Writers Thread!

@viktory That's awesome! You sound like you've got a lot of talents  Maybe you could consider comic writing!

Hey everyone, does anyone feel like they have all this time to write since quarantine, but also experiencing a total lack of motivation and creativity? 

I was writing a lot at the start of this year, but now I rarely do and I hate mostly everything I write. It's just strange. Like now would be the perfect time to really get into writing my story and doing more poetry and all that, but I just feel like that part of me is kinda empty right now.

Sorry, I don't mean to down the mood btw lol.

Hey @indieinsanus, yes I've been feeing quite unmotivated lately as well. And no, you didn't down the mood. I love that you're sharing your experience, I'm sure lots of people can relate!

I feel like the thing about creative stuff is that it can only happen if you're in the mood for it. Sometimes we feel like we can write for hours on end, and other times it just doesn't happen. Do you feel that you should be writing more now that you have more time? I found that should-ing ourselves can actually make it harder to get in the flow. 

Hi @November13 , I probably have been putting pressure on myself because I would like to have a career in writing, so I think I'm worrying a bit that its not right for me or something, idk.

I think I need to get back to writing simply because I love to write, and not because I feel like I haven't done enough. Writing is strange sometimes. At its core, for a lot of people, it's something they love to do, but it seems to morph into so much more, and people can be hard on themselves for not doing enough or being 'good enough'. 

@Bre-RO @StormySeas17 

Anyway, I've got a question if anybody would like to answer, is there a writer or poet you look up to, or who's writing you really admire? And what kind of stuff (form or genre or anything) do you guys like to write? ( If you're comfortable sharing)

I'm with you on how strange writing is @indieinsanus. It's great and enjoyable but when we put pressure on ourselves it becomes a chore. It's great that you would like a career in writing and you'd like to write again for the joy of it. Is there a particular area you're interested in for your future career? 

@November13  I am going to study journalism at uni, and I hope to someday get the opportunity to report on human rights, and possibly do something along the lines of becoming a war correspondent at some point. I'm not quite sure yet, but something to do with justice and human rights. On the other hand, I also really love creative writing, and it would be amazing to be able to publish a collection of poetry or a book at some point in my life.

@indieinsanus Wow, sounds like you've really got it figured out. I wish I had known this much about what I wanted to do when I was in school! And publishing a book or collection would be very cool. Good luck with your dreams and keep writing, just because you enjoy it

@November13 

I'm in my gap year at the moment, so I'm no longer in school and I'm still not sure if this is what i wanna do lol. So everyone out there in high school don't feel like you gotta have it all figured out.

Anyway, thank you!  I will keep writing.

@indieinsanus I think one poet I really admire is Margaret Atwood! I just really like the atmosphere she creates although I haven't tried to replicate it just yet. My favourite poem is Sekhmet- the lion-headed goddess of war which is about an Egyptian goddess. It's so cool that you want to go into human rights- there's a lot of opportunities for advocacy work and is something I've been interested in in my law degree! Publishing a creative piece of work is definitely possible too and they don't need to be mutually exclusive! 

@Bre-RO that's awesome that you've had the opportunity to write ReachOut articles- is there any way that any of us could get involved in that?

Great question @StormySeas17! We can't make any promises, but definitely something we can keep in mind to recommend to our content team when they are making more articles. Are there any key topics you would be interested in writing about or co-writing?

We might also be able to make some opportunities for you to write up content pieces for the forums too on topics that are important to the community 🙂

@Jess1-RO Hmm I was thinking maybe some more anecdotal articles with some sort of clinical backing? For example, someone talks about their experiences and then you have some information to explain their feelings and why their concerns appear in that situation or that illness. For me personally validation is something that I really needed to find online when I was first learning about my diagnosis, which is bipolar that I take medication for. Both coming to terms with the diagnosis and also getting on top of medication were pretty hard! There's also been some amazing threads here about perfectionism and anxiety. I also really like the top tips ones! 

Yes I'd be happy to do that! I'm just trying to understand my routine vs ReachOut's routines with GRs and such but I'd love to help out 

That's a really cool idea @StormySeas17  - at the moment the content team will do personal stories like this, where they will have info but also a memoir or video.  As well as the more "clinical" backed pieces. But I will pass your idea on and see if there's anything we can do with that idea because I think it's gold. 

We also include quotes from certain discussions we have here on the forums and put them in articles as well. So, that could be something fun to be apart of in the future too! 

I'm just curious, do a lot of writers here have a writing routine that they follow? Or do you just write when you feel like it? 

I have been writing this idea out, but I have no routine, I just write when it comes to me, so sometimes I don't write for days or weeks, and then other days I write a lot. It just comes in bursts. I have seen that some authors take around 6 months to a year to finish a book. But I get the feeling my first draft won't be finished for like a couple years lol.

Hey @indieinsanus sorry for the late reply! I personally have been awful with my writing at the moment and have been sidelining it for now. I think that it really depends on the person. Some people say you need to write a minimum of 300 words a day to be productive. Other people I think take out massive chunks of time to do it, maybe a whole evening or day at once. Is there a writing schedule that you would have as a goal that you can work towards?

And don't feel bad about authors getting books done so fast! They do it for a living after all- it's their full time job  Many of us just don't have the time or experience to be that productive!

@StormySeas17Yeah, its a little daunting to see people writing to so well and fast lol. But no, I don't really have a goal in mind. I would like to write more often and feel more motivated to write, but I'm personally not a huge fan of routine. 

I love writing and do it when the creativity is flowing through me @indieinsanus I've written published articles - usually personal stories that make a commentary on society/politics in some way. I also still write poetry and have one of those published too 🙂 

I also wrote an article for ReachOut which was really exciting and fun for me to do. 

My favorite poet is the late Candy Royalle Also E. E Cummings. This is my fave poem of his: 

@Bre-RO That's so cool that you have been published!.

I have heard of E.E Cummings, but I have never personally looked into his work, perhaps I should. 

One of my favorite poets of all time is Sylvia Plath. I had to study her collection of poetry 'Ariel' in high school, and I have really admired her writing ever since. One of my favourites of hers is 'Lady Lazarus'

Oh look, a thread after my own heart 

I totally get not having any inspiration. For me personally I only write when I'm under high stress like exams. I think it's because it's hard for me to sit down in front of my screen unless I'm already in the habit of doing it for other things. A few other things can help, for example, I have friends who are interested in my projects so they're always coming up in conversation and I'm thinking about them. Actually, both of my main projects are collaborations! The other thing I find helps is consuming new or nostalgic experiences or media. For example, I often use music as an inspiration.

But another thing I was also told is that you should never expect to produce amazing work after a hiatus. It's like a rusty tap, it takes a little while before the water comes out clean again. So placing standards on yourself that you should be producing quality stuff immediately might not be fair. Is there a way you can motivate yourself to spending consistent time every day on writing?

@indieinsanus yesss me too! I have ideas for what I wanna write still but I can't get the words out and if I do I don't like it. I think it's normal, when people get stressed it's hard to get that creativity flowing properly. What usually inspires you to write? 

@Bre-RO I'm not even sure what inspires me really, mostly I just write when it comes to me. But cold and rainy weather always motivates me to write, and listening to certain types of songs. It just kinda depends on the day. What about you?

@indieinsanus funny you say that - the first poem I ever wrote was because we were locked inside at school because it was raining. And I wrote a poem about it! 

These days I am usually inspired to write when I'm feeling intense emotions and am connected to them. Relationships,being outraged by injustice in the world, general things I'm passionate about. But I have noticed it comes in waves - don't worry the flow will come back!