Finding the motivation to write, when you love to write?

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YES ! !!

I can tell you how to motivate your writing, it's picturing yourself as being a wealthy author, with people begging you for your autograph, driving very expensive cars, and having huge sums of money at your disposal ....

Which isn't very likely. Terry Pratchett didn't give up his day job until 1987, and his fourth Discworld novel (not to mention his seventh novel overall). And it took JK Rowling 5 years and at least twelve rejections to get the first Harry Potter book published.

yeah!



kxmodude, btw I just read this:

here: link




thumbs up

Or imagining yourself on the phone to your agent who is pleading with you to take a million for the rights to make your story into a movie, and you say, nah, Spielberg ?? Listen tell Steven he'll have to cough up a lot more than that ! ! Besides, look at what he did to Kubrick's movie ...

I find this blog somehow motivating: http://dailyroutines.typepad.com/

Here's some tips i came up with when I need motivation:

1) Start with an outline. Knowing the story beforehand and referring to it can give you more confidence in where your story takes place without being disjointed. I can't write without an outline since if I write without one I can't write for fear I don't know where my story's heading.

2) Just write. Hemingway once said, "The first draft of any piece is worth s**t." In other words, everyone makes a crappy draft. Even Shakespeare had to revise. You can edit later.

3) Don't strive for perfectionism. Sometimes this is main reason we don't write. Remember: everything man made is imperfect. Still, with a few errors something can be a great piece of work. The trick is to banish what I call your inner critics, your inner self that be saying, "You're not good enough," or, "This piece is clearly second-rate to the other writers." Banish them; don't pay heed to your perfectionism. Even Shakespeare, in some parts, had weak areas in his writing. The way to reassure yourself is by knowing you can revise it, knowing you can improve it.

4) Write in your voice, or rather, write as if you're the only person who's going to read it. Remember diaries or journals? How come they instantly excite someone when they read it long after you're dead? It's because we hear you in it. In other words, just be yourself and stop copying other writers. There can only be one Dickens and one Chekov and one J.k. Rowling. Don't make the mistake Paolini did writing like Tolkien when in fact there can only be one Tolkien in this world. Just read any book that has the same world as Tolkien and you'll find out only Tolkien's world sound original and exciting. Usually by copying someone else's voice do we lose motivation to write. Can't be everything to everyone. Trust me, it'll be easier if you do it this way.

5) About outlines: if you don't write best by using outlines, then write without one. No need to hinder yourself with something that won't work for you.

Here's an experiment if you don't know whether if you write best by outlines or by the seat of the pants (or spontaneously if that's the better word): Think of two short stories you desperately want to write, and I mean desperately. For one, write an outline for it, and for the other just start writing it form the beginning. After you complete the two stories, think which method was easier for you, which method caused you the least problems and helped you produced better writing. That's your method.

That's all the advice I have on motivating yourself to write.

Imagine yourself as a fabulously successful writer. (Like Stephen King.) And your butler is asking, will you be taking the Aston for a spin today, or perhaps the Lamborghini, sir. And you say, I believe I'd like the Bugatti brought up, I haven't exercised it properly this month. Yes sir, right away sir.

That'll get you to the bottom of the page in a snap ....

im currently struggling finding ideas to finish my short stories, imagining myself as wealthy only gives me ideas about wealthy people, i am still stuck

Here's a thought; write stories you'd like to read.

Here's one not to visualize - being up at 5am doing radio and TV interviews with inane DJs and VJs...

~shudders~

Reminds me of the stories from Nick Mason, that no matter how many times he gets interviewed, they always ask 'so how did you come up with the name?'

Most successful writers have a lot of of self-discipline. They research their books, and set aside a certain time of day to devote to nothing but writing. Research helps stimulate the imagination, and devoting a specific and regular time of your day or week to writing helps you avoid distractions.

When you set aside time to write, just write. Even if it doesn't seem very good to you at the time. Brainstorm, stream of conscious, whatever gets you writing. Just get into the habit of it. People who only write when they're in the mood or feel inspire usually fail to complete their projects. Habitual writers are the ones that get things done.

Annie Proulx, for example, spends several months researching her writings. She writes in the morning, which many writers find advantageous, because their minds are rested and refreshed and there's fewer daily distractions. She also focuses on writing down ideas as quickly as she can--her initial drafts are very pithy, focused just on the plot or the topic. Then she goes back and spends more time with developing ideas and characters. She won a Pulitzer for her second novel, so hey.

That's the beginning and the end of my writing style, my personal motto, my creed, my code of honor. If you wouldn't buy your own book if you found it at a bookstore, it's not worth the effort to write it.

Very, very true ! !! I went with The Missus to see "Angels and Demons". About a third of the way into the film I thought "This is complete bollocks and I could do better!" So I've started my own story which I hope to turn into a graphic novel just because I thought I'd like to read about someone in 1930's USA trying to stop a coven of evil doers who are trying to raise a HP Lovecraft demon-thing.
A mate pointed out that this is the way Disneyland was created ... Walt couldn't find a clean, decent amusement park to take his daughters to, and said, "I'll do it meself."

I've switched stories that I'm concentrating on getting written.
And it is fun to write, I really have a good time writing when I get home from work in the evening. This is the best inspiration, having a jolly time creating the story.

idk what kind of writing you do.

i write poems.

but i write best when i'm emotional. that goes both ways. things just start clicking once the feeling rushes through.

Well, I keep a list of ideas. Whenever I get a new one, I just write it down, and then when I'm going to write a new story, I consult it, and choose the one that seems to call out to me loudest.

Also, outlines don't work for me. I like to just go along. I can't work with outlines. I like to see my stories take on life of their own, if you know what I mean. You get more intersting endings that way. And especially great cliffies, which are the best way to keep readers hooked, as I was told in an English class. But it's recomended that you use an outline.