Getting back in the groove...?

[Justhetip...]

Hello guys! My first thread post. Already introduced myself here.

Been really busy with irl stuff and rarely got the chance to write stuff for about 10 months. But now I'm somewhat free and want to begin anew, but I just keep procrastinating again and again.

I know some might say just do it, but it just isn't working for me, so I decided to test the waters here.

How do you get back into the writing zone after a long time of inactivity?

 

[Tsuru]

Like sports, its the first step the biggest trouble.

 

[Justhetip...]

Like sports, its the first step the biggest trouble.

Yeah...

 

[TheBestofSome]

Find an idea that gets you really excited to put it onto paper. I love my story enough to always find it worthwhile, so I rarely end up procrastinating when it comes to writing (unlike some other things. )

You could also try starting out with just a small project. A little 1,000 word short story feels a lot more manageable than an epic.

That said, just do it is sometimes how I get off my ass and start writing. And sometimes I write 300 words and am like 'yeah, no, this is going nowhere. I'll try again later.'

 

[Puji-Maki]

Find inspiration. Probably read other novels to get inspired.

Also Nike: Just Do It--!!

 

[Justhetip...]

Find an idea that gets you really excited to put it onto paper. I love my story enough to always find it worthwhile, so I rarely end up procrastinating when it comes to writing (unlike some other things. )

You could also try starting out with just a small project. A little 1,000 word short story feels a lot more manageable than an epic.

That said, just do it is sometimes how I get off my ass and start writing. And sometimes I write 300 words and am like 'yeah, no, this is going nowhere. I'll try again later.'

Find inspiration. Probably read other novels to get inspired.

Also Nike: Just Do It--!!

Fair enough. Everyone 's throwing Just do it at me.
Alright. Less goo!!??

Ps: wish me well.

 

[TheBestofSome]

Fair enough. Everyone 's throwing Just do it at me.
Alright. Less goo!!??

Ps: wish me well.

You got this. Often once you actually start writing, you fall into the groove pretty quickly. Tell yourself you only need to write for 10 minutes, that's it. Usually, that's enough to get you started and now that you're actually sitting there typing it's relatively easy to keep going for however long you want. Just make sure you get rid of distractions. Silence your phone, log out of discord, etcetera.

 

[John_Owl]

Hello guys! My first thread post. Already introduced myself here.

Been really busy with irl stuff and rarely got the chance to write stuff for about 10 months. But now I'm somewhat free and want to begin anew, but I just keep procrastinating again and again.

I know some might say just do it, but it just isn't working for me, so I decided to test the waters here.

How do you get back into the writing zone after a long time of inactivity?

You've got two options. First, look through the Writing Prompts for an idea that gets your muse excited. The sit down at hammer out a rough draft.

Second, and my preferred way, is to clear your mind of other matters. Just focus on writing. Then, go stream of consciousness. The hardest part is that initial 'getting words on page'. But once you start, it gets considerably easier. If you go this route, then know that no one will ever read your stream of consciousness. Literally, forget about punctuation, spelling, etc. Don't backspace. Whatever comes to your mind goes on the page. Each and every little word. Once you've done that for about 1-2k words, open a new page and begin writing.

Or you can edit the stream down to a coherent story. Few people can do this, so don't worry if you can't. But looking through it could give a spark of inspiration you didn't realize you had. That's how a lot of famous poems came about. They started at word vomit and ended as beauty with a LOT of polishing.

 

[Justhetip...]

You've got two options. First, look through the Writing Prompts for an idea that gets your muse excited. The sit down at hammer out a rough draft.

Second, and my preferred way, is to clear your mind of other matters. Just focus on writing. Then, go stream of consciousness. The hardest part is that initial 'getting words on page'. But once you start, it gets considerably easier. If you go this route, then know that no one will ever read your stream of consciousness. Literally, forget about punctuation, spelling, etc. Don't backspace. Whatever comes to your mind goes on the page. Each and every little word. Once you've done that for about 1-2k words, open a new page and begin writing.

Or you can edit the stream down to a coherent story. Few people can do this, so don't worry if you can't. But looking through it could give a spark of inspiration you didn't realize you had. That's how a lot of famous poems came about. They started at word vomit and ended as beauty with a LOT of polishing.

Yeah, that's one of my biggest problems. I always instinctively edit as I write, and it disrupts my flow on many occasions. I'll try to just let the words flow without bothering about any other stuff now. Thanks. ?

 

[CharlesEBrown]

Yeah, that's one of my biggest problems. I always instinctively edit as I write, and it disrupts my flow on many occasions. I'll try to just let the words flow without bothering about any other stuff now. Thanks. ?

I do my first drafts on my phone - where it is every difficult to edit. Then, using Google Docs, open the file on my laptop when I have a few chapters done, and edit there.

 

[Hans.Trondheim]

Hello guys! My first thread post. Already introduced myself here.

Been really busy with irl stuff and rarely got the chance to write stuff for about 10 months. But now I'm somewhat free and want to begin anew, but I just keep procrastinating again and again.

I know some might say just do it, but it just isn't working for me, so I decided to test the waters here.

How do you get back into the writing zone after a long time of inactivity?

