It’s no secret that choosing to be a creative writer is going to lead you down an introspective path. There is no other way to write other than to reflect yourself in words, sometimes mirrored off the experiences of others. To know yourself means that you will write better. And that’s more than just in the prose itself, it’s in the process.
You must start with honesty. We all have either procrastination or workaholic demon inside of us. Worse, sometimes we have both and they are constantly at odds with one another. You must get to know which voice is speaking and how to counteract the worst of its affects. Do you really need to go to Starbuck’s to get a coffee and write? Or is that just another means of procrastination? Is sleep optional, just so long as you write another five pages? Probably not.
Of course, you can build routines and processes into your day, but you must be careful to not fall into mindless devotion. Sometimes, when you are facing the blinking white screen, you have to know yourself enough to break with routine, to go for a walk because you just aren’t there yet. You have to know how to adjust throughout the day to get the best work out of yourself, without falling prey to procrastination or workaholic tendencies.
It’s a lot of patience, introflection, and self-love. But the better we know ourselves, the better we can understand everyone else.
And that just makes us better writers. Better in process and better in empathy.
