Avoiding "Writing Avoidance" Activities

Anyone who's ever been assigned an essay for class will tell you the best thing about writing is not writing. I've found when I'm on a deadline, the temptation is there to do anything but put down words. Personally, my favorite "avoid writing" activity is redecorating, because a blank page doesn't look nearly so bad when you've filled a whole wall with rose-colored paint! Plus, I have it on good authority (meaning I made it up in my own head) that electricity was discovered, television was invented, and the theory of relativity proved simply because those guys didn't want to face their English 101 term papers. 

 ~ Jen Lancaster, in Bright Lights, Big Ass

When I was in college, my apartment would be its cleanest when I had a big paper due. I felt I couldn't possibly write or think though dust. I couldn't turn my back on unwashed laundry. Or on clean, but unfolded, laundry. And, while I'm up, I should go ahead and grab the vacuum. You get the picture.

Writers are creatures of habit, and I'm no exception. When I've been home all day, closed away in my office, I am overcome with joy to see a sink full of dirty dishes. It means I had found that "writer's high"-- the zone where my most common avoidance activity didn't stand in my way. Ah, inspiration! Let Them Soak, I say!

Don't worry. No need to send the Clean House crew just yet. I fall into this old writing avoidance activity enough to help maintain my household. Besides, I'm acquainted with some other Avoidance Activities as well. Do these sound familiar?

Just a Little Snack

Does staring at an empty screen convince you that your stomach is empty too? Do you find your fingers too busy in the chip bowl to type your next sentences?
Excuse Editor Tip: Get hungry for your completed work. The best writing is made from scratch, and the recipe includes time and patience. Feed yourself and your work with that energy instead of automatically rejecting your workspace for the refrigerator. If mindless eating is interfering with your writing, become mindful of it. Make a writing goal for yourself that takes you to your next reasonable snack or meal time. When you've reached that goal (time, scenes or word count, for example), take a lunch break-- away from your writing space. Your writing and your waistline will thank you.

I have Real Work to do...

Do you take your home with you? Well, then, it's only fair that you should start taking your writing to work. I'm sure your boss will understand that your TPS reports are being set aside for now because you spent the night before perfecting their new cover sheets and now you really need to get the next chapter in your novel written. Right?

Excuse Editor Tip: Take an assessment of a typical week. How many hours do you spend "on the job"? How about on your writing? If you are concerned that taking time for writing is cutting into your earning potential, find ways to work your writing into your budget:

1. Research ways you can get paid for doing the type of writing you like to do (sign up for my newsletter/The Scoop, look through the latest Writer's Market ). Reframe writing in your mind as "paid" work, even if you don't have a buyer just yet. The more writing you do, the better chance you will have to sell something.
2. "Work smarter, not harder." Overused, yes, but there's some truth to it. At work, avoid multi-tasking if possible. Instead, keep your focus on each job through to completion, take a breather, and move on. By eliminating as many distractions as possible, you will train yourself to get more work done in a shorter amount of time. Use the time you gain for your love of writing. Allow your new-found discipline into your writing time as well. You'll be awarded with a priceless sense of achievement.
3. Your dreams are important. Strive for balance in your work and writing life. Once you find it, you may find that it improves the quality of both. You can create enough success to touch all parts of your life.

The pic on this post is from the 2004 movie,The Stepford Wives . Bette Midler's character is a writer, so wildly creative she can't be bothered to clean up her kitchen. In the movie you know that her and her writing are suffering as spotless shiny appliances glare at her suddenly put together hair and makeup, not a notebook in sight.

Do you know when you are avoiding your writing? What do you do?

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This month's Scoop not only includes opportunities to see your work in print, and get paid, it has some exciting prizes as well. Some contest winners could get a chance to study in Kenya. Or Canada. One even has a grand prize of $10,000-- given to a writer of a work in progress!

Good Luck! 

Early Writing "Success"

Sometime during my fourth grade year, my class got to spend a few hours with an honest-to-goodness writer. He lead the class, getting our young minds motivated with metaphors and similes. We learned all about poetry; sometimes it rhymes, sometimes it doesn't. He encouraged us to be silly, to be brave, to write beautifully, or to write badly. It was all part of the process.
I already liked to write. That same year, I wrote a short story that won a prize in my class. The year before, I wrote short stories and knock-knock jokes, and was given a chance to laminate them and have them available for my classmates to check out at the school library.

