Writing inspiration: Note to self
How to find motivation when you’re tired but want to write, and the importance sometimes of resting first
Dear readers,
I know, it’s been a while! I really enjoyed the writing sprints a few of us attended earlier this year. Stay tuned in the chat for more organized writing sprints, and please feel free to post there when you’d like to organize writing sessions with fellow writers too. Doing the Write Thing is meant to help writers who want to write write, so that’s your space too!
As I think I mentioned in the chat, I didn’t release a Q&A in February, but I am working on a storytelling workshop for later this year that I hope brings some value to you, and the March Q&A is almost ready!
I’m writing to you now to hopefully bring you some writing motivation. I wrote out most of the words below in a comment on this encouraging post about making time to write, and immediately got the idea to share this idea with you in case it helps.
How do you find motivation to write, even when you’re tired?
My favourite thing is to be with our family. I usually work on my book in the evening, but if I'm attending an online webinar about writing/publishing or working on my newsletter or tired enough to just relax, then it sometimes means I don't work on my book for several days until the next evening session.
Tonight, for example, I felt tired (I think from swimming this morning) so I wrote a motivational note to myself in colourful marker and put that in front of my computer, and that helped!
(Get it? “Write now” = time to “write” right now?…)
I also took a short relaxing break first, knowing I was so determined to write tonight that the break wouldn't get in the way and would actually improve the writing session. During that break, I started watching a movie about writing; it’s called Genius, and it’s about a writer named Thomas Wolfe and Maxwell Perkins, the same editor who supported F. Scott Fitzgerald and his famous book The Great Gatsby. So that seemed very on theme, too.
How about you—do you have messages you think or write to yourself, or other tips that help you feel that writing spark and energy when you’re tired but also want to write?
Please remember that if you feel the kind of tired that signals to you to rest, then it’s probably more important to rest (health and safety first). And, if you do need to rest and can rest first, writing later or on another day after resting is usually better (in terms of how you feel and writing quality).
I hope this helps connect you with your writing or other creative project—that it brings you motivation, inspiration, encouragement and support.