How to finish

The question we get asked the most and how we answer it

and

Mar 22, 2023

We’ve been giving a lot of talks and running lots of webinars and online Q&As lately. Without fail, at every one, a writer will ask us:

I keep starting one project then getting distracted by another and I never finish anything – how can I stop?

Or if not that exact question, then one very similar like: How do I stop procrastinating?

Or, Why do I keep getting distracted by X, Y or Z?

Sometimes it’s not really a question, more a cry for help. I’ve lost my motivation - I used to love writing but now it’s a slog.

We thought it might be useful to share how we answer it and it’s this:

Scale back.

But why?

Writing is hard

Human beings, when they have the choice, will prioritise things they want to do and things they like doing, that bring pleasure and fulfilment.

Writing can make us feel bad. It’s hard, it’s slow and it can fill us full of doubt and fear. It’s no wonder that other nicer, shiner, less challenging stuff pulls us away.

But if you want to finish rather than be the proud owner of a bottom drawer full of half-written projects, you’ll need to understand a little more about why you get distracted in the first place. Hint - it’s because you’re human.

Your overprotective brain

Think of your brain as a helicopter parent.

It wants to wrap you up in cotton wool and protect you from the world. When the writing gets challenging your brain’s natural protective instinct kicks in.

Quit, stop, do something easier instead, it whispers to you, you might hurt yourself if you carry on.

So, we falter and get distracted by something else or something new.

When you scale back, you don’t miraculously fall back in love with your writing project again. It isn’t all of a sudden going to make your writing ‘fun’. But it will make it less threatening to your brain which in turn, means that you’ll be less likely to be distracted and so, more likely to carry on.

How to scale back

Scale back in a way that works for you – and remember no goal, step or task is too small. Here’s a few ways to do it:

Write for a shorter amount of time
Write fewer words
Freewrite
Write a list
Draw a mindmap
Use constraints – like a Pomodoro timer
Have a practice goal - like sit at your desk for 5 or 10 minutes
Just do one thing that nudges your writing forwards. And remember that the thing you do doesn’t have to be ‘writing’ - reading, editing, re-structuring all count (although beware the internet distraction algorithms).

But I like having big goals…

Sometimes people don’t want to scale back because they like the idea of being ambitious – and there’s nothing wrong with that.

But often, it’s far better to have a few small wins under your belt than a grand plan that hasn’t gone anywhere for years.

Plus, every time you tick off your small task you’ll get a pop of satisfaction which will make you more likely to keep going – and that way, habits are formed.

The next time you’re stuck, blocked or feel tempted to get going on that shiny new idea over there, remember these two little words that work wonders and scale back.

Keep writing, Chris & Bec

2 links from us

➡️ This is the final call for April’s 4 Week Writing RESET programme. We have just a few places left and when they are gone, they are gone.

➡️ We had an excellent chat with the marvel that is Cathy Rentzenbrink last week. Novelist, memoirist and woman of wise words of advice, Cathy talks about her life, imposter syndrome, her writing process and how she narrowly avoided getting a job in a building society. If you missed it, here’s the YouTube recording.

And finally, a lesson in resilience

We love this tweet from one of our favourite authors Benjamin Myers (who also lives in our home town of Hebden Bridge). He says there is no moral. We think there is. He kept going.

No-one turned up to that book launch, but he kept writing, published poetry, short stories, an essay collection and several wonderful novels. He latest Cuddy has just hit the shelves and is garnering reviews full of praise: 'An epic the north has long deserved' Financial Times.

Keep going, keep writing, for yourself, for others - the readers will come.