to find when you ask him or her about it two weeks later, you’re met with, “Oh, yeah, that. Well, I haven’t gotten very far on it.� Have you ever talked with great passion and enthusiasm about your latest idea to find when you actually sit down to write it, you’ve lost your love and enthusiasm for it?
When you get your initial idea, your passion for the idea is the “steam� to keep your idea train going until you’ve invested enough time in the project (ideally) that you won’t give up on it when things start getting difficult.
I’ve had this happen to me. I talked about a novel idea I was very excited about it and even had some “ah ha!� moments while talking to other people about it. When I went to finally write it and work on it, most of the “ah ha!� moments were gone, I knew how the story was going to go for the most part, and I couldn’t work up the passion to keep working on it. I’d come to a barrier in my project to work through before I’d typed the first word.
No matter how much you love an idea, no one, including you, wants to hear a story repeatedly. The more times you tell it, the less steam you will have when you finally sit down to write it.
While having someone expect work from you (or even put you on a deadline) might be your perfect motivation, talking about what you’re writing before you write it can be just the thing to keep you from writing the piece. Showing and not telling takes on a new meaning in this context: show me your work, don’t tell me about it. You can tell me about how proud you are of it, but if you haven’t written a scene, don’t tell anyone about it. Zip the lip and let the words fly on screen/paper.
Having trouble writing something, even if you have good ideas? Be careful and take into consideration you might be spending too much time talking about an idea instead of sitting down and writing it.
creative writing, writing, writing fiction, motivation
April 4th, 2007 at 9:42 am
I would add that overthinking a story without actually writing, even if you aren’t talking about it, can be equally destructive.
That first sentence will never feel quite right, no matter how many times it ran through your mind.
April 5th, 2007 at 12:45 am
I agree whole-heartedly. I’ve done that to myself a couple times.
April 5th, 2007 at 1:09 am
part of my problem is that I get so many ideas rolling around when I am nowhere near my keyboard - and, if I don’t write them down . . . gone forever!
sucks! All I can say is keep writing!
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April 5th, 2007 at 7:42 am
Absolutely agree with you on that one!
April 5th, 2007 at 9:54 am
This great advice! I get ideas and am so excited about tham that I have to share, then when I get time to write them out I’ve lost my steam.
April 5th, 2007 at 8:15 pm
Barbara - Carry a notepad (and pen!) with you everywhere. It’s a habit worth getting into.
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Neel - I’m glad.
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Summer - That happens to a lot of people, including myself.