Writers on writing...or not

Just wanted to share this article from the 18 October Toronto Star about how writers get their writing done…or not.

Several writers share their favourite procrastination techniques.

But I’m not sharing so you can get a whole new set of techniques for delay!!

I thought it might be instructive to hear that even people who intend to be writing for a living have those moments where it’s Very Very Hard.

So don’t beat yourself up for it.

And there’s a lovely little lesson embedded in those struggles. Not only that, but you may not be surprised to know that it’s all wrapped up with mindset and Play. ;-)

Let’s think about it for a minute…

After all, Play isn’t all fun, is it?

Acheiving something meaningful in Play often requires going through a period of discomfort, doesn’t it?

Hiking to Macchu Picchu, my knees were swollen at the end of every day - red and painful. So much so that they scared our guide a bit (he kept encouraging me to skip side trips) and he loaned me his two walking sticks so I could use them as crutches (if you’ve never been there, the steps to MP are BIG). Did I skip any of the side trips? Absolutely not! Did I take the short-cut train and meet the rest of my group there? Absolutely not! The joy of the trip and the sites/sights was all tied in for me with making it under my steam — no matter how painful.

Divers who go to the Galapagos Islands to dive also take the discomfort with the delight — the water is COLD and the trip out to the best places is choppy during the best diving season — but it’s worth the nausea and shivers!

Or, on the more common side of play, how often have you gone through some discomfort for the fun of the other side?: Climbed a huge long hill for the joy of zooming down the other side? Shivered in the cold to make the snowman? Sweated like crazy to run the race? Crashed on the mat a thousand times to learn a martial art or capture a gymnastic move?

When you’ve done something before and know the rewards and joy of the Other Side, it’s maybe easier (or not ;-) — but when you’re doing something new (oh, say, like a dissertation), it may seem like it’s all challenge and pain and no joy to be seen. The rick is maybe to tolerate the discomfort anticipating the fun on the Other Side of the discomfort.

So what might happen if you saw dissertationing as Play? And saw Play as an experience with both pleasure and pain?

Let’s leave you with another quote from Stuart Brown’s book on Play:

…”you are never going to have peak experiences if you don’t let yourself go through some discomfort.”