Take small steps to achieve your big writing goal
Small steps help you avoid overwhelm, overcome procrastination, and increase your motivation. What’s not to like?
Feeling unmotivated and overwhelmed? You don’t have to write a book all at once. Take small steps to achieve your big writing goal.
Do you ever really want to write, but struggle to find the motivation, focus, energy, discipline – or simply the time? If you’re not feeling the #MondayMotivation today, I have a simple piece of advice that I think can help us all.
Writers dream big. But ‘write a novel’ is a big, scary goal. We’re psychologically programmed to avoid scary things, so it’s not surprising if you find yourself avoiding writing. From procrastination to perfectionism to life getting in the way, it doesn't really matter what your reasons for avoidance are. The solution is the same: go small.
Go small or go home
Small steps bypass the fear response in your brain. Small is beautiful. Small is doable. Small fits around your life. I know novelists who’ve written entire books on their phones, in the gaps of their lives, while waiting for the bus, commuting on a train or working in a coffee shop. Small works.
Rome wasn’t built in a day. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. These aphorisms may be well-worn clichés – but it doesn’t mean they aren’t true. Or how about Martin Luther King’s: “Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.” OK, he may have been talking about religious faith (which I don’t share) – but I think this also applies to faith in yourself, faith in your writing – or faith in any project.
“Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.”
- Martin Luther King
You can’t see your whole book when you start out. You don’t know how it will all work out. You might not even know how it ends. That’s normal. Don’t let it hold you back, and don’t think so far ahead. Just take that first, small step. As EL Doctorow said: “Writing is like driving at night in the fog. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.”
“Writing is like driving at night in the fog. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” - EL Doctorow
Boost your motivation by going small
‘Going small’ is also a way to boost your motivation. This was a key takeaway for me from a recent Publishing Talk masterclass given by Bec Evans and Chris Smith, based on their new book Written: How to Keep Writing and Build a Habit That Lasts (Icon Books, 2023).
Their book and workshop both include an illuminating discussion of the Fogg Behavior Model. The basic idea is that you need a lot of motivation to do something hard (like write a book). But you can get by with a low level of motivation when something is easy (like writing a paragraph - or a sentence).
Starting is the hard part (see also my earlier newsletter Start before you’re ready). But once you make a start you’ll start making progress – and you’ll build momentum.
By contrast, if you make your goal too big, you’ll risk losing motivation. If you plan to write, say, 2,000 words a day – and then you miss a day – you’ll quickly start to feel disheartened, maybe even guilty, as you realise you’ll never catch up or hit your target on time. Don’t make things so hard for yourself – and don’t try to do it all at once.
Recognise your small achievements
Another way small steps can feed your motivation is simply by recognizing them. The simple act of noticing your small achievements may be reward enough. It feels good when you tick things off your to-do list, doesn’t it? Break your list down into smaller sub-tasks. As you accomplish them, you’ll get a sense of progress that will motivate you to keep going.
But it can also be helpful to factor in tangible rewards. We’re frequently told we should reward ourselves for achieving a goal. But too often we think this means, say, treating ourselves with a holiday when we’ve delivered our manuscript. That’s too big a reward, too big a goal, and too long a wait. Ignore those small wins at your peril. You need to keep yourself motivated as you go along.
What small steps and small rewards will work for you? Make a list, and try them out. Maybe a coffee break, once you’ve written for half an hour. One approach is to hack your procrastination by flipping your avoidance tasks into rewards. For example, if you procrastinate by spending ages trawling through Twitter instead of writing, try rewarding yourself with 10 minutes of Twitter time after you’ve written 500 words.
Achieve mastery in small steps
Small steps will also help you develop mastery. Mastery is when you achieve or accomplish something that makes you feel good about yourself. It makes you feel competent, confident and in control. It should be something stretching but realistic – such as writing a book – and where you can see your progress over time in small, achievable steps. Don’t race ahead: the small steps are important! They will help you learn, grow and develop.
There are many small steps to writing a book (and getting it published), from naming your first Word document to drafting a query letter to a prospective agent. You might be just starting to develop an idea for your book, or you may be further along and thinking about your book launch.
Make a list of some small steps that will take you further in the direction you want to go in, based on the stage you’re at now. If they still seem intimidating (such as writing a chapter), break them down further (such as writing a page – or a paragraph).
Your small steps to writing a book might include such things as:
Write a paragraph
Write for 10 minutes
Do some online research
Look for writing groups in your area
Buy a book that you need for research
Sign up for an online writing workshop
Book a ticket to an author talk at your local library
Plan a field trip – such as to a location in your novel
Read a blog post (or Substack newsletter!) about writing.
Not all of your small steps have to involve writing! They can contribute to your professional development as an author, or simply keep you motivated by connecting with other writers.
You can build a habit with small, easy steps. The smallness of the steps will make them achievable and keep you motivated. The repetition of them will start a snowball effect that will mean you’ve written a book before you know it! Once your easy habit is an established part of your routine (say, writing for 10 minutes a day), you can build it up and do more. But don’t go too fast.
Set the bar low
When you’re really not feeling it, why not write for just a few minutes? Limit yourself to 10 minutes max. If you want to continue after that, you can – but you don’t have to. You can always come back later and do another 10 minutes. But you may surprise yourself and find that your modest start creates momentum that takes you further than you imagined.
If you keep things small and achievable – but regular – over time your writing will build up into a whole book. And you won’t lose your enjoyment of writing by forcing yourself to grind it out. Sneak under the radar of your big goal with small steps, and it won’t seem so overwhelming.
What will you spend 10 minutes writing today?
Thanks Jon - some useful suggestions here!