~ Becoming a Focused Writer ~

Being able to focus is always an issue for a creative writer. No one is telling you what story world to invent nor how to get yourself in the seat, start writing, and then keep at it. Somehow, you have to shut out the world around you and zero in on the words boiling up inside and aching to pour out on to the page. That takes FOCUS.

Since my big word for January was FOCUS, I spent the month, thinking about what distracts me from writing, and what methodologies I might use to improve my concentration.

How I Write

I have been writing for many, many years. In those years, I have learned that there are some basics that I need in order to write anything. One is a comfortable chair and the computer at the right height. Otherwise, plain physical discomfort will do me in pretty quickly.

Another thing is having everything I need, or think I will need, within arm’s reach. I need my book research a click away – I use OneNote as my digital binder. I need paper and pen for jot notes. I need the little cards that I write my character’s names on and some of their favorite words.

But even with all these practical things in place, focusing on the writing to be done doesn’t always happen. I’d suddenly look at the clock and see that nothing was down on the page or what was there wasn’t what I intended to write. Not to mention, all the times I just wandered off to do something else.

Focus on Those Pesky Writing Problems

So, I started noting down those times and places I became distracted. There were three main issues that caused me to stop writing.

1. 1. It was hard to get started on a new scene or chapter or blog post.
   2. Many times, I couldn’t think of the perfect word or a way to say what I was thinking or what I was picturing or the right order in which to say it.
   3. My writing was going in the wrong direction for my storyline.

Not Focus…Flow

But how to address these issues? I started searching for more focus tips and I discovered FLOW…

Flow and focus go together. Flow is defined by researchers as a mental state in which time, distractions, and everything around you fall away and all your creative energy is focused on the task. When you are in a state of flow, you are actually using your brain differently. The prefrontal part of the brain that controls critical thinking is deactivated and our sense of self lessens. Instead, norepinephrine and dopamine flood our bodies and time slows, impulse control decreases, and our performance becomes more fluid and creative.

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in his book Flow (1990) characterizes this feeling as a time when you are so engrossed in an activity nothing else matters. My goodness. That sounds exactly how I feel when the writing is going great. (Also when I am doing photography or making a drawing or singing a song). So how do I make that happen all the time?

Csikszentmihalyi says that setting the stage for flow to happen requires:

1. 1. A clear end goal
   2. Immediate self-feedback that you are moving toward that goal
   3. The task is challenging, but within your capabilities
   4. No worry about failing
   5. You are happy doing it.

Suddenly, my focus problem became clear. I lost focus writing when one of the above five things wasn’t happening. For example:

1. 1. My end goal (or my character’s end goal) for the scene/chapter/writing piece wasn’t spelled out enough.
   2. I had lost track of what I was writing so I wasn’t getting positive self-feedback that I was doing well.
   3. I didn’t yet have the writing skills need to fix that storyline or paragraph or sentence.
   4. I was on a tight schedule, or I felt my writing had to be perfect so I was afraid of failure.
   5. What I was working on wasn’t what I wanted to be writing at that time. I had another idea or another task to do that I was drawn to more.

Putting Focus and Flow Into Practice

When I began my investigation into FOCUS at the beginning of January, I thought I would find some simple technique that would increase my ability to write more effectively and smoothly. What I learned is that it is impossible to eliminate all distractions, and that’s okay. When you are in the flow, you can ignore most of them. When you start to get distracted, re-examine what you were just working on. What can you do to solve the problem?

Here’s what I came up with.

1. 1. 1. Stuck on a start? Write a place holder sentence that simply states who, where and when at the start of a difficult scene or chapter to be revised later.
      2. Need positive feedback? Note down what’s been accomplished so far – word count, scenes completed, etc.
      3. Don’t have the skill yet? Leave that spot a blank or highlighted and make a note to find a writing blog or workshop or critique partner to help gain that skill.
      4. Face the fact that sometimes getting in the flow just doesn’t happen. Then it is time to go do something else. But the important thing is to never give up, but to come back and dive into that writing again until it does.

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I love to hear from my writer followers. 

What distracts you from writing or some other favorite creative pursuit?