Butt-In-Chair: A No-Excuses Guide For Writers Who Struggle To Get Started

by Jennifer Blanchard

  But many times writers get sucked into the world of “extras,” meaning everything involved in being a writer aside from actually writing.

  This is where the word “Give” really comes into play.

  As a beginning writer, it can sometimes be difficult to share your words with the world. Don’t be afraid though. Just give, give, give. You’re writing, that is.

  So rather than writing something, editing it and then leaving it as an untouched file on your computer or sending it out to a thousand different publishers, give it away.

  * Post your short stories on your blog.

  * Post your poetry on sites, such as Author Nation.

  Give away your entire novel, piece-by-piece in a series of blog posts (or even on Twitter, if you have the patience!).

  My point being this: By giving some of your writing away, you will attract readers, keep them (hopefully!) and build a fan base. This will make it much easier to get published in the future because you have a built-in audience. Publishers love that.

  Live

  Although this seems like a no-brainer, writers (and especially beginning writers) spend so much time behind the computer writing that they don’t always have time to experience life.

  Life is amazing. Life is wonderful. Life is exciting and interesting and fun and crazy and sad and all the adjectives in existence rolled into one.

  In my opinion, being a writer is the most fantastic job (or hobby) in the world.

  You get to share your thoughts and ideas. You get to find ways to articulate happenings and describe things in your own way. You get to create and make things up and have the world in your stories be however you want it to be.

  What could be better than that?

  But in order to be the best writer you can possibly be, you need to experience life from time-to-time. You need to get out there and do things. And learn things. And be part of things.

  Because it’s the things we do, see, feel, taste and touch that make us actually have something to write about.

  If you never experience anything, then you won’t have anything to write about.

  Yes, you can be a writer by living vicariously through someone else. Yes, you can be a writer and write about things you’ve never experienced before. Yes, you can still do a great job articulating something you’ve never done or felt before.

  But the best writing will always come from something you’ve experienced. Something that drilled deep down into your soul and caused you to have an emotional reaction. Something that no one, but you, can describe in the way that you saw it, felt it and experienced it.

  That’s what being a writer is truly about.

  Love

  In order to be a successful writer, you must be a lover–A lover of words, a lover of experiences, a lover of life, a lover of people, a lover of the world around you.

  But most importantly, you must be a lover of yourself and of your writing.

  When you don’t love yourself, you will stand in your own way. You will be the cause of your procrastination and your inability to sit down and write.

  When you don’t love yourself, you don’t believe that you or your dreams are worth it. You think that you’d be better off if you didn’t write at all. You think that what you want isn’t important.

  When you don’t love yourself, you put yourself on the bottom of your priority list, and your writing suffers.

  So love yourself–Your whole self.

  Love your flaws; love your mistakes; love your strengths; love your weaknesses; love what makes you tick; love the way you think; love your unique perspective; love what you look like; love how you are; love who you are.

  When you love and accept yourself, you will be a better writer because you won’t spend your writing session making excuses, telling yourself you’re not good enough or allowing your inner editor to take over.

  When you love and accept yourself, magic happens, because you trust yourself, you trust your intuition and you know that you are all you need.

  So be grateful that you are you. Because there’s no one in the world exactly like you. And there never will be.

  APPENDIX

  Limitations Checklist

  Become your own best friend–When you become your own best friend, you realize that the way you’ve been treating yourself all these years (placing limitations on yourself; saying you can’t do things; talking yourself out of your dreams) is absurd. If you wouldn’t treat a friend or family member like that, why would you treat yourself like that?

  Start to consider why you’ve imposed these limitations on yourself–Is it because you’re afraid? Is it because you think people will reject you?

  Figuring out why you’ve imposed limitations on yourself is the first step to removing them.

  Change your self-talk–This step is extremely important! If you’re ever going to truly remove the limitations you’ve imposed on yourself, you need to change the way you talk to and think about yourself.

  I’ve mentioned this before, but one very helpful way to start changing your self-talk is to come up with a writing affirmation. Something simple like, “I am a brilliant writer,” or “My writing is amazing,” will get you started on the path to self-acceptance and self-encouragement.

  Begin accepting yourself for who you are and who you’re not–So you’ll never be Stephen King or Joyce Carol Oates or Flannery O’Connor…so what?! You get to be you instead, which is the best thing you can possibly be.

  You are unique and bring a different perspective to the world, so why would you ever want to be anyone but who you are?

  Sure, self-acceptance takes time. It’s not something you’re going to have overnight. But when you stop telling yourself you can’t do it, and start telling yourself you can do anything, you will finally lift the barriers that hold you back from doing what you love–writing.