Force yourself to write. Small increments every day will end up getting you to writing mood again.

 

[Justhetip...]

I do my first drafts on my phone - where it is every difficult to edit. Then, using Google Docs, open the file on my laptop when I have a few chapters done, and edit there.

I'll try this.

Force yourself to write. Small increments every day will end up getting you to writing mood again.

Wrote about 700 words yesterday, only to wake up this morning and an even better scenario of what I wrote miraculously appearing in my head. Now I just can't help but rewrite that scene. Sigh.??

 

[RepresentingWrath]

I just do it. Doesn't matter how many psychological tricks you use, unless you actually do it nothing will happen. So yeah, that's the only thing that helps me.

 

[Hans.Trondheim]

I'll try this.

Wrote about 700 words yesterday, only to wake up this morning and an even better scenario of what I wrote miraculously appearing in my head. Now I just can't help but rewrite that scene. Sigh.??

Here's what you should do:

Write both scenes if you can. After that, take a break, then come back. You'll see what improvements you can do without removing the other.

Don't rewrite immediately.

Check out my stories if you want proof of what I'm telling you.

Start here:

The Human Saint is Bored, so I was Summoned to Another World

A man wakes up one day in another world, summoned by a girl who claims she’s a ‘Great Saint’—all because of boredom. Nicknamed ‘Kuro,’ he soon discovers he’s not the typical isekai protagonist: he has no powers and has no ‘cheat skills’ to rely on. How will...

www.scribblehub.com

Though, take note: it hasn't finished uploading in this site. If you wanna see the complete word count, you can check out my Syosetu/HoneyFeed account.

Besides, self-discipline in writing includes not only forcing yourself to write till you get into the mood; it also means you'll have to control your urge to rewrite until you 'laid down' all the cards you have, so you can choose what fits best.

 

[TheIcMan]

Like others said, just open your writing program and start. Be it dialogue or whatever.

Then when you’re done, realize it’s shit and procrastinate again (totally not a personal experience)

But yeah, slowly but steady can work. Short bursts of writing. And who knows you might be so inspired you spend the rest of the day writing!!

 

[Justhetip...]

I just do it. Doesn't matter how many psychological tricks you use, unless you actually do it nothing will happen. So yeah, that's the only thing that helps me.

Sigh. There are no shortcuts...?

Like others said, just open your writing program and start. Be it dialogue or whatever.

Then when you’re done, realize it’s shit and procrastinate again (totally not a personal experience)

But yeah, slowly but steady can work. Short bursts of writing. And who knows you might be so inspired you spend the rest of the day writing!!

This is exactly how it's been for me actually. My main gripe is the problem of consistency. I guess I'll have to take a story idea I'm not too attached to and force myself to write something every single day even though it's trash.

 

[RepresentingWrath]

Sigh. There are no shortcuts...?

You can split your task into multiple simple ones, absurdly simple. For example, your first task is to simply open google docs, microsoft word, or whatever thing you use for writing. And after achieving this rather simple task, you now work towards another one. For example, write a paragraph, and you keep doing those small tasks. But you have to actually do it. There is no magical skill that will help you and open your writing software. You have to just do it.

 

[MatchaChocolate69]

Quick Guide for "Just Do It". Follow it carefully.

1. Open Google Docs.
2. Write the first thing that comes to mind—a sentence, a thought, or even a single word.
3. Start organizing ideas for your novel. Write down a character's name, describe a place, or anything else you've imagined.
4. Repeat step 3.
5. Try visualizing a scene or a dialogue. Write just the skeleton of it.
6. Add details to the skeleton.
7. If you're inspired, keep expanding the skeleton; if not, focus on improving it and adding more details.
8. Repeat.
9. Now, you can skip step 2 and jump straight into step 3.

 

[Justhetip...]

You can split your task into multiple simple ones, absurdly simple. For example, your first task is to simply open google docs, microsoft word, or whatever thing you use for writing. And after achieving this rather simple task, you now work towards another one. For example, write a paragraph, and you keep doing those small tasks. But you have to actually do it. There is no magical skill that will help you and open your writing software. You have to just do it.

Just do it. Just do it. Just do it.

Quick Guide for "Just Do It". Follow it carefully.

1. Open Google Docs.
2. Write the first thing that comes to mind—a sentence, a thought, or even a single word.
3. Start organizing ideas for your novel. Write down a character's name, describe a place, or anything else you've imagined.
4. Repeat step 3.
5. Try visualizing a scene or a dialogue. Write just the skeleton of it.
6. Add details to the skeleton.
7. If you're inspired, keep expanding the skeleton; if not, focus on improving it and adding more details.
8. Repeat.
9. Now, you can skip step 2 and jump straight into step 3.

Just do it. Just do it. Just do it. Just do it.

Ps: I'll give feedback for the results of my self-hypnosis.

 

[RepresentingWrath]

Just do it. Just do it. Just do it.

Just do it. Just do it. Just do it. Just do it.

Ps: I'll give feedback for the results of my self-hypnosis.

Try the opposite. Don't think about it. Take a walk, drink some tea or any beverage of your choice, maybe do a short exercise, like a little bit of stretching, distract yourself from pressure.