We know that writing romance is work. Sometimes it feels like busywork. Like those times when you have to go through your entire manuscript to make sure you consistently spelled your heroine’s name correctly or that her eyes don’t change from blue to green. Writing is also work when you have no idea what is supposed to happen next. You hit a wall and stare at a blank page. It’s work.
Writing is also fun. When the words flow or when you have a breakthrough idea. That’s fun. So how do you stay excited and joyful throughout the entire writing process?
Should You Stay Excited?
I guess the first question to talk about before we dive into the “how” is the “why”. Should you really stay excited about your manuscript? Is it necessary to be excited the whole way through and is it even possible?
So here are my thoughts…
Staying excited isn’t possible every single moment of your writing and editing process. It’s just not and that’s okay.
However, …
- The more joyful you are about writing your book, the better it will be.
- The more excited you are, the easier it will be to sit down and do the hard work.
- The more motivated you’ll be to push through the challenges
- The better your editing and revising will be.
- The more eager you’ll be to share your new story with the world – thus, better marketing and sales
So, yes I do think it’s important to find joy and excitement in your every day writing. If you’re not the least bit excite about writing on any given day, think about why you’re writing. What’s in it for you?
Finding Excitement in The Starting or Ending of Book Projects
Starting Satisfaction – I LOVE to start projects. My noisy brain is an almost constant tornado of ideas. My poor family has to deal with my constant organizing, redecorating, and hairbrained ideas for things that we’re going to do.
My “ideas” don’t stop at writing projects. And my home office is a chaotic array of works in progress. I never fail to have at least three different personal book and website projects going on and that doesn’t even touch the ideas that I have for my main income generating ghostwriting business.
I find excitement in the starting of things. In the inspiration and turning that inspiration into action. But here’s the thing that I have to focus on, once I start something, if I don’t have a plan to finish it quickly, my enthusiasm runs out. It’s replaced by some other shiny new project.
Ending Excitement – Other people love to end projects. They get so much satisfaction from completing a project that it’s a natural high. So while it may take a bit of oomph to get started, the promise of finishing keeps them motivated and excited.
Think about when you feel most excited about your writing projects.
If you’re thinking, “I don’t really get off on starting or ending anything,” then you may be someone who is excited by the day to day progress that you make. Or you may enjoy sticking to a schedule. There are people (quite a lot actually) who get a lot of satisfaction when they stick to a schedule. They write from 7-8 in the morning or they write until they have 1000 words or whatever their structure is.
Spend some time assessing when you feel excited about your manuscript or writing project. You may be able to leverage that personality trait into more excitement and thus a better and more fulfilling writing process.
Visual Cues, Rewards, and Other Tactics
What about those in between movements? For me, it’s not always possible to finish a book quickly, before the excitement runs out. And what about those who love to finish but struggle to get started? And what about those in between days or the days when you’re just not feeling it? Here are some options:
Financial and Emotional Investment – Have your book cover made and hang it up. I recently returned to a project that I really want to finish. It’s a second 1001 Story Starters book. I started it last year, other projects popped up and took its place. And while that time was productive and useful, I still have this yearning to complete book two. So I decided to have the book cover made.
The idea was twofold – I now have invested in the cost of the cover so I feel an additional internal pressure to finish the book. I also have printed and displayed the book cover in my office, over my desk, and that makes me smile. It helps me stay motivated and excited about the book.
Quotes and Inspirational Sayings – You can also hang up quotes and inspirational pictures and sayings. Find one from your favorite author and display it prominently.
Rewards. Sometimes I’m reward motivated. You may be as well. Jewelry works for me. I make a commitment to finish a project and when I do I can buy myself a piece of jewelry that I’ve chosen in advance. Silly, but it works occasionally.
Luxury. You might make your writing process a luxury. You might buy expensive coffee or chocolate and incorporate it into your writing time. You might listen to beautiful music and wear your most comfortable and sensual clothing. You might sit in your favorite spot in your home. Really make writing a treat for yourself. How can that ever be anything but exciting and joyful?
These are just a few of the tactics that I’ve found successful and what I’ve learned from talking to others. If you have a different approach to staying excited and joyful about your writing process, please let us know! My good friend, Sandra Kerns, dives deep into her characters and her connection to them makes her excited about her daily time with them. It shows in her writing too!
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If you’re ready to kick your creative fears to the curb and banish doubt, writer’s block, and confidence issues then check out 365 Affirmations for Romance Writers . It’s created specifically to help you overcome any mindset challenge you’re facing so you can sit down at the blank page with clarity and confidence.
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