??? Seven Reasons You Aren’t Writing Like You Want To

What happens when you sit down to write?

Are you staring at the screen, waiting for the words to appear magically?

If you are like me, you get a perfect cup of coffee beside you that you spent thirty minutes making.

Then, I spend another twenty minutes deciding what app to write in and sit around, hoping my inner Maya Angelou will drop a line of brilliance.

When that does not happen, I check my email to see if I find Maya there!

Writing is tough.

Not ‘my country just got invaded, or my village just got hit by a monsoon’ tough, but it is a weird mental struggle.

But you already know it’s not about waiting for the perfect moment — it’s about showing up for yourself and taking action.

In 2014, I worked in a coworking space in Hackney.

There, I sat with four other people, all trying to produce something creative for our work.

We spent hours talking about productivity books but weren’t getting anything done.

One day, we took a different approach:

We sat silently in a conference room and made a pact — we weren’t leaving until we had written something.

That’s how the?Creator Write Club?began, and it’s been running ever since, providing a supportive community for writers like you.

Over the last decade, I’ve seen the same struggles come up again and again.

You’re not alone in this.

Whether it’s me or others at the Write Club, the challenges we’re discussing in this post are things I still have firsthand today and heard nearly every session.

These aren’t just theories — they’re real issues we’ve all faced, and the solutions we’ve found come from real-life experience.

The strategies we’ll discuss in this post have been tested and proven effective by myself and other members of the Creator Write Club.

Every time I sit down with the group, I do more in an hour and a half than I ever would at home.

So, let’s dive into the real reasons you aren’t writing like you want to — and how the Creator Write Club can help you break through.

You’re Waiting for Inspiration to Strike

If you’re sitting around waiting for inspiration to knock, I hate to break it to you — it’s not coming anytime soon.

We all have this romantic idea that one day, we’ll wake up, and the perfect words will pour out.

But here’s the thing: professional writers don’t wait for the muse to appear.

They treat writing like a job-they sit down and get to work, whether inspired or not.

This realisation can be liberating, as it frees you from the pressure of waiting for that elusive inspiration to strike.

They treat writing like a job — they sit down and get to work, whether inspired or not.

At Creator Write Club, we don’t wait for inspiration.

The format is simple: we meet for two hours, everyone shares their work, and then we write.

We go around the table again at the end, and people share how they’ve done.

This sharing provides a sense of accomplishment and serves as a form of accountability, pushing you to meet your writing goals.

What’s fascinating is that nearly everyone who attends says the same thing — ”I got more done here than I ever would have at home.”

It’s a common refrain, not just my experience.

There’s something about the energy in the room, knowing everyone’s in the same boat, that drives productivity.

You Don’t Have a Plan

One of the biggest reasons people don’t get their writing done is their unpreparedness.

Sitting in front of a blank screen without a plan is like setting yourself up for frustration.

It’s easy to get distracted when you don’t know what you’re trying to accomplish.

I used to struggle with writing my email newsletters.

But when I started scheduling my London Coworking Assembly newsletter writing during Creator Write Club, I came prepared with a plan.

I knew I had about an hour and a half to finish it, and I improved over time.

I’d walk into the room with an outline in my head, notes scribbled down, and a clear goal of what I wanted to finish by the end of the session.

Having that plan made all the difference.

Rachel Aaron discusses this in her book?2K to 10 K.

When Rachel had a baby, her writing time vanished.

But Rachel realised that the writing would have been easier if she had spent time preparing — walking around thinking about her story and making notes — so when she finally sat at her computer, she could spend all her time typing, not thinking.

The same applies here: preparation and having a plan can transform your writing productivity.

At Creator Write Club, I’ve seen firsthand how coming in with a plan helps people break through those barriers and get their work done.

You’re Trying to Write Alone

Writing in isolation is a tough gig. Sure, there are times when being alone can help you focus, but more often than not, it can feel like you’re just spinning your wheels.

It’s easy to procrastinate, get distracted, or lose momentum.

Writing with others, though?

That’s where the magical writing pixie dust shows up.

At Creator Write Club, the magic happens when you’re sitting in a room full of people focused on their work.

This quiet but powerful energy in the room makes it almost impossible not to write.

You’re all there for the same reason — to get something done.

And when that kind of collective focus surrounds you, it’s contagious.

This shared purpose pushes you to stop overthinking and start writing, creating a sense of responsibility towards the group.