  Accepting Personal Responsibility

  How to Accept Personal Responsibility

  If you’re ready to accept responsibility for your actions (or your non-actions), here are some steps to follow (Note—you may want to do this in your journal or writing notebook):

  1) Reflect—Ask yourself the following: “What does accepting responsibility for my actions/thoughts mean for me?” “How frequently do I place blame on people or circumstances for why I don’t/can’t write?” “Why do I feel like a victim of my circumstances?”

  2) Rate—Once you’ve reflected on your situation with personal responsibility, rate yourself.

  On a scale from 1 to 5, where 1 = never, 2 = rarely, 3 = sometimes, 4 = often and 5 = all the time—rate the following statements:

  ___ I take the time to fit writing into my schedule.

  ___ I make plans to write.

  ___ I sit down and write.

  ___ I get writing accomplished.

  ___ I manage my time well.

  ___ I skip my writing sessions.

  ___ I place blame on outside factors.

  If you answered ‘no’ to any of the first five statements or ‘yes’ to either of the last two statements, those are areas where you need to accept your personal responsibility.

  3) Accept—There are areas of your writing life where you aren’t taking personal responsibility.

  At first, the thought of accepting personal responsibility may cause the following reactions:

  Anger—“It’s not my fault! Life just gets crazy and there’s no time to write.”

  Guilt—“You’re totally right. It is my fault. I’m such as mess. I can’t do this.

  Sadness—“Wow. All these years I haven’t been taking responsibility for myself and now I’ve wasted so much time. I could’ve had ten books written by now.”

  Just know that these feelings are temporary. There is light at the other side of the tunnel.

  4) Plan—You need to identify what beliefs you currently hold that keep you from achieving your writing goals.

  For example, do you believe that you are not in control of your life? Do
you believe that life just happens? Do you believe that you can’t change your habits? Do you believe that you will always be the same way you are currently?

  Challenging your beliefs about what you can and can’t control will help you to start accepting personal responsibility.

  SMART Goals Checklist

  Every goal you set for yourself—whether that be for your writing or for any other part of your life—needs to meet the following criteria:

  Specific–Make sure your goals are specific. Don’t just say “I want to write a novel.” Say, “I want to write a 300-page romance novel.” Or “I want to sell an article to Women’s Health.” The more specific, the better.

  Measurable–Having a specific goal also makes the goal measurable. Three hundred pages or writing for Women’s Health magazine are two very measurable goals.

  Attainable–Anything is attainable if you set your mind to it and work hard, but if you’re just starting out in your writing career, you want to make sure you’re not setting the bar too high, otherwise you might burnout before you reach your goal. I suggest starting with a small goal, such as writing a novel, and work into the larger goals, such as getting published or finding an agent.

  Realistic–Just like the goal being attainable, the goal should also be realistic. And my definition of “realistic” is something that’s believable for you. So if you don’t believe you can actually get a publisher (even though you can) then don’t make that one of your goals. You want your goals to be something you can truly believe in. Remember, believing is 90 percent of achieving.

  Timed–Although it doesn’t have to be a short timeframe, you want to make sure your goals are timed in some way, otherwise you could end up chasing the same goal for years without reaching the finish line. Here’s a good example, when I decided to write my first novel, I gave myself a three-month deadline. Choose a deadline that works for you when setting your writing goals. Maybe finishing your novel can happen in three months, but finding a publisher might take a year.

  How Do Your Goals Stack Up to the SMART Criteria?

  Here’s an example of how to use the SMART Goals checklist on the next page:

  Use this example goals checklist as a guide and see how your goals stack up to the SMART criteria:

  Writing Goals Commitment

  If you’re ready to commit to your writing goals, sign this writing goals contract and hang it somewhere so you can see it often.

  “I, ____________________, commit to make my writing goals happen. I will take small steps everyday that will move me in the direction of my dreams. I promise to make writing a priority in my life and stop putting myself on the bottom of my to-do list.

  The goals I am committing to are as follows:

  ……

  ……

  ……

  ……

  ……

  ……

  All of these goals are SMART and all of them are in alignment with the writing dreams I have for myself.

  I also commit to reviewing my goals on a regular basis to keep them updated and to ensure I’m staying on track. My review dates are as follows:

  Goal Review Date #1:

  Goal Review Date #2:

  Goal Review Date #3:

  Goal review Date #4:

  Goal Review Date #5:

  Signature ………………………..…………………..

  Date ……………………

  An Un-schedule Worksheet

  Excuses Procrastinators Use Worksheet

  Changing Negatives to Positives Worksheet

  Here’s how to fill it out:

  In the left column, write down all the negative things you tell yourself about your writing, your writing abilities, etc.

  Now in the right column—line-by-line—change the negative statement to a positive one. As you write a positive statement, cross out the negative one.

