The overachievers at writersdigest.com have more than proven their worth with this article on how to get the job done regardless of the circumstances under which it’s being done.
In other words, stop complaining about not being able to write because your favorite coffee shop is closed and do what it takes to get those words from your mind to the page!
by Cassandra Lipp
Everyone makes mistakes—even writers—but that’s okay because each mistake is a great learning opportunity. The Writer’s Digest team has witnessed many mistakes over the years, so we started this series to help identify them early in the process. Note: The mistakes in this series aren’t focused on grammar rules, though we offer help in that area as well.
Rather, we’re looking at bigger picture mistakes and mishaps, including the error of using too much exposition, neglecting research, or researching too much. This week’s writing mistake writers make is relying on perfect conditions to write.
Writing Mistakes Writers Make: Relying on Perfect Conditions to Write
In 2019, a year that seems so-far away now, I’d organized my life into a neat routine. I worked Monday–Friday, looking forward to Saturday mornings when I’d head to my favorite coffee shop, order a big breakfast and a pot of tea, then consume my feast beside my Macbook, typing away at whatever essay ideas came to my mind throughout the week.
I usually stayed at the coffee shop for about three hours and made significant progress with each draft. Although none of these pieces have been published, I defined “progress” by the fact that I established a regular writing process. Process is a great word to use, because after a few weeks of this routine I relied on eating that big breakfast, sipping that pot of tea, skimming through the stack of New Yorker magazines in the coffee shop, and furiously typing upwards of 1,500 words over a few hours to believe that I’d made progress in my writing. My first mistake was relying on one or all of these factors in order to feel accomplished—for we all know what changes would uproot our lives a few months later….