Comments on: Screw Inspiration. Do It Anyway. Every Day.

By: floreta

floreta — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 14:02:42 +0000

inspiration or not, you can still write really well! i get too boxed in and perfectionist and sabotage my writing. i love the way you’ve described the muse. the way it’s experienced so similarly between people makes me wonder if there’s something to this creative source thing..

By: Leigh

Leigh — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 07:03:07 +0000

From an earlier comment – I love the idea of inviting your muse to join you. Of allowing genius to enter. Perhaps a quick prayer before you sit down to write? A mindful request? A reminder that you’re open to the inspiration. I think I might try this.

And, re the post: i’ve been thinking a lot about deliberate practice lately. Of the value of just doing it, pen to paper (or whatever that “it” is), in order to build momentum, stamina, discipline. I’m not very good at discipline, and I think that’s the crux of my problem right now.

By: Christine (Blisschick) Reed

Christine (Blisschick) Reed — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 23:03:00 +0000

I had just dubbed this, for myself, “Fierce Single Mindedness.”

Then I came upon the Deliberate Practice work and thought, yes, exactly. Nice to be backed up.

By: Practice « The Highwire

Practice « The Highwire — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 22:08:18 +0000

[...] tip Kelly Diels Enjoy, and if you liked it, [...]

By: PicsieChick

PicsieChick — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 20:52:12 +0000

@Dave Doolin, I want the story. Please tell me the story!! (I can keep a secret. kind of) H&B ~T~

By: Katie

Katie — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 20:13:31 +0000

Love this post and thanks Elana for the wicked discovery. Daily deliberate writing is the only way to dodge all the insecurity flying around my brain. You’re right, “Screw inspiration”, it finds it’s way through the mine field. And you know, there’s nothing wrong with wanting to be cool either. So I’m in!

By: When insecurity looks like Cabaret and a donkey « Fly in the face

When insecurity looks like Cabaret and a donkey « Fly in the face — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 19:43:57 +0000

[...] both for me. If you’re going through it too, honk if you’re human and go read this at Kelly Diels blog. And then go read this at Fabeku’s blog. If you need more then you definitely need to go [...]

By: Irving Podolsky

Irving Podolsky — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 18:29:19 +0000

Seriously though… I agree with you and everyone else who agrees with you. I think the mark of a professional writer, is one writes, as if it were a job, which it can be, and hopefully is. So when I lose the desire to put words to screen, I CHUNK DOWN my tasks into something I can finish, no matter how little time I allot to it, like, constructing a character’s back story, or getting just one scene to work, or coming up with more witty names, or polishing a chapter already written.

And if none of that can get going, I end up replacing my writing time with all that other stuff I’ve been putting off, like dusting the Venetian Blinds!

Irv

By: Irving Podolsky

Irving Podolsky — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 18:19:36 +0000

You know, Kelly, writing is like dusting Venetian blinds. Sometimes you just have to… (Come to think of it, writing isn’t like dusting at all. It’s more like… Sex! Nah, not that either. Actually it’s more comparable to… daytime TV. It isn’t? Really? Okay. Guess I just can’t get the brilliance to shoot through my synapses right now. Has that ever happened to you?)

Irv

By: Steve

Steve — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 18:05:11 +0000

@Kelly Diels, Why thank you, dear lady!