I’m currently working with a number of emerging writers (talented people who I like to think of as pre-published). We email, connect over Zoom, and share resources and ideas. From time to time I have the privilege of doing some developmental edits on their work, big picture stuff that I hope strengthens their stories, tightens their plots, and ensures their characters are unforgettable. It’s a really fun and rewarding side-gig.
I’ve noticed a common theme among my pre-published friends in the last few weeks—and I’d be a liar if I didn’t admit that it’s affecting me, too: we’re struggling to build momentum. It’s the post-holiday season, the New Year’s blush is fading, and the back-to-normal grind isn’t as conducive to creativity as we hoped it would be. Already our enthusiastically penned writing goals are disappearing into the background as we wrestle with more immediate, less cerebral tasks and to-dos. Life is so busy.
What’s a creative to do?
Yes, there are entire books that will carefully walk you through a myriad of ways to break the chains of the daily grind. They’ll tell you to “put your butt in the chair” and “silence your inner editor” and “get it out,” but I find that advice about as inspiring as my teenager’s tongue-in-cheek cure-all for whatever ails you (be it melancholy or a broken leg or the flu): “just get over it.” Yeah, right. HOW?
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