Motivation actually Is Not the Key!
So…
I came across this one particular Question on Threads which really intrigued me.
“Writers, how do you stay motivated during draft 1 when you want to burn the entire thing?”
Actually, this is a common issue.
Why?
Because, I’ve been there.
I’ve actually burnt more than 100 drafts before Finally deciding to take a break and figure out the cause and effect of it.
Which is when I started to ask around about this issue on Social Medias. And that’s when I knew… I wasn’t the Only one. There are many, Many people out there who wants to write Novels/Books, yet they burn the whole thing down before even properly setting off.
Along with that realisation, I also started to receive some Answers I pursued.
The Cause
The most common cause which every single writer who went through this issue agreed upon was...
Perfection!
Right. Because we expect a perfect draft at the first try that when it turns out to be even a little bit imperfect, we want to burn it to ashes. Because, we don't allow us to be flawed or Imperfect as we start out.
And, perfection is not an issue for only Newbie writers. It's also common among experienced writers who had already successfully finished one or few books.
Why?
Because, they knew the taste of a perfect draft that they struggle to shift their mind back to start from the start. That's why, most writers doesn't start on their next novel/book right after finishing one. Because time was needed for that mindset.
The Effect
Well, obviously... as a result,
We get this urge to burn it all down and start all over again, from the beginning. While being stuck in this cycle, we're never gonna go anywhere. We need to break out of it.
And inorder to break out of it, we all eventually arrive at One Conclusion like it’s an Automatic Mechanism.
MOTIVATION!
But, great news! Now, we're looking for ways to keep our selves motivated.
The Harsh Truth
But, I couldn’t motivate myself to continue to write no matter what I did. Infact, I found myself spending a long time trying to motivate myself rather than Writing.
So, I dropped trying to motivate myself and instead began to search for more Answers. More Remedies.
And the Remedy I got was actually just a harsh truth. I'm gonna say something extremely boring and you guys have probably heard of this from many already. But, I just wanted to share it here anyway.
When writing a Novel, motivation isn’t what you should prepare yourself for, You should be more prepared to grind yourself, to drain yourself.
Because, Motivation is like getting those top grades you've been craving for a long time, It's a rare thing.
It’s also like a drug addict finally getting his hands on some drugs to relieve his craving addiction. It’s short lived.
That’s why…
Relying on Motivation alone doesn't get you anywhere.
I’ve seen many say that they’re writing because they love to do so but, it doesn’t work that way, if you’re aiming for a long time Journey that is.
Grinding more & Draining Yourself... You would definitely want to burn the Entire thing more and more... but, Don’t burn them down and Grind yourself more.
Because...
It'll go away once You get some true readers, Once you get some true recognition.
Hope y'all are having Splendid Day.
It's a really good friend of mine's birthday today. What special things happened in your Life today?
-Cayal-
