Thoughtless Banter – John Bellone

At certain points in my life I tend to take long breaks from writing as it generally takes a good deal of time for me to get into the mood to pen something, anything, after a long day of work. I understand how you feel: the whole week seems to be filled with work; after your day job maybe you volunteer, go to classes or even have siblings or children to take care of. These responsibilities, even if minor, add up during the course of the week and you are left with, at best, mere hours a week to dedicate to hobbies. What I find unfortunate is serious writing takes effort. You must be in a creative state of mind, relaxed and focused all at the same time. For some of us this zen-like state is nearly impossible to get to late at night when all you want to do is go to sleep an hour early.

I have personally solved this problem in two steps. The first step is to always carry around something to write with. For me most of my creative ideas come when I least expect it. I may be zoning out on the train ride into the city, listening to a friend ramble on about their day during lunch, or even waking up in the middle of the night with a brilliant idea for a chapter or short story. The point is to always be able to jot these ideas down when they are fresh on your mind, in their most lucid form, because attempting to recall them later will be much harder than you may think! I suggest a cheap pocket-sized moleskin notebook that is available from Amazon or your local Barnes and Nobles store for under ten dollars. These notebooks tend to last being jostled around inside a jacket pocket, purse or sat on when in the back of your pants pocket.

The second suggestion I could give is to make a rule about writing. Every Wednesday, for example, add an appointment or notification on your phone to remind you to sit down and write for two hours. Be sure to add a reminder two hours before your writing period so that you can finish dinner, reading or studying. A notebook (or more likely, a computer) should be close at hand on this particular day, so be sure to choose a day when you are for sure most likely to be home from your other engagements.

A half hour before you are to write make sure you get yourself in the mood. Put in some relaxing music, distance yourself from any distractions like other people, television or instant messenger applications, and the most important piece to the equation – review the notes that you have been taking in your handy-dandy notebook. If they are related to a story that you are already working on be sure to refresh yourself with the previous couple of pages that you have written. Don’t get hung up on any spelling or grammar mistakes that you may have made, this is not the time to edit, but focus on the structure and layout of the story. A good editor will always go through your piece with a fine-toothed comb.

Remember that the most important thing is to enjoy what you are writing. Even though it helps to make writing a timed event, do not turn it into a chore, because it will that much harder to sit down at your computer desk and type away for hours. Get lost in what you are working on and enjoy the world that you are crafting. If you feel yourself getting bored with the story, do not be afraid to work on another chapter or entirely different story. Sometimes it helps to come back to a piece later to refine it.