A New Year

Happy New Year!

Everyone knows the drill. Somewhere between opening presents on Christmas and eating our pork and sauerkraut on New Year's Day we get it in our heads that we need to make a change in our lives.  Whether it's the fact that we have to start writing a new two digits on the year (which I'll be used to sometime around July or August, I'm sure) or the fact that we have some time off where we are able to contemplate life, about the time we sing "Auld Lang Syne,"we start to take stock in where we are and where we'd like to be.  Sometimes our resolutions are small, like wanting to read more or take some time for ourselves.  Other times, our resolutions are huge, like weight loss or job change.  Regardless the size of the resolution, through self-reflection we can all come up with something we think we should do better.

Writers do the same thing.

Sure, I have other resolutions -- lose weight, worry less, have more patience.  But the first thing I began to reflect on when the urge to take inventory struck was my writing career, such as it is.  Where did I want to go from here?  Where did I feel 'here' was?  What was I doing well?  What could I do better?  Here's what I came up with: Write more.

Seems obvious, doesn't it? If I want to be a successful writer, I need to devote more time to it.  Practice makes perfect of course.  It's something that probably every writer says every year.  Heck, it's probably something that most writers say daily.  The "what" however, isn't my focus.  The 'how' is where my struggle lies.

There are all sorts of tricks and suggestions out there to help writers sit down at the computer and write.  To the non-writer, this may seem silly.  What the non-writer doesn't understand is that there are certain "traits" that seem indicative of most writers.  One of those traits is procrastination.  While the story is right there in your head, ripe for the picking, sitting down at the computer, blocking the world out and letting it all flow is one of the hardest things to do.  Most of all, it can be downright frustrating.  I cannot tell you how many times I find myself so excited to sit and write something I've been working out in my head all day, only to set the computer down in frustration when the story on the paper pales in comparison to the vision in my head.  This leads to another trait -- self-loathing.  The self-loathing then combines with the procrastination and, before you know it, you're on your second glass of wine, belting out "Hero" on Rock Band 3.  It's a vicious cycle and one that I am trying to overcome this year.  But how?

Well, folks, I can only see one way to accomplish it --the Nike way.  In other words -- Just do it.  In my case, I need to schedule it in like laundry, bills and the grocery store.  So, my resolution for the following year is this -- Block out two to three hours in the morning between getting kids on the bus and lunch and write. That's it.  The beauty is in its simplicity.  Instead of fitting it in where I can (which has not been working), I'm going to make it a priority like the other important things in my life and schedule it in.  Wish me luck.

Let's just hope it goes better than the weight loss resolution I've already screwed up.