Things that DON'T motivate you to write

[dustinzgirl]

I am highly unmotivated when:

My house is dirty.
Yelling at my kids for not doing thier chores doesn't seem to keep me in the writing mood.
I'm having a visit from Aunt Flo.
My telephone rings. I hate hate hate the phone. It interupts my writing and it takes me at least 30 min to an hour to get back in the groove.
If I have no coffee or tea or cigarettes, I'm not writing a dang word.
If the television is on.

So what gets you out of the writing mood?

 

[Pyan]

I'm amazed you ever write anything, Dusty!
Have you tried putting aside 1am to 4am each night?

 

[dustinzgirl]

I'm amazed you ever write anything, Dusty!
Have you tried putting aside 1am to 4am each night?

LOL After 10 PM or during school hours is when I get the most work done.

 

[Alexander Stefan]

Being extremely stressed out or nervous is certainly one of the most unmotivating things when writing. You have to try to stay calm, although its not always possible.

 

[Theed]

Oddly enough I find being stressed makes it easy for me to write. It settles me down and I pretty much get obsessed with it, so I don't really think about anything that may be bothering me.

However, one thing that is not motivating...clutter. I cannot have anything on my desk, save the lamp, speakers and mouse. No paper, no pens, cups, anything -- it just tends to bother me.

 

[jackokent]

My most demotivating thing at the moment is my mouse. It's possessed by a random movement polergeist.

I strongly suspect it needs a clean and I also strongly suspect I will never get round to cleaning it.

 

[dustinzgirl]

My most demotivating thing at the moment is my mouse. It's possessed by a random movement polergeist.

I strongly suspect it needs a clean and I also strongly suspect I will never get round to cleaning it.

LOL You realize, of course, that a new mouse is like, less than twenty bucks?

And that even if you didn't have the money, it takes less than five minutes to clean your mouse?

C'mon Jack old boy, you have to have something better than that!

 

[Interference]

Someone publishing a book or getting his show on TV by using my ideas - especially when they don't do it very well. You can try to tell me it's just "coincidence" and that ideas are in the ether for anyone to find, but I'm convinced my cats are spies for Joss Whedon. I just haven't been able to prove it yet.

 

[AphroditeMSC]

I find that after a long day with the kids, I'm too tired to write anything.

 

[Urien]

Daylight, darkness, food, people, buildings, countryside, land, sea and sky.

Flipping demotivaters.

 

[the_faery_queen]

being depressed and feeling like my work is crap

 

[kitsune_boy389]

If there's an episode of Desperate Housewives on or if i've got friends over don't write anything.

 

[Sapheron]

When I've got more than ten thousand words into a story. That's why I've yet to finish one, and am yet to find a number to count how many I've started.

 

[Anthony G Williams]

My main problem is getting started on a new piece of work. I have to wind myself up to that, and I can't do that if there are any distractions. So my desk has to be clear of any other matters which need dealing with, and I need an unbroken period of a few hours (preferably a day) before I can begin.

Once I've started it gets easier, but I still need a clear stretch of a few hours for each writing session. Fortunately, I'm not a great phone-user and don't broadcast my number (I encourage people to email me, which is easier to manage) so I don't get many calls.

My biggest distraction is that my writing computer is also my internet access and emailing device, and if I get stuck with the writing, it's so easy just to take a quick check to see if there are any messages...perhaps I should get a stand-alone laptop which I only use for writing!

 

[Interference]

perhaps I should get a stand-alone laptop which I only use for writing!

That's exactly what I did and it works a treat. If I go away, if I'm on a bus or train, at work during the low-motivational periods of my working day, my novel's always there, inticing me.

You sound like you're describing my day, except I know that if I sit down asnd start writing as soon as I get out of bed, I'll be typing till tea-time. Or if I start at 11 pm (my high energy time) I won't stop till long after the sun comes up.

I think it's pretty common to take a long time to get started, which is why I try not to give myself that luxury. I'll set a goal, like "as soon as I've tidied the desk and made myself a cup of tea, I'll get cracking", and that usually works for me. An achievement behind me, I'm all set to go - yeah, I consider any form of tidying an achievement.

Other than that, I've heard that if you stop in the middle of a bit you're looking forward to completing, it motivates you to get back to it the next day.

 

[jackokent]

LOL You realize, of course, that a new mouse is like, less than twenty bucks?

And that even if you didn't have the money, it takes less than five minutes to clean your mouse?

C'mon Jack old boy, you have to have something better than that!

Although I hate to admit it I am even more lazy than this. I have a spare wireless mouse but I don't know how to plug it in !!! And haven't got round to finding out how.

I seriously think Chronicles was / is my main downfall. I've written two whole novels and have only to do the final re-editting. But since finding this site over a year ago I've done almost nothing about them.

 

[scalem X]

it's so easy just to take a quick check to see if there are any messages...perhaps I should get a stand-alone laptop which I only use for writing!

yeah It's so easy to check e-mail or instant messengers. With wireless internet I am nowhere safe now .

 

[Daniel Hetberg]

My main recent demotivators were
- My life bored the hell out of me. Hard to find inspiration.

- The next scene I should probably write (because it needs to occur) feels nauseatingly boring, and I have yet to come up with a good idea to make it less boring (Guy chases after kidnappers who were travelling with a circus, finds the circus, realizes they left the circus, needs to start from (not quite) scratch. Booooring.)

- I neglected some other hobbies and they were crying for me to
come back

 

[mixa]

Good weather....

I write so much more when its cold/raining.

Otherwise, I just want to:

walk round town
play basketball

The other major problem is the internet, I spend 2 hours a day if not more sometimes on the net......

 

[dustinzgirl]

Although I hate to admit it I am even more lazy than this. I have a spare wireless mouse but I don't know how to plug it in !!! And haven't got round to finding out how.

I seriously think Chronicles was / is my main downfall. I've written two whole novels and have only to do the final re-editting. But since finding this site over a year ago I've done almost nothing about them.

Awww I'll come fix everything for you! Just buy me and mine some plane tickets...we need a vacation anyways!

Course, that might be pretty expensive when it is free and easy to do it yourself.

Its about 95 degrees in my house (farenheight) and I think Im going to die. So not motivated to write.