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The Temptation of Writing-Related Activities · The Daily Writer

• 0:06
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to the Daily Rider Podcast, where we bring you tips and inspiration each day to help you build habits for writing success.
• 0:14
  SPEAKER_00: For more resources, including your free Daily Rider Starter Kit, visit DailyRiderLife.com.
• 0:22
  SPEAKER_00: Here's a question to consider.
• 0:24
  SPEAKER_00: What activities actually produce writing?
• 0:27
  SPEAKER_00: You know, it's easy for all of us to fall under the spell of doing writing-related activities while secretly avoiding the hard work of writing.
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_00: Now, surely this is not just me who's experienced this.
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_00: My guess is that you've done this as well.
• 0:41
  SPEAKER_00: You know, there's that course to take, there's that writing group to be involved in, there's that new writing craft book to read, there's that movie to watch so you can analyze the story structure, there's that fellow writer to have coffee with.
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_00: The list of things that help our writing is endless.
• 0:57
  SPEAKER_00: And all of those things can be really, really helpful.
• 0:59
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, I run a writing membership group, and I think it's pretty darn helpful.
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_00: But the thing is that all those activities, while they're great, they don't actually constitute writing.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_00: The writer Matthew Kelly hit the nail right on the head when he wrote, Writers will do anything to avoid writing and do it all in the name of writing.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_00: Now, can I get an amen?
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_00: This isn't a church service here, but if it were, I would ask for an altar call and maybe an amen on top of that, because I think we all can probably relate to that.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_00: You know, the joy and the temptation of being a writer is that we love what we do.
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_00: We love talking about it, we love reading about it, and we love learning more about our craft.
• 1:39
  SPEAKER_00: And hey, while all those things are helpful, they might even be necessary.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_00: They don't actually create the word, they don't actually get the writing done.
• 1:46
  SPEAKER_00: What does produce the words, however, is sitting down to write.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_00: It's getting the words done however you can.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_00: Whether it's dictation, writing it out by hand, writing at lunchtime, getting up early or staying up late, or whatever it takes to get it done.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_00: That's what you've got to do.
• 2:03
  SPEAKER_00: And all these tools and resources for writing, they're kind of like the sirens from Homer's Odyssey.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_00: The hero, Odysseus, was tempted by the beautiful singing of the sirens, but yet he stayed the course.
• 2:15
  SPEAKER_00: And I would encourage myself and I would encourage you to do the exact same thing.
• 2:19
  SPEAKER_00: It's tempting to spend all your time on writing related activities without actually doing the writing.
• 2:25
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, of course, we must learn, we must connect, we must grow as writers.
• 2:30
  SPEAKER_00: But