I’ve seen this over and over.

People come in, and by the end of the session, they’re surprised at how much they’ve accomplished compared to what they would’ve done at home.

That sense of shared purpose pushes you to stop overthinking and start writing.

Plus, knowing you’ll have to share how you did at the end keeps you accountable, and that’s the kind of pressure that gets results.

You Haven’t Set a Time Limit

Writing can feel like an endless, daunting task without a time limit.

You sit down, write a few words, get distracted, and before you know it, hours have passed with very little progress.

The key to breaking that cycle is to set a time limit. Setting a deadline can make you feel more in control and significantly increase your writing efficiency.

At Creator Write Club, the structure is simple: two hours, no distractions, and a clear focus on writing.

But even within that time, I found that having a dedicated segment for writing made all the difference.

When I sat down to do the newsletters, knowing I had an hour and a half, that was the only thing I could do then.

The motivation didn’t come from a ticking clock but from my confidence knowing I could do it.

I’d done it before and built a habit around that focused time.

Each session became part of my writing rhythm.

When you allocate time specifically for writing, you remove distractions and give yourself the mental space to commit to the task properly.

That habit, built over time, is what made writing so productive at that time.

You’re Overthinking It

One of the most significant traps writers fall into is overthinking the process.

You sit down to write, and suddenly, you’re obsessing over every word, every sentence, trying to make it perfect before it even hits the page.

And while you’re tweaking that one sentence, an hour slips by, and you’ve barely made any progress.

Here’s the truth: writing is about getting the words out, not making them perfect immediately.

As the writer? Ann Handley ?puts it, you’ve got to embrace the “messy first draft.”

You know what you’re working with when you put something on the page.

But when it’s stuck in your head, it just goes round and round, getting nowhere.

You can always go back and edit later, but you first need to create something on the page.

I’ve seen this repeatedly:

When people stop worrying about every little detail and start writing, they get much more done.

And guess what?

The writing usually turns out better than they expected.

So, if you’re overthinking it, stop.

Get the words down, even if they’re messy.

That’s what the editing phase is for.

Writing is like building a muscle — the more you do it, the stronger you get.

But you can’t strengthen that muscle if you are stuck analysing every move.

You Haven’t Found Your Crew

Writing can be lonely, but it doesn’t have to be.

Finding a group of like-minded people who understand the struggles and joys of writing makes a world of difference.

It’s about finding your crew — a community that supports, pushes, and motivates you to keep going, even when it’s hard.

At Creator Write Club, we’re not just sitting silently, typing away.

There’s a shared sense of purpose, and that energy drives everyone to be more productive.

Knowing you’re not alone in the struggle makes pushing through those challenging moments easier.

Sometimes, hearing someone else is having a rough writing day makes your challenges seem more manageable.

Over the years, I’ve seen people walk into Creator Write Club feeling stuck, and by the end of the session, they’ve made real progress.

It’s not magic, but it is — the power of community.

Writing with others holds you accountable and gives you that extra boost of motivation.

Your crew is out there — you need to find them.

It might not be our writing club, but there are many clubs like us.

You’re Not Holding Yourself Accountable

One of the biggest challenges with writing is that it’s easy to let yourself off the hook.

You tell yourself, “I’ll get to it tomorrow,” but tomorrow never comes. Without accountability, it’s too easy to let writing slip down your priority list.

That’s one of the reasons Creator Write Club is so powerful.

When you show up, you’re making a commitment — not just to yourself but to everyone else in the room.

At the beginning of each session, we all say what we’re working on, and at the end, we share how we did.

Knowing you’ll have to share your progress with the group creates pressure that motivates you to get things done.

It’s not about shaming yourself.

When you go around the table and hear how people’s plans changed, what they did work and even when someone says, ‘I gave up and looked at my Grandma’s birthday party on Facebook,’ you feel human and not alone.

Writing is the most critical skill.

Writing is one of the most important skills today, not auto-generated writing — your writing.

Everything online, whether a blog, a YouTube video, or a podcast, starts with words.

We write text messages, social media posts, emails, and whatever else we share daily.

When I was at university twenty years ago, there was a feeling in the air that writing was a dying art, but I’ve never been more alive and excited about writing than now.

Everything is words, and the ability to convey and connect an idea is more valuable than ever.

When my website is done, then I’ll start writing.

The web has made everyone a publisher, which is one of the things I love so much about it.