The day the writer-in-residence came to visit our school, I wrote six or more poems. I remember one in particular I was quite proud of. I thought it painted a picture with words, just like the writer told us to do. Those words have since left my memory, although I feel nostalgia for rainbows, sherbet, and blooming flowers when I think of that missing poem.

Months later, I found out that some of the poems written by the students that day were going to be published in a book. I was very excited to find out that a poem of mine would be included.

Even more time passed, an eternity to me at the time, and the book was finally available. I flipped to the index and found my name among the five students from my school who had poems in the book.

"Tina Haapala, 30"

I flipped to page 30, eager to see which of my poems the writers deemed worthy of publication in an honest to goodness BOOK. My heart flipped a little as I started to read the words. But my excitement faded, and suddenly I felt a little embarrassed. THIS was the poem that was chosen? They read all of my poems, including the lyrical landscape of the rainbow sherbet poem, and THIS is what they chose?!

I hardly remember writing it. I can only assume it was written when we were given the direction to "be silly".
Always the good student, I followed directions. I was silly. And then, reading those words months later, I felt like I had just slipped on a banana peel.
I hid my disappointment; I didn't want anyone to think I was ungrateful. Doesn't every writer want to be published?

For now, I can just laugh at the nine year old responsible for the following poem, originally published in "Sun, Snow, Rain, You Name it" by the Wyoming Council on the Arts in 1983:

He had a name which was the same as yours
He never had famine;that's what I heard.
He had to remember, but he had a naked finger!
No string to remember, for Pete's sake.
He licked a lollipop and forgot--
He had to remember, but he had a naked finger.
No string to remember, for Pete's sake.
He couldn't eat sugar!!
So he died and in his will
he gave a nickel to everyone on Mars!

So, that was my first, and only, published poem (sigh).

To be a little easier on myself, I think if a fourth grader showed me this poem now, I would say it was pretty good. When a child hands you his art project, you praise him for his use of color and imagination, even if you don't know if it's supposed to be a horse or a house. But even back then, I was my worst critic. Some things don't change.

Getting published as an adult, a whole quarter century later, was a better experience. I was excited to see my name in print, my story on the pages. But, there's still a little part of me that thinks-- oh, maybe I should've said it this way, maybe I should've left out that. I guess it's just part of the process. I look forward to regretting more word choices, once I see them in print.

How to Spice Up your Writing Love Life

In honor of Valentine's Day, here's a few quick tips to keep in mind about Finding Your True Love. Of Writing, that is:


Love Yourself and Your Writing First

You need to honor yourself and your writing. Pamper yourself by making time for your writing love. Come to terms with your writing flaws, and discover what you need to make yourself better. Feel good about your work, and eventually others will too.

Put Yourself Out There

If you want your writing to get noticed, you make it available. Submit your work as much as you can if you want to be a published writer. Even if you don't have publishing ambitions, share your work with your loved ones, or some kindred spirits-- other writers.

While you are at it-- Put Your Best Self out There

Especially when submitting, make sure the work that goes out is the best example of your writing that you can give. No typos, spelling errors, mistakes in grammar...This is your time to shine!

Don't be Afraid to make the First Move

Don't wait for someone else to give you permission to fulfill your writing dreams. If you want to be a writer, write! If you are waiting for a teacher, a boss, a significant other to tell you that you are ready to write, you will be waiting a long time. Pick up that Pen! Own It!

Don't play Hard to Get

If you are afraid of getting out there because you are scared of rejection, take a deep breath and dive in. This is one of those times in life when you may need to kiss a lot of frogs to find your "prince".

Also, don't keep your writing to yourself because you are afraid of it getting stolen. Your writing is a part of you, nobody can take it away. (If someone were to actually waste the time and energy taking something word for word from you, you have proof that you wrote it-- rough drafts, computer files, etc.) And, while your writing reflects your individuality, your ideas are not necessarily unique (or protected)-- that's the thrill of story-telling--Boy-meets-Girl has been told an infinite number of times. As a writer, it is your challenge to make that story seem new.

