How writing happens (Part 1)

I browsed back in my Kindle and found a book called Stop Worrying, Start Writing by Sarah Painter. I was surprised, when I opened it, to find I had closed it last at the 92% mark — meaning I had already read most or all of it. (Update: I later checked my “Books Read” log and found I had read it in October 2020.)

I read to the end and started over, reading the first four chapters until I got to the part where she says that almost every book about productivity — writing or otherwise — eventually gets to the point of telling you to buckle down and just do it — get started.

So here I am practicing my writing. Am I going to go back and convert these handwritten scribblings into a blog post? (Update: Yes, I am. Two posts, in fact.) It’s not as important that I do; the point is to be writing — “writers write” and all that. That’s the point of my daily blogging habit — to ensure that I write something, anything, every day.

“Write anything until you write something.” I’ve had days when I write anything that comes to mind and after two pages I flow into a current that becomes a blog post or a scene for the story/novel. I’ve had days when I have something important to say as soon as I start writing. I’ve had days when I write or draw gibberish until I quit for the day. The thing those days have in common is that I sat down to write.

On the days when I don’t sit down to write, nothing happens. Duh! On the days when I do sit down to write, sometimes nothing happens, but most of the time a little something or a big something happens.

So what is it that keeps me from sitting down to write, some days? It’s when I forget something essential, which I’ll get into on Friday.

Published by WarrenBluhm

Wordsmith and podcaster, Warren is a reporter, editor and storyteller who lives near the shores of Green Bay with his wife, two golden retrievers, Dejah and Summer, and Blackberry, an insistent cat. Author of It's Going to Be All Right, Echoes of Freedom Past, Full, Refuse to be Afraid, Gladness is Infectious, 24 flashes, How to Play a Blue Guitar, Myke Phoenix: The Complete Novelettes, A Bridge at Crossroads, The Imaginary Bomb, A Scream of Consciousness, and The Imaginary Revolution.

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