For fuck sake. Just get on with it already!
Just keep writing, just keep writing...
This post is likely just filler but I’m going to write it anyway. I procrastinate. I always have, and I think I probably always will. I don’t think I have any wonderful new ideas or sudden ‘gotcha’ to help anyone - although many idiots on platforms like this try and peddle you something along with an eBook you can buy for 99p.
I think we’re all just broken, me included.
For a while now I’ve been moving my writing around to one place or another. WordPress, Ghost, Substack, Medium. I always think I might be able to write ‘better’ somewhere else, or more consistently, but it always ends up being exactly the same circle. Driving myself silly with details but forgetting the whole point of why I’m even there in the first place.
Throughout the years I’ve invested in different software, devices, services, and subscriptions that are supposed to help you write, but I’ve always failed at them one after another. I’m not beating myself up, but I think it’s a coming-clean that many of us need to have.
Just write the damned thing even if it’s with your finger in the dirt.
I’m going to do my best to stick to putting my writing in here. If it’s thoughts, opinion, shortform; it’ll go here. Will I be editing like mad to make sure it’s absolutely perfect? No, I won’t. Will there be mistakes. Probably. Is that ok?
YES!
I hope that if you read things that you’ll look beyond the occasional mistake as just my wish to write. If it’s very important I’ll edit it but I need to get into a habit and not keep stopping to tidy things up. I’ve been writing books and instead of focusing on my writing I focus on branding, image, cleanliness, editing, and making sure that everything hits ‘just right’, but from now on I’m just going to try and get to it. My favourite lecturer on my MA would often say to me
“Just get on and write it and fix it later. You can’t edit what you haven’t written.”
Thanks Julia, I keep trying to make that my internal voice because perfectionism is a bitch. My recent therapist picked up on it IMMEDIATELY when I mentioned my writing and how I like to make things ‘just right.’ Even she encouraged me to just write. Don’t think about it, don’t wait for the moment, just put pen on paper or fingers on keys.
So that’s what this is.
Will it sometimes be shit? Holy fuck yes. Should I care less? Absolutely.
Here’s to attempt 1,222,243,533.
Welcome to my journey to stop taking the first step, but rarely the second.
Here’s to the procrastinators.