3 Mental Blocks and Writing to a Schedule
By: Kathleen Steeves
Do you struggle to stay motivated, write a lot, and meet your writing goals? The way you think about the writing process may actually be blocking you from getting your writing done by scheduling the time to do it. This chapter identifies 5 common mental blocks graduate students face, and offers tips for retraining your mind (and your calendar) so you can write productively!
Mental Block #1: “I cannot find time to write” or “I would write more if I had large blocks of time in my schedule.”
Reset Button: It is sometimes comforting to believe that our circumstances stand in the way of writing productively; however, these same circumstances do not seem to stand in the way of “finding time” to teach or “finding time” to go to class or attend appointments. You allot times to these things in your weekly schedule and, in the same way, you need to allot weekly times to write. At a regular time daily, or once or twice per-week, put writing in your calendar and hold this time apart. It could be as little as half an hour every other day. It is not how much time is spent in a single writing session that matters as much as it is that time is intentionally spent with regularity. Schedule, and then ruthlessly defend your writing times!
Mental Block #2: “I’m just not the kind of person who’s good at making a schedule and sticking to it.”
Reset Button: Consider how many other areas in your life you schedule with great ritual, precision and skill! Do you exercise at the same time everyday? Or eat at the same time? Watch TV? Teach or attend class? If you truly want to be a better writer there are no short-cuts, and scheduling is the key. Do not quit before you start – work just 4 hours of writing into your weekly schedule. You will be surprised how productive you can be!
Mental Block #3: “I need to do some more analysis/reading before I can write.”
Reset Button: There will always be more work that could be done before you write. Some people use this excuse, but then not only do they fail to write, they do not do any analysis or reading either! When you have “pre-writing” work to do (ie: data analysis, literature review), the trick is to do it during your scheduled writing times. Academic writing includes several components, and with a scheduled writing time you will no longer feel the overwhelming stress of “when will I get it all done?” You can know exactly when you will do it.
Mental Block #4: “I’m waiting until I feel like it” or “I can only write when I am inspired to write.”
Reset Button: This mental block is actually perhaps the most irrational, but is often used by students who resist making a writing schedule. Waiting for inspiration will not work. Some kinds of writing would not be especially enjoyable for anyone, and thus you may be waiting for your enthusiasm to catch up with your commitments in vain. Even highly successful professional writers, of fiction and non-fiction a-like, reject the notion of waiting for inspiration to strike, and instead (you guessed it) write to a schedule (for an example of this, see Anne Lamott’s book on writing: Bird by Bird).
Mental Block #5: “I need a new/better [computer] [desk] [ergonomic chair] [laser printer] [internet connection] [private office] before I can write a lot.”
Reset Button: This may be the struggling writer’s most desperate excuse. The truth is that all the equipment in the world will never help you to write a lot – the only thing that can do that is making and sticking to a writing schedule. Recognize this train of thought for what it is – an excuse – and move beyond it. You can train your brain to work productively in any space and time in which you work consistently. Instead of waiting for the perfect place to write, set aside a place to write. Just as you train your body and mind to sleep when you are in your bed, train them to work while at your computer at your desk (yes, the imperfect ones you have now).
References:
Keyes, Ralph. 2003. The Writer’s Book of Hope. New York: Holt.
Silvia, Paul J. 2007. How to Write A lot. Washington: APA Life Tools.