Write Something!

Here’s the main idea: if you don’t write it, it will never be written; and if it is never written, it will never be read; and if it is never read, it will never be loved the way only a reader can love a story. As much as we love our work as authors, what we create deserves the love of a reader, the ones who don’t know what’s going to happen when they turn the page. If for no other reason, write it so that others can read it.

My mantra has always been this:

“Just one.”

That’s all.

Just one. As in, if my book touches the soul of just one reader, it was a success. If just one person makes my book the one they keep on their best shelf or always in their purse; if just one person has worn my book down to yellowed, bent, and worn edges from reading it so passionately; if just one person would never lend my book to others no matter how much they recommend it to them; if just one person says my book is the reason they read or the reason they stayed; then it was all worth it.

But I have to write that book first.

Here are the 5 things I do to get myself to knuckle down and put words on the page:

1. Read!

I am currently reading “Supernova,” which is the third and final book in the Renegades trilogy by Marissa Meyer. After that, I’ll be reading “Once Upon a Broken Heart” by Stephanie Garber, a much anticipated read after reading the Caraval trilogy which was one of the series that boosted my creative energy into getting from having roughly 20% of the first draft of “Mythic” done into a first draft that now has a second draft. The books that started “Mythic” was the “Gilded” and “Cursed” duology by Marissa Meyer. I never get more writing done than when I’m getting a lot of reading done.

Robin Henry wrote an article titled “How to Read to Elevate Your Writing Practice” for the Jane Friedman website, and they wrote that “There are three stages in reading/literature appreciation…The best writers write for all three stages…”

We read on a spectrum of pleasure and stimulation. As writers, we get pretty good at doing all three of Henry’s stages at once so that we passively enjoy a good book, understand why we enjoy it, and know how the author made sure we could understand and enjoy it. Perhaps you read a book with a really good twist. You then figure out how the author succeeded in making that twist happen in a way that surprised you rather than confused you so that you might be able to do the same in your writing. You find the foreshadowing, the careful wording around certain characters or aspects that subtly hint that things are not quite how they seem, leading the reader one way while going another.

Like a doctor learns about a surgery, watches a surgery, then performs a surgery (shoutout to Grey’s fans); writers learn about a plot device, read novels with good examples of those plot devices, then write using those plot devices.

2. Make a Writing Playlist

My Spotify Dashboard opened on the Touched Apothecary Playlist

Nothing gets me in the writing mood better than a solid playlist to fit the mood of what I’m writing that day. My Spotify is full of “Book Based” playlists for each of my WIPs. For “Mythic,” there are six playlists so far; one for each book and another with all of them put together plus songs that fit the overarching theme. For other projects such as the Just series, I have separate playlists for each individual character.

When it’s for the book, the playlist has songs that would be in its movie or television adaptation. When it’s for a character, it’s what would play in the background when they have their spotlight moments or songs that would be in their own playlists. I get inside the characters, inside the world, and let it transport me to a place where I’m not so much writing from my head but writing what I see, what I experience as these characters or in these worlds.

Jillian Karger has a good article called “How to Create a Writing Playlist” on Fictionate.Me about creating your own writing playlist. The advice: “...Listen to your favorite songs playlist, and keep an ear out for songs that somehow feel like your story or a certain character.”

3. Reread Favorite Scenes

Sometimes, you stop vibing with the page you’re on. You know the scene you have to write but it just…won’t…happen. In this case, I often go back to previous sections of that WIP, to scenes that had me clutching my chest as if I wasn’t the one who wrote them.

This happens the most when I’m working on chapters between major scenes, the parts where characters can just talk without being dramatic or in a frenzy, the respites of character and world building. They’re slow and they’re important, but difficult to get through; so I jump back to when the characters first met or to a fight scene, whether with each other or with a minor antagonist. I read just enough to get me excited again, to remind me why I have to do the characters justice by giving them these small moments.

The Writing Cooperative has an excellent article titled “Why Writers Should Reread (and Rewrite) As They Go,” though it is blocked by a sign-up barrier. It is worth it. The article (freely) states, “Rereading can be such a beneficial step in the writing process in cultivating motivation, helping with the flow, and otherwise getting the creative juices moving and creating a cohesive story overall.” I highly recommend handing over your email so that you can read this one because I whole-heartedly agree with Margery Bayne that popular advice not to look back makes writing that much harder.

Consider getting halfway through your book and suddenly it hits you: your main character is queer or neurodivergent or is five years younger (or five years older!). You can’t be expected to finish your novel and then edit the entire thing to fit that change. It doesn’t make sense. So, by all means, go back, rediscover your spark or make a tweak. A slight change you might notice you want to make by looking back could be why you were having trouble moving forward in the first place.

4. Eliminate distractions!

My biggest folly—as I assume is shared by many—is turning to my phone for a little break, a little breather. I say, I’ll just watch a couple TikToks and then get back to writing. Next thing you know, it’s been three hours and now you’re hungry because you doomscrolled so hard that you not only forgot what you wanted to do, but you also forgot about your basic human needs.

To my family’s chagrin I’m sure, I have taken to starting group calls with them. It both makes sure I’m keeping up with them since I moved across the country, but it also occupies my phone so that I am not as easily drawn to doomscrolling. My partner and I adapted a portion of our studio into an office space so that I had somewhere to sit that wasn’t in front of the television or as nap-inducing as a couch or bed. Instead, all I have is my work in front of me and bookshelves to my side. If I’m going to get distracted, it’s going to be by a book; and remember, reading is writing.

5. Write Something Else

When all else fails, write something else. Maybe you have another WIP, or perhaps you sometimes dabble in other styles (poetry vs short story vs novel). When you get stuck, it could be a good time to go play and stretch out some writing muscles that you haven’t used as much, if at all, in your priority project.

In the Masterclass article “Taking a Break from Writing: 3 Reasons to Take a Writing Break,” reasons for taking a break from your passion project and tips on how to do so are detailed, including the advice that “If you feel like you’re hitting a wall, try writing a poem or journaling your thoughts. This can help get the creative juices flowing again.”

You could be burnt out or otherwise stressed, whether or not it has anything to do with writing. Maybe you know what you want to do moving forward but can’t seem to get the words on the page. You stare and stare at the screen just wishing the scene in your head would just appear. Other things in your life could need attention. Did you get enough sleep? Are you well-fed? Is your other job picking up in workload? Perhaps you have a lot of traveling coming up. Whatever the reason, you sit down to write and nothing happens, so it’s time to try something else. The muse will find you again, I promise.

We can’t become that author whose books someone always has on their shelves if we don’t write those books. So read a book, make a playlist, reassure yourself by looking back, limit distractions, or take a break and try something else. Do a combination of those things. Do all of them! Whatever it takes to help you refresh and come back to the page even stronger than when you first started. You got this!