  Once you’ve written new, positive statements in the right column, fold the paper in half and either rip the left column off entirely or keep it folded back so you can’t see it. You’re putting the negativity out of your mind. All you’re focusing on from here on out are positive thoughts and statements.

  Progress Report for the week of: _____________ to _____________

  Goals for the week:

  Project:

  ________________________________

  ________________________________

  ________________________________

  ________________________________

  Project:

  ________________________________

  ________________________________

  ________________________________

  ________________________________

  How To Make the Most of A Writing Critique Checklist

  Prepare Yourself–You are doing it. You are finally going to let someone read your writing. This is a huge step, so congratulations. But before you get on with the critique, it’s a good idea to make sure you are 100 percent OK with this. If you go into the critique ready for it, you’ll get a much better result than if you go into it with an attitude or thinking that the person is going to “cut you down.”

  Once you’re ready to fully accept criticism, move on to step two.

  Choose a Constructively Critical Reader–You want to make sure you ask someone to critique your work who will be constructive and give you ideas and suggestions for making your writing better. Criticism of your writing should always be constructive. If the person you asked for a critique is being mean, making fun or just completely rude, you have every right to ignore him/her (and never ask them to critique your work again!).

  Read Through Everything First–Once the person has critiqued your writing, the next thing you’ll want to do is read through all their comments. Don’t judge any of the comments or get defensive and start explaining why you wrote it this way or that way. Just take it all in.

  Be (and Remain) Open-Minded–A constructive critique can easily put you on your defenses if you don’t approach it with an open mind. The person is there to help you. And you asked them to, so you should give them the benefit of the doubt and at least consider what they are telling you.

  Understand that Constructive Criticism Will Make Your Writing Better–After you’ve worked on something for so long, it’s hard to let it go. It’s hard to be open to someone telling you it’s not perfect or that it needs more work. But ultimately, this is the information you need to get to that next step in your writing career. The more you accept criticism and learn how to use it, the better your writing will be.

  Consider that You Don’t Know Everything–It’s your writing, which means you are extremely close to the project. And being this close to the project stops you from having another perspective. That’s why criticism is so important. The people who read and critique your work will be reading it for improvement. They will be reading to help you make it better.

  Remember the Choice is Yours–You asked this person to read and constructively criticize your writing. But that doesn’t mean what this person says goes. Although their advice is appreciated, you are ultimately the decision-maker. You are the one who decides which comments you use and which you ignore.

  Tips for Hiring An Editor Checklist

  Get Something For Nothing—A reputable editor will edit one chapter or up to 10 pages for free, in order to find out if your style matches with the editor’s style. Ask all the editors you’re considering for this. If any of them say no, you may want to reconsider.

  Act Like A Journalist—It’s a good idea to interview all the editors you’re considering. A minimum of three is a good goal. Once you get to know them a little more, you’ll have a better chance of finding one that fits your writing style.

  Put It In Writing—After you choose an editor, your next step is to sign a contractual agreement between the two of you. The contract should include a specific time limit for the first round of edits. Editing time typically ranges from 90 days to six months. If it takes
longer than that, it’s not worth your time.

  Per Page, Not Per Hour—Ensure the contract has the editor charging you per page, not per hour. The open-endedness of the hourly charge could bust your budget. A per page charge keeps things simple and straightforward.

  Three Edits Built In—Your editing contract should include three edits. If the editor wants to charge you for additional edits, choose another editor. After three edits, editors will typically charge another fee.

  Do What Works For You—Remember, all your editor’s comments and changes are just suggestions. You do not have to make any or all of the changes. Ultimately, it’s your book, so you have to decide what changes to make and what changes not to make.

  Steps for Protecting Your Work (The Unofficial Way) Checklist

  Print out the most recent copy of all your novels and short stories (The ones that are in final form or have been sent out for publication).

  Put each one in a separate envelope and seal it.

  Address the envelopes to yourself.

  Mail each envelope separately to yourself through certified mail so there’s a record of it being sent.

  Once you get the envelopes in the mail, don’t open them. I repeat: DO NOT OPEN THEM.

  Set them aside and don’t worry about them again unless you get involved in a copyright claim/lawsuit.

  Since stuff you send through the mail has a “sent date” on it, you will now have the proof you need to win your copyright claim/lawsuit.

  The poor-man’s copyright:

  Print out copies of all your work.

  Grab envelopes for each piece.

  Go to the library (Many libraries offer free notary services) or find a notary.

  Seal your work in an envelope in front of the notary.

  Write something on the outside saying, “I certify that, your name, sealed the contents of this envelope on the ___ day of ________,” and have the notary sign and stamp it.