What’s Your Writing Motivation?

by C LaRene Hall

As some of you know, last weekend was the LDStorymaker’s Writing Conference. I always take my Alpha-Smart and type what I hear. None of what I am writing is from the authors notes, it’s what I heard.

Shirley & Bron Bahlmann taught the first workshop I attended. It was called, “What’s your writing motivation?”

The first thing they said was, “Stick with it.”

There are many ways to accomplish goals, but you are the one who has to strike the match. You have to think it’s important enough.

First, you need to find what works for you. What is going to pull you away from writing? You should set a manageable goal. Ask yourself, “Am I doing what I truly want to do?”

Do you want to write because it’s an internal desire?

Fear is thinking something might happen. You need to get past the fear.

What are your goals? Decide what you want to do. If you write one page a day – you would have 365 pages by the end of the year.

Choose a time frame – daily, weekly, or monthly. It could be minutes or hours.
Choose a page count, or a word count.

This will get you to your goal. Slow and steady helps you reach the deadline.

Are your long-term goals satisfying enough? Do it because you love it.

How do you reinforce your motivation?

1. Keep track on your calendar what you do every day. It shows you what you are doing and then you see the progress you are making. Keeping track of your goals helps you see what you are doing. Look at things you want to do and why and then how you feel when you accomplish it.

2. Guilt can drive you to do something. It can be a motivator.

3. Revenge is a good motivator for some people.

4. Philanthropy – wanting to help other people – is sometimes a good motivator.

5. Competition is another good motivator.

6. Reaching goals is another good motivator for some people.

7. Pride – a sense of accomplishment – is another motivator for some people.

You need support systems. If family not in place, you can create your own support system. Find some figures in history that she can connect to when you need support.

Are you just going to give up or what? There are things that you can do. Disabilities should not stop you. Some writers go with the flow. If the ideas are coming to you keep going.

Writers are like frogs = writing is like water if you love writing as much as frogs love water = without writing, you will shrivel up and die.

If you are out there putting your ideas down on paper will you get published? It is up to you. Are you going to be happy?

Everyone likes to read different things. The things you think about to write about are things that are speaking to you. If you reach more than your goal each day it is a bonus. Always carry a possible bag that includes paper, notebooks, pens, pencils. Write down your ideas,

I loved the enthusiasm of these presenters and enjoyed the class a lot.