Don't overlook the one that may not seem "Good-Looking" enough

All writers long to see that by-line in the national magazine or have their novel picked up by a top publisher-- but what about all of the other opportunities? A smaller market or contest may lead to recognition, or to more writing assignments. You may find an interest you didn't know you had, or learn something new. Especially when you are starting out, allow yourself these reliable "practice dates". You will build up your writing portfolio as well as your writing skills.

But-- don't settle for something for the sake of Convenience

Are you feeling a little Desperate? Like you will do Anything to be in a writing relationship, already?! That's when you find yourself scouring the internet, open temptation by something that may not be Mr. Right, just Mr. Right Now.  There are many places where you can write online-- and many offer Instant Publishing and Payment! There's much debate on these sites (I'll cover them at another time), but for now, think of this: While it may be fun, and you can work on some of your skills, if you aren't really being edited, if your payment is based on clicks rather than the quality of your work, is this where you want to spend the bulk of your time?  Have flings-- but you may want to consider other places for your work as well.

When you find your Writing, don't shy away from Commitment

If you've spent time making your way through the beginning writing "scene" and still love it-- Put a Ring on It! Commit yourself to your writing. Make time. Treat it kindly. Forgive when it drives you crazy.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Writer, interrupted

Since I've become the Excuse Editor, I'm excruciatingly aware of everything that crosses my path when I should be writing. I try to stay in the creative mindset in case someone from my writing group or my fanpage catches me engaged in suspiciously non-writing behavior:

No, no. I didn't just veg in front of the TV Monday night mindlessly watching How I Met Your Mother, Big Bang Theory and everything in between. I was studying the elements of dialogue and humor!

OK, that's not entirely true.

Confession time:
When it comes to my writing, I'm a recovering procrastinator and excuse maker.
I relapse.
Often.

The difference now is, I KNOW when I'm doing it. Sure, my first impulse is to some kind of rationalization (OK, it's just THESE Monday night shows, and I hardly ever see them because my writing group is every other Monday [that's true, BTW], or I know I spent 3 hours reading other people's work last night, but if I just finish THIS one book, whenever I get back to my work, it will be much better, or I worked all day, I'm too tired), but eventually, I come around to the truth and admit it:

I'm making excuses.

I am the one interrupting my progress.

So my non-writing jobs have suddenly taken up way more time than I anticipated-- so what? Those jobs are part of my life now. They are serving my writing in different ways. As easy as it is to play the woe-is-me-I've-been-working-so-many-hours card when I, again, have no new prose to share with my writing group, I know the responsibility for those blank pages is mine alone. (Besides, until recently, I have been basically unemployed for two years and The Novel is still not done... I played other Writing Excuse Cards then.)

Acknowledging that, here's some advice my Excuse Editor Self would give to my Interrupted Writer Self:

• Clock in to your scheduled writing time. You wouldn't tell your boss that you couldn't come to work because you had to make dinner and clean the kitchen, so don't use the excuse to put off your planned hour of writing. This may entail turning writing nights into soup & sammie dinner nights, and allowing hubby to show off his talents with a sponge. Yes, dinner needs to get done. So does cleaning. But so does your writing.
• Don't overwhelm yourself. If you are adding your writing to an already hectic life, schedule accordingly. Don't set yourself up for failure. If you really only have 15 minutes, make those the most productive 15 minutes you can. And move on. (For those of you who write for a living, you have even more of a responsibility to treat your writing as a job, because it IS. Remind your friends that Carrie Bradshaw is a Fictional Character and you can't leave your writing desk every time there's a shoe sale somewhere. And remind yourself that a column alone could never have really paid for all those Jimmy Choo's.)
• You know when you are going to regret Wasted Time. Instead of just thinking, I really should be writing now, stop what you are doing and write. Give yourself at least 20 minutes. Chances are, the wasted activity will be forgotten-- with NO regrets. (And P.S., Tina, I know you are anti-DVR or TIVO, but you can't actually MISS a TV show. They are online, on demand-- and they will live on, forever.)
• Finally, don't be so hard on yourself. Life happens. All of your writing projects will come full circle in their own time; you will continue to push them along, squinting into the distance to their finish lines-- but you can't forecast the future, only plan for it. Some obstacles you may be able to push to the side, some you may have to spend some time with before you move on (those are the ones that may actually inspire your work later). Just because you miss a writing day (or two) does not mean you lose your Writer label. Oh, and if you are making excuses, it doesn't mean you'll be stripped of your Excuse Editor title-- it means you are doing research for your blog! (Remember, it's ALL material.)

To expand on that last one a bit, some of my rationalizations do make a bit of sense. My "Writer's Head", as Jane Nolan puts it, is never completely "off". I am always thinking of different ways my non-writing activities come into play for my writing. I enjoy comedies, but I also pay attention to how a common theme flows through a short 20 minute show and still tells a complete story. It's helpful when developing short stories. Every writer needs to be a reader, especially of the genre they want to write in. I think it creates pathways in your brain that lead the way when your story is ready to start its journey. And dinner?

Well, a girl's gotta eat!

Today's Excuse: Writing Contest Fees (and Bonus Contest Announcement)

I know how it is, you see a contest in The Scoop or somewhere on the internet that is Perfect for your story, poem, essay, song... whatever. And then you see the Dreaded Entry Fee.

Forget it...Why should I risk my hard earned cash? Why can't they just read it for free?

The Risk 

• Submit your Best Work...and the Best Fit
• You should feel your writing warrants a cash prize, not just your wallet. Otherwise, spend the 10 bucks on some lottery tickets instead. Your submission should be typo and spelling error free. Of course, it should follow their guidelines (word count, genre). Take a look at their past contest winners. Is your writing comparable in style?
• Return on your Investment
• Determine your tolerance. You've already spent the time and energy writing the piece, now you are also spending money. Combined, this is your investment. Are all the prizes offered--money, recognition, etc-- enough of a return for you?
• A common guideline: Only pay fees that are around 10% of the First Prize Amount, or less.
• Never risk money you can't afford to lose
• Writing for contests is competitive. There are many talented writers out there. Your submission may be the best you've ever written. With another set of judges, your entry would have come out on top, but often, it is the luck of the draw. Because of this, even with an acceptable entry fee and a flawless piece of writing, entering a contest is a gamble.
• If entering fee-based contests is adding stress to your life, your writing will feel stressed as well. When you don't have the money to spare, or haven't considered entry fees as an expense in your budget, avoid paid contests until it makes sense. Use the time to submit to free contests, perfect your query-writing skills for your break into the magazine market, and/or work on your novel!

Something for Nothing

• Just like most things in life, running a writing contest takes time and money. Reading, judging, administrative tasks... Your contest entry helps support the staff as well as the writing and reading community. In order for writers to have places to publish, we need places that are publishing-- and we need people to read our work. Many times, an entry fee includes an issue or subscription of their literary magazine, or something similar. Or, they offer a discount for contest participants. This is a great way to support other writers and to get a feel (if you haven't already) of what is getting published.
• On the flip side, occasionally there are "contests" that are held as strictly fundraisers. They may not choose a winner at all. Always read the guidelines carefully. If they mention that entry fees are non refundable even in the event of not enough entries or not enough quality entries, I would suggest passing it up.

Think of writing contests as the icing on the cake. The bulk of your writing is reflection, editing, sharing, creating...it fills you up, makes you content. Winning a contest, while not necessary, has the potenital to make your writing life that much sweeter! Good Luck!

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A current blog writing contest from ING Bank started me thinking about the money we set aside (or don't) for our passions. The contest, which ends February 23, 2010, is looking for someone to write a blog post a month about the ups and downs of becoming "A Saver". In addition to writing on that theme, they also ask that the writer commit to one year of Saving. If you are chosen, ING will add $200 a month to your savings account!

You must be an ING Direct customer. There is no minimum to set up a savings account (also no fees or no minimum balance that needs to be maintained), however if you email me for a referral link, and set up a savings account with at least $250, ING will give you $25 (and they'll give me $10 for sending you there)!
If you are a writer who has been trying to save money for contest fees or anything else, this sounds like a great opportunity-- you could start putting away money for the new computer you really need, and write all about the struggle for a chance to meet your computer buying goals that much quicker!
In addition to being an ING Direct customer, you must also be a US Resident over the age of 18.
Check out the We, The Savers Blog, and email me (tina (at) excuseeditor.com) if you are ready to become an ING customer and start hiding your money from yourself before your next Target trip!


If you email me for a referral link, please make sure you send me or use the email address you plan to use when you sign up, as well as your first and last name. Good Luck!