I’m always looking for creative ways to motivate, or “trick” myself into sitting down and writing. In the last few days, I’ve learned of and come up with some ideas that I think are worth trying. Here are two ideas to get you started:
- Write a check to someone you hate–my creative writing professor said that when he was in desperate need of finishing one of his books, he motivated himself in an extreme, but helpful, way. He got out his check book and wrote a $1,000 check to a person that he hates more than anything. Then, he gave the check to one of his good friends and told them “If I don’t have my book finished by January 1, I want you to give this to the person and tell them to cash it.” Although pretty extreme, the idea of losing $1,000–and having it go to someone you hate–is a pretty good motivational tool to get your writing done.
- Pretend like you’re already done with it–last night while I was sitting on the couch watching Jimmy Kimmel Live and not writing, I had a moment of inspiration. I thought, wouldn’t it be cool if I just made a book cover for the book I’m trying to write and then used it to cover up one of the books I own? So I did just that. I made a mock cover for the book I’m trying to write, then I cut it apart and taped it over one of my Stephen King books, making it look like I wrote the book. Then I placed it on my coffee table so that I could look at it all the time. I figured seeing my name “in print” would make me more likely to sit down and actually write the book.
So take a few minutes this weekend and try one of these motivational tactics out. Which one motivated you the most? And how much writing did you get done because of it? Got any motivational ideas of your own? Drop me a line and let me know!