But I’ve met so many people, including me, who use the ‘I’m building my website’ as the reason they are not writing.

When Andy Bargery and I ran the?London Bloggers Meet Up, we recommended that people write on Medium or another platform to find their voice and then build a website.

The people who got to writing first and then built their websites are still going, and the ones waiting for their websites to be ready are still stuck in the mud.

I have been writing something daily online since 2006, when I started on?Blogger.com?and posted my first blog.

Looking back, I wish I’d kept writing rather than trying to master WordPress; writing and posting to the web no matter what and sticking with an ultra-simple off-the-shelf website would have been a better move.

Emily and I move so fast with things these days because Emily ran her web design agency for ten years and knows WordPress inside out.

So, I don’t spend time reading SEO blogs and messing with plugins and can get on with content.

Below are places where you can get set up for free, as well as TypeShare, which is paid but worth the investment in the time it saves you alone.

With my link, you can get a 30-day Typeshare Trial and 50% off for 12 weeks —?start your trial here.

Five Places to hit publish today.

1. Medium

I’ve published on Medium for nearly ten years, posting every piece I write.

Something about the @med writer community keeps me coming back—it’s a space where you can explore topics, share your ideas, and see how they resonate.

Whether I’m writing a short piece or a ‘big one’ like this, I know it’s going out to a crowd of people who genuinely care about good writing.

It’s one of my favourite places to publish because the platform is built to support writers.

Pro:?Large community of engaged readers and writers — if your work’s good, people will find it.

Con:?Building a following can take time because so much content is published daily.

2. TypeShare

TypeShare is my new favourite thing, especially when I need to cut out the overthinking and write like what you are reading here.

The platform is designed to help you get to the point, making it perfect for writing posts like this one.

One of the things I love about Typeshare is that it lets you push your posts to Medium and Twitter, which reduces the hassle of repurposing content and getting lost on social media!

This is your tool if you need a little structure to get your thoughts out.

It helps me keep the momentum going and stops me from getting stuck in my head.

With my link, you can get a 30-day Typeshare Trial and 50% off for 12 weeks —?start your trial here.

Pro:?Great for building a consistent writing habit and sharing content easily across platforms.

Con:?It’s still a smaller platform, so creating a big audience here takes time.

3. Substack

We moved our entire?Coworking Values Podcast?to Substack and have never looked back.

The community here is strong — there’s a real exchange with readers, primarily through the Notes feature, which creates an ongoing conversation.

It’s like Medium, Twitter and Convert Kit had a baby!

Substack isn’t just for newsletters; it’s a place to build direct relationships with your audience.

Plus, it’s free to use, and when the time’s right, you can monetise with paid newsletters — in that ‘Direct to Creator‘ model that keeps the Creator Economy building.

The connection with readers here feels more personal than on other platforms, and when we podcast with people, we can add them as co-creators.

Pro:?Built-in email list and community interaction make it ideal for connecting with your audience.

Con:?You’ve got to focus on building that email list — everything hinges on that.

4. LinkedIn

If you’re not publishing on LinkedIn regularly, you’re missing out; I publish this post here on LinkedIn every Monday morning under?Community and Creator Notes?and another newsletter called?Link In The Shownotes?every two weeks.

It’s one of the best things you can do for your freelance practice, creative work, or business.

Here’s the thing: LinkedIn is packed with millions of people, but only a tiny percentage of them post regularly.

That means if you’re consistent, you can stand out.

While other platforms might be full of people scrolling for entertainment, LinkedIn is where decision-makers with budgets hang out.

It might take a year to see results, but publishing here is one of the smartest moves you can make.

Pro:?You’re reaching a professional audience with the means to invest in your services.

Con: Seeing real traction takes time and consistency, so it’s a long game.

5. 750words.com

Emily Breder introduced me to 750words.com in 2013; I’ve written nearly three million words on it since then. No exaggeration.

It’s the best thing I’ve ever done for my writing confidence.

The platform is designed to help you build a daily writing habit by encouraging you to write 750 words daily.

There’s no pressure to make it perfect — it’s just about getting words down, which helps cut through all the overthinking.

Pro:?Fantastic for building writing confidence and consistency. The focus is on volume, not perfection, which is liberating.

Con:?It’s more of a private journaling tool than a platform for publishing, so if you’re looking to share your work, this isn’t the place.

Do you want to get writing with other people?

Join the next Creator Write Club at Creative Works Space by Blackhorse Road Tube E17