Cease Composition: Halting Your Penmanship Amidst Creative Surge
In the world of writing, maintaining a consistent and productive habit is crucial. However, the approach to achieving this can vary greatly among writers. A common piece of advice that has emerged is to avoid binge writing and instead, pace oneself for sustained success.
One strategy that has been suggested by various writers and creative professionals is to use a timer for writing sessions. This can help with feeling successful and staying focused, as it provides a clear end point and a sense of accomplishment.
Another key aspect is immediate self-reward for writing. Rewarding oneself for meeting writing goals, whether it's a word count or a time limit, can create positive associations with the act of writing.
However, working for hours against a deadline can work against momentum. In fact, writing to exhaustion can create a punishment pattern around one's craft, making it feel like a chore rather than a creative outlet. This is why it's important to stop writing when you've reached a daily goal, especially if you're "on a roll." Cory Doctorow, for example, suggests stopping in the middle of a sentence to have a "push" for the next writing session.
Setting the bar too high for an ongoing, healthy writing habit can also lead to failure to meet expectations. The target writing state for sustained writing is "mild pleasure," and binge writing makes this difficult to achieve. Gina Hiatt, Ph.D., recommends ending writing sessions on a high note instead of exhaustion. This approach helps avoid pushing past regular goals into superhuman-manic-writer-turned-procrastinator.
Pacing oneself for the long term can help maintain enthusiasm and motivation for the next session. By stopping at a high point, writers preserve creative momentum and energy. This approach helps sustain a consistent writing habit over time instead of risking exhaustion, which can hamper productivity and the quality of work.
Ernest Hemingway also advised against emptying the well of writing completely. Jennifer Louden's concept of "declaring yourself satisfied" involves meeting a goal with a measurable time element and then stopping. This technique ensures that the writer doesn't push themselves beyond their limits, which can lead to burnout and writer's block.
It's also worth noting that avoiding food as a reward for writing is recommended. This is because it can lead to unhealthy habits and can distract from the actual writing process.
In addition, Finish Agent, the underlying software system for an online Writer's Circle, was founded by Gina Hiatt, Ph.D., who advocates for this approach to writing.
Robert Boice, author of "How Writers Journey To Comfort and Fluency," finds that hyper, exaggerated states from manic and binge writing make it hard to achieve and maintain the target writing state. Developing an aversion to writing increases the likelihood of procrastination and negative self-talk.
In conclusion, the rationale behind stopping writing while "on a roll" rather than writing in a big binge or until exhaustion is to preserve creative momentum and energy. By stopping at a high point, writers maintain enthusiasm and motivation for the next session, preventing burnout and writer's block that often come from pushing too far in one sitting. This approach helps sustain a consistent writing habit over time instead of risking exhaustion, which can hamper productivity and the quality of work.
- Following Ernest Hemingway's advice, writing sessions can be ended by declaring oneself satisfied after reaching a goal with a measurable time element, to avoid pushing oneself beyond their limits and risking burnout or writer's block.
- Implementing a timer for writing sessions, as suggested by various writers and creative professionals, can help maintain focus and a sense of accomplishment, promoting productivity and personal growth in the long term.
- Rewarding oneself for meeting writing goals, such as a word count or a time limit, can create positive associations with the act of writing and foster a consistent and productive writing habit.
- Instead of working for hours against a deadline, it is beneficial to stop writing when a daily goal is reached, especially when on a creative roll, to prevent the creation of a punishment pattern around one's craft and maintain the quality of work.
