Getting through the storm while writing your first book

If you decide to write a book, it's inevitable that you're going to experience the storm. You'll see dark clouds closing in on you with flashes of lightning and hear a roaring thunder.

There will be times when you open up that document and see a blank page staring right back at you and you'll struggle to punch out one letter. Each keystroke will feel like you're dipping your hands in glue or trying to play the piano while wearing four gloves.

You'll start to second guess yourself or worse, you'll self-critique your prior chapters. That inner voice will tell you that everything you've written sucks and doesn't make sense. You'll feel the walls closing in on you as you realize you're not even halfway done.

You'll feel like Dorothy in the 'Wizard of Oz' except without the house; flying around in a tornado, getting the wind knocked out of you.

I experienced this at least three or four times while writing the first draft and I imagine I'll go through it at least a couple more times after our editor gets her hands on it with her red pen.

This is the storm. It's a period when you can't concentrate, can't get a word out, and you're overwhelmed by how much left you have to write, so much so that you feel like giving up.

Inspiration is not enough

I wish it were. But no amount of videos or uplifting quotes posted on Instagram will get you thru this.

Don't get me wrong. Inspiration is important.

It's often the starting point when creating content. It can serve as the fulcrum to get you to the starting line and start putting those ideas onto paper.

But inspiration alone won't carry you through the long term.

It's like eating a candy bar before a big race. You'll get a quick burst of energy but it won't get you to the finish line.

The Tortoise

As I talked about two weeks ago, finishing a first draft isn't anything as epic as locking myself into a room, growing a beard and coming out two weeks later with a stack of papers.

When it came down to it, I had to do all the boring housekeeping stuff first.

• Outline the book and break it down into sections.
• Set up a writing schedule.
• Write.

I leaned into a systematic approach. It was slow, sometimes painstakingly so but it freed me from depending solely on inspiration, which is fleeting at best. I decided to be the fabled tortoise rather than the hare from that mythic race. I knew that a book couldn't be written in one setting or weekend so I decided to pace myself.

That said, I both experienced moments when writing was hard. Really hard.

You may recall that I shared the "surgical approach" to writing that entails a minimum of 15 minutes of actual writing per day. For some of you, that may seem really easy. If you write a lot for your job or vocation, you may wonder why I set such a low threshold.

This was to account for the storm.

In the beginning, I could knock out well over 15 minutes and often overshot the mark. But as the days turned into weeks and months, keeping up with this got harder.

It wasn't simply my other responsibilities. Sometimes, I experienced fatigue.

Truth be told, there were days when I couldn't hit the 15 minute mark. Sometimes all I could get out was a paragraph or a few sentences.

That was when I knew I was in the storm.

So how do you plow through this and keep on track to the finish line?

Slow down (even more than the tortoise)

When I hit the storm, I decided it was time to slow down even more. I did two things that helped me during these periods which got me back on course. These may sound contradictory but hear me out.

1. I took a break: When I felt I couldn't write more than a paragraph or a sentence, I didn't push it. Instead, I would run, walk, listen to a podcast, read a book or watch a TV show. I allowed myself to take a break. I let go of the guilt that came with not having hit my daily mark because I knew that sitting there and struggling wasn't going to do me any good.
2. I kept writing: When I felt I couldn't write another word in the book, I would write something else. As a podcaster, I always have something to write, usually show notes, blogs, or LinkedIn articles. By turning my attention to a different kind of writing, I could continue stretching those muscles without burning out. The act of writing helped me to get back on track a lot quicker than if I took a break without any writing at all.

Usually, though not always, I found that the storm was temporary, lasting a day or two at most. By taking breaks and writing other material, I discovered I could weather the storm. Moreover, my attitude changed. Just as writing a book was no longer a big mystery, the occasional storm simply became a natural part of the process.

-John

[NOTE: The book(s) discussed in this article and in the book writing series are permanently out of print and I have since retracted my story from them with full preservation and reservation of my copyright. These articles and podcast episodes have been edited, removing mentions of any previously published titles to avoid any confusion and are strictly for informational and educational purposes only. For more, check out episode 388.]

John's coloring book,?Corporate Cliches,?is available for sale on?Amazon?and?Barnes & Noble online.

Moving Forward?is available on all major podcast outlets.

John Lim (Twitter:?@bemovingforward) is a?TEDx speaker, author, and Poshmark ambassador. His articles on Cobra Kai:?How Cobra Kai is kicking butt at storytelling, marketing, and business?(2018) and?Why 'Cobra Kai's' move to Netflix is the perfect sequel?(2020) are his most read on LinkedIn to date. John has been featured in?Cracked.com,?Authority Magazine, and Inc. John currently hosts the?Moving Forward?podcast. He is the creator of the?Corporate Cliches Adult Coloring Book, available now on Amazon.