We launch a writing project with gusto and passion. We set sail from the Shore of Good Intentions and ride the waves of enthusiasm towards the harbor of our finished project. We are fairly confident we will reach our destination, except…we find, midway in our journey, that we have run out of steam. We are spending more time making hot chocolate and sharpening pencils than we are steering our writing towards completion. We have lost focus.
Here is how to avoid being sucked into the Whirlpool of Fragmented Concentration.
1) Want It Enough
I find a great way to focus is by asking myself how badly I want to write and bring to a conclusion the piece I am working on. It puts things in perspective for me. Questioning my commitment to my project acts as a wake up call. Once you remind yourself you started it because YOU want it, you accept responsibility for seeing it through to completion which will only happen if you actually focus and write.
2) Warm-up
Approaching your writing cold can paralyze even seasoned writers. That’s why a lot of writers have pre-writing rituals. It could be anything from praying to their writing totem or sitting in their favourite chair. Easing into your writing is a good way to bring yourself to the mental place you need to be. You can also try a stream-of-consciousness exercise to get the juices flowing or read a paragraph of inspiring prose or poetry before starting to write. Coming to the page inspired gives your concentration a boost.
3) Keep the End In Sight
Maybe you are writing so you can leave your memoirs for your children. Or maybe you want a book deal. Or maybe you want to be recognized as a writer. Whatever your purpose is in wanting to write, keep that in sight. Write it out and tack it over your bathroom mirror. Keep it by your bedside. Look at it often to remind yourself of the result you are working towards. Envision yourself attaining it. That will spur you on to focus on what you need to do in order to get there.
4) Peak Times
We all have our rhythms: some of us are morning people, some of us are night people. Some get their best creative thoughts in the bathroom. Harness your rhythms. When you write at your peak times, you are at your sharpest. Nothing can dull focus more than pushing through when you are not functioning at your best. It makes writing a chore rather than something to look forward to.
5) Time Chunks
A great way to maintain focus is to work in chunks of time. Instead of plodding through your writing for two hours straight, you can set a timer for 15 minutes and do focused writing for that time. Take a break for 5 minutes and repeat. Working in short creative bursts keeps your attention fresh. A variation on this is that once you are in the flow of writing, you can keep increasing the time by five minutes and reduce the breaks.
6) Cut Distractions
Checking your email every 5 minutes, surfing the net for cat pictures, chatting, phonecalls, commenting on someone’s dinner photo on Facebook is time suckage of the worst sort. When you block time out for writing, make all these distractions off-limits. The ape-hugging-lion picture will still be there when you’re finished. As for noise distractions in your vicinity, use headphones.
7) Eliminate Obstacles
Negativity, self-criticism, insecurity, writer’s block can be crippling for any writer. It can make us fearful of approaching the blank page. It can keep our minds in an endless loop about how writing is such a bad idea, what were we thinking off, how can we get out with our sanity intact. The key is to infuse positivity in your thinking. Yes, the going can get rough sometimes but there is a story in you that only you can tell. No one else on this planet can tell your story quite like you. That is a very powerful position to approach your writing from.
8) Take breaks
I find in order to keep my focus fresh and sustain it over a longer period of time, it is good practice to take breaks. Sitting at a desk or hunched up over your writing for hours can be cramping and tiring. Get up, stretch your legs, look up from the screen, give your eyes something else to focus on and let your mind drift for a bit. I give myself enough of a break to not lose my writing mojo and go cold because it can be difficult to pick up the threads of thought again. But just enough of a break to press the refresh button on my mind.
9) One Thing at a Time
If today you have to write a poem or a scene, then do just that. Don’t proofread, don’t revise, don’t do anything else except write. Concentrate on the writing task you have set for yourself and take care of that first. My focus can get fragmented when I’m trying to do multiple tasks for my writing at the same time. Also, the quality of my writing can suffer.
10) Deadline!
We all moan about deadlines but let’s face it: a looming finish-by-this date can spur us on to action and tether our attention to the page like nothing else. Give yourself deadlines. Short term ones: I will finish this paragraph by noon. Long-term ones: I will finish my book by the end of the year. Giving yourself a timeframe for finishing your writing makes you accountable for it. Communicate it to a couple of people who can hold you to it.
I hope you find these tips helpful. Pick a combination that best suits you. Do share your own special tips or tricks to stay focused. I’d love to hear from you.
Until next week. Write on!
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