This post by Ali Luke originally appeared on Write to Done on 7/24/14.
You’ve probably had the experience of starting a novel or blog with great intentions…
…only to find that, a few months later, you’ve barely made any progress.
Maybe you started strong but lost momentum.
Maybe you jumped ahead when you should’ve paused.
Or maybe you got discouraged and gave up.
And you wonder: how to write a book (or blog).
I’ve coached many writers in workshop groups over the past few years, and I’ve noticed that there are six key stages when projects often stall or go wrong.
Here’s what to watch out for.
Danger Stage #1: Once You’ve Got a Great Idea
Let’s say you’ve got a new idea you’re excited about. Perhaps it’s a great premise for a novel, a topic for a blog, or a prompt you want to work on for a short story.
Writers tend to make one of two mistakes here:
They jump straight in, full of enthusiasm, without planning. They make a great start, and might get a few chapters into the novel or a few posts into a blog…but then they get stuck.
They wait – and wait – until the “perfect moment” to begin actually writing. They put off starting until they’ve got past family commitments and a busy spell at work…or they read about their chosen field of writing without getting any words down on paper.
Click here to read the full post on Write to Done.