May Day
Hello, this is a brief preamble before I get into this month’s entry. My goal has been to publish one blog update a month between other projects. This sometimes means the writing itself gets spread out over time. The composition of this entry began prior to the horrendous murder of George Floyd, and as such, my heart and what little energy it has left this month need to go towards more important aims. The tone of this entry is very sarcastic and lighthearted, per the usual, but I don’t have the will to rewrite this entry to be more appropriate for this dark chapter in our nation’s history, so instead I will encourage you to spend your time contributing to the cause in any way you can. Whether that’s choosing to read works exclusively by Black authors, or if that means marching in the streets, or simply just donating what you can to a bail fund. Go do that now… this entry will be here if the world ever needs it.
Okay, the blog’s gonna start now.
Ah man, I got old enough to figure out for myself at last that there really is no such thing in this life as “normal”. I’m tired of waiting for things to go back this illusion of normal and I’m tired of pretending that normal was a thing that can be returned to. That’s right, I think it’s past time to start focusing on adaptation during these times, because as assuredly as the times are want to change, so too can you rely on the human ability to be flexible. So today’s update is loaded with a little bit more of the resilient attitude than previous, so I’m coming at you (editor’s note: I’m not actually coming at you) with a thrilling and breathtaking assortment of productivity tips. But first, some updates on my progress:
Little has changed from last month in terms of how much I’m not entirely utterly killin’ the game at this point in time. Still trundling along steadily - and I’m actually pretty ding dang satisfied with the quality of the output, so I really shouldn’t complain so long as the words are getting made in the end. I’ve had a few side projects I’ve poked at here and there for entertainment purposes (mostly to use up my obsessive / manic energy that has increased tenfold in the past month and a half or so), but last night I reprioritized a couple things, and ya’ll aren’t going to believe this, but I’m going to experiment with doing some light polishing of Codetta while simultaneously working the Shelle’s Island redraft; I know it’s crucially important (especially now) to resist the urge to spread myself too thin for the kicks, but I must admit that the urge to begin querying again has been stirring…
‘Kay, so let me begin by sharing my first random, weird, may-only-be-a-me-thing productivity tip to help you take back your freaking life from the specters of uh, futility, I guess. Here’s a few random, miscellaneous productivity tips I’ve made note of for myself. I don’t know if they’re going to have a thematic consistency, but a lot of ya’ll are conditioned by public education to despise themes anyway, so I’m okay with it if you are. Also, if you do respect themes, then you’re cool.
First up, we’re going to begin with a tip for getting started! The step of actually beginning something tends to be the hardest part for me on so many occasions, which is why my first step centers arounds the simple act of simply beginning. Any time I’m at that dreaded starting line for any project (or part of a project), my main goal is just to get the ice broken as swiftly as possible. Whether it’s just setting up the project document, or typing up a quick and dirty introductory sentence (or maybe a whole paragraph if you’re nasty) - just don’t delay that first step, because like PP Arnold sang: The first cut is the deepest, so make it quick and get it done before your brain tells you it’s a bad idea to even do the thing.
So maybe you’re thinking something like: “how the heck can I start writing if I’m not even ready?” Maybe you’re super new to even the idea of writing, and don’t believe you have proper tools - such as writing software for an example. Or perhaps there’s something else, some other box you haven’t ticked that’s keeping you from beginning. “Oh, if I just had a decent place of my own to write” or “I’m just waiting on inspiration to strike” are some common ones - but they’re all just excuses. The truth is that limitation breeds creativity; there is no greater practice than the labor of necessity - and fortunately for us, writing is one of the easiest skills to start practicing right away, since you can use any possible resource available to start recording the words - nothing it stopping you but yourself, believe me when I say that you will actually grow very strong from the limitations you start with.
Next step is very important, but will sound like a no-brainer: Actually take the time to figure out what your goals are and put them on your calendar or whatever else you use to help yourself remember the things that are most important. Doesn’t matter where, but commit it somewhere! That’s all you gotta do - easy!
Okay, you got your time on the calendar to begin and you’re ready to get into the swing of things. My next tip is crucial, and by no means can I take credit for it - I probably originally heard this in college or NPR or something, it’s just such basic, universal brain hack advice: Keep your daily goals easily digestible! This may go against your drive, I know we all hear about pro writers taking on one thousand to two thousand words a day or some such - and maybe we’ll all get there again too, but what’s important to remember is that until you’ve actually gotten to that point where you’re comfortable with big daily strides, then keeping it reasonable is the absolute smartest thing you can do for yourself in the interim. I won’t prescribe any daily minimums, but it is up to you to know yourself and know your habits and lifestyle and be tactical around that!
Doing the thing every day is another big one that you’ll hear people mention - and of course I totally agree. So long as you can do even just a little teeny tiny bit every day, then well, progress is progress. But my next tip is going to take that one step further: Not only do I recommend working on your main hustle every single day if possible, but I recommend experimenting with making that the very first thing you do - heck, this entire entry was composed in this manner. Every night I’m mindful to put my laptop near the bed, and the very first thing I do in the morning is open that thang up and crack on into my main project before the sleep crud has even been wiped from my beautiful eyes, or my brain given enough waking moments to whine impotently. Again, doesn’t have to be a lot, even just a tiny bit! But so long as it’s the first thing you’ve done, then for the remainder of the day you’ll know the pressure of actually starting has been over since before you even arose from bed.
Alright, goons, I know that was a little fast and loose, but nothing matters, so it'll all work out. Honestly though, I do hope even a single one of these pieces of advice can be helpful to you even in the slightest on your journey as a writer - or whatever your particular journey may be. Despite best efforts, it looks like my tips have happened to organize themselves in an efficient linearity - in fact, I do say that something almost resembling a theme of getting started has poked through, so go ahead and go do that for yourself… But before you go, lemme just say, thank you for reading!
