Thursday, May 12, 2011

I'm a Wimp (Plus I Procrastinate)

I totally meant to write something awesome for my second writing blog post ever. I had this idea for a blog post all thought out in my brain. But I kept thinking I would have time to write it later and before I know it, another week has gone by. And that post is still in my head instead of captured in actual words.

I need to get over the idea that everything I write has to be amazing. Yes, quality is important. But I'm so terrified of failing that I end up paralyzed by fear. I tell myself I do want to write, that I'm a writer, but all I do is procrastinate and not write. This is probably why I hardly have anything written fiction-wise despite the years of story-idea-collecting.

Well, that's going to change. I'm going to start with this blog, because even if no one actually reads it, it's visible, and that's enough to give me a sense of accountability. I'm going to blog a minimum of once every week, even if my blog post is crappy. Because at least I'll have written something.

Penelope Trunk wrote a great post about how to have more self-discipline, and I definitely need to remember to stop being a perfectionist all the time. I'm also counting on the snowballing effect and hope that blogging once a week will turn into twice and three times and more, and that my progress on my novel-to-be will grow as well. So that's why I'm forcing myself to write this post even though I had no idea how it would turn out.

It seems like I'm putting too much work into excusing how lame this blog post is, right? I know eventually I'll need to write blog posts that are actually interesting and informative and entertaining (darn, that last one broke my alliterative streak. Misspelling it as "intertaining" was more tempting than I'd like to admit). But for now, it's enough for me if I learn to write regularly, since I have such a hard time with it.

Here's to starting small and working toward awesomeness!

4 comments:

  1. Good luck!

    There are so many things to write about that it can be paralyzing. But it sounds like you've hit the right approach...start small and realize that your posts won't be perfect.

    Can't wait to see what you write about.

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  2. thanks for visiting my blog and for being the first commenter ever! :Di appreciate your encouragement :) 

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  3.  Good luck with the new blog. I did a series for new writing bloggers on my blog last winter that a lot of people have found helpful. Part duh (2) is in the"most popular" links in the right hand sidebar. I advocate a once-a-week blog, so it doesn't take up too much of your writing time. (It's easier to think of topics, too.) http://annerallen.blogspot.com/http://annerallen.blogspot.com/

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  4. hello anne! thanks for stopping by to comment. i appreciate the
    encouragement. i went to your blog and looked at all the posts under "how to
    blog" -- truly a great resource. i found this one to be the most helpful:
    http://annerallen.blogspot.com/2010/12/how-to-blog-part-duh-13-steps-for.html

    thanks for the great tips! i'll try to keep those in mind :)

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