What's Simple is True: Talkers Talk, Writers Write

It amazes me how many writers out there spend more time talking about what they intend to write, than actually writing. I myself have been guilty of this. The thing that tends to prevent us from putting pen to paper is a little voice somewhere within telling us that what we are about to write isn't going to be any good. That if people see what we've written they will laugh, ridicule and generally disregard creations that are very close to our heart. Not writing anything is easier than taking that kind of risk. The one draw back is, unless you write, you can never truly be a writer. It's a simple fact. Artists draw, and sculpt and paint, waitresses wait on people in cafes and coffee shops and writers write, they place words on the page that influence, move or touch the reader in some way.

One way you can overcome this is to make writing a daily discipline. A practice that you partake in at a particular time of day that suits you (schedule it into your diary). You might put your "daily pages" into a secret file on your laptop or into a notebook that you never show anyone. That way it doesn't actually matter about the quality of what you're writing. Nobody else except yourself is going to see it. Just let the pen move, let your thoughts flow, and once you've finished (it is recommended that you write for about twenty minutes), you can take the best bits and polish them up into quality pieces, that you are proud to put your name to.

Just letting the pen flow, without worrying about formatting your work will enable you to get beyond the judgement of that horrible blank page, (or impatient cursor) and will mean you are actually spending your time practicing your art form. Making it a daily practice will prevent you from making excuses about "not having the time" to write. If writing is something that is so important to you, twenty minutes out of twenty four hours is not a huge sacrifice to make, give yourself that time, stop thinking about what others will think and concentrate on your own creativity and passions. You might just surprise yourself...