Keeping Motivated

Jennifer asked:

How do you keep yourself motivated when writing? I haven't gotten writers block, but sometimes I just stop writing for a couple of weeks or so and then I continue my writing. 

Hi, Jennifer! That's a good question :)

The way I stay motivated is by always remembering what I'm working for. I want to make it in writing as soon as possible (my agent just submitted my manuscript to publishing houses, and I'm so nervous!) and the only way to make it is to have material to submit. So if I don't write for a day, I know I've put myself one day behind achieving my goal in life. Just keep focused on the end result, because you will eventually get there.

On a day-by-day basis, the most helpful thing I do is set a reasonable daily goal of how many words I want to write. Right now I aim for 1,500-2,000 words a day. When I was in college I aimed for 1,000 words a day. I know this is something I can do, so it never intimidates me. When you decide on a daily word count for yourself, make sure it isn't something that you feel is too much for you. If you feel like it's too much then it will be overwhelming and you'll be more likely to procrastinate, which is bad.

If you miss a day, don't push yourself to "make up for it the next day by writing double the words." Just start again with your daily word count, but try to write for the majority of days in a week. I write six days a week, usually taking off on Saturday or Sunday, depending how I'm feeling/what I have to do that weekend. I usually have to push myself to sit down and start writing (yes, writing is work!) but once I'm done my daily words I always feel proud of what I've written and that I'm one day closer to the end result.

It's also good to always have a book you're reading, because reading books is inspiring in itself. (And fun!)

I hope that was helpful!

xoxo,
Michelle