Writing, at its core, is my lifeblood. I can’t imagine doing anything else that doesn’t lead to having something to write about. Working, travelling, investing, music, movies, books and conversations is all fodder for writing. Writing, in essence, helps me think. As one of my friends is fond of saying, “It’s all about the biography.” Writing plays a large part in my life and, not surprisingly, adds to my biography. It’s never been easier to put pen to paper and simply begin writing, or fingers to the keyboard and start posting. The challenge, as usual, is to give yourself permission, and by that I mean, the time and confidence to do so.
To get motivated to write, I have a few methods to get things going:
- Timer. Sometimes I won’t take my power cord so my laptop’s battery acts as a timer of sorts. This is a double-edged sword because if the inspiration does strike and my battery is running out then obviously I need to stop and go get my power cord, which may disrupt the flow. In any event, having a set time to work helps me focus.
- Location. Although I can write at home, I find I write better at cafes because simply the act of going to the cafe is like going to work. Further, I enjoy the distractions of the cafe chatter and, of course, other people. Cafes are the some of the most affordable office in the world. The $2.50 is worth it for the coffee, WIFI connection, power outlet (if needed), washroom facilities, relative safety of my stuff, the choice of sweets (extra charge), and a chair and table to myself. That being the case, I sometimes write at home in the comfort of my bed.
- Schedule. Since I work and travel a lot, there are times when I’m working a day job and others when I have a lot of free time. On my days off, however, the morning is spent writing while the afternoon is spent reading and researching, evening is for movies, drinking and conversation, all of which I find important to generating ideas. When I’m not working, I aim to get out of the house/hostel/whatever by 9:30 or 10 so I can write as much as I can before lunch. Sometimes I’ll eat at the cafe but, depending on how much I’m getting done, I find it helpful to get up and walk to some other place. All of that leads up to two to two and a half hours of writing and I’m very protective of these hours. While in South Korea teaching English with work beginning at 8:30 in the morning and going until 4:30, I got up at 6 am (okay, most weekday mornings since on the weekends I’d go out partying) and did my best to crank out 1000 words before work. Similarly, while travelling through SE Asia and I wanted to write my first movie script, I sat down every morning (much to the dismay of my travelling companion) to crank out another couple hundred words before we went out for the day’s sight-seeing.
- Word Target. In addition to my schedule and “timer”, I keep up my writing motivation by keeping track of my daily word count. That is, on a separate spreadsheet I track how many words I write per day I sit down to write. I aim for 2000 words per writing day. Sometimes I make it, other days I don’t. Either way, it’s a good goal to have and helps me track my progress.
- Music. I listen to a variety of genres to keep me interested. Metal, jazz, classical, hip hop, Kpop, you name it, I’ll listen to it if it spurs some sort of creative juice.
- Inspiration. If I find I’m not writing very much it’s usually because my “creative well” has dried up. There could be any number of reasons for this, ranging from a need to change up the routine to simply not reading other material or, something I’m really guilt of, not meeting or talking with other people. To remedy that I’ll head to the library, the cheapest and easiest book store in the world. I’ll pick out a few titles from any number of sections and flip through them to see what I can find. I tend toward history and non-fiction, but sometimes I’ll pick up a work of fiction or two.
- Stimulants. Caffeine is probably the only thing I use on a regular basis to help my writing. I rarely use alcohol to stimulate my writing. In fact, I often restrict drinking to the evening hours when I want to slow down my thinking process. There is a common myth that the best writing gets done while on drugs, drunk, broken hearted or otherwise in a depressive state or in a bad mood. I’ve found it quite the opposite. If things aren’t going well for me in my day-to-day life, I’ve found my writing suffers as a result. I find it much easier to write when my day-to-day life is in order. That is, I have money in my pocket (whether from savings or gainfully employed), coffee (not tea or instant), not broken hearted (relationships are, to me, usually a distraction from writing), and being drunk has rarely served my writing purpose. Drugs have never done anything directly beneficial for my writing. All in all, my writing hours are best served by a clear head, a good night’s sleep, and a cup of good, strong coffee. Things may be different for you so see what works, but understand that seeking “inspiration” from drugs, drinking and fucking around isn’t the best way to go about becoming a better writer.
This schedule, of course, gets modified according to whatever job I’m doing to sustain my travels. Working on a farm, for instance, often requires getting up early and working late so it’s not always easy to find the time, or the energy, to write every day. If you’re lucky enough to get a job driving a GPS-guided tractor it is possible to type up some notes on your smart phone provided you watch out for telephone poles, trees and remember to turn at the end of the run.
Finally, I’ve found this method of working transferable. Whatever your speciality is, be it music, film, writing, or anything else, there is a certain amount you’ll have to do every day in order to begin seeing the results you envision. It’s not easy but it can be done and the more often you do it, the easier it becomes and the better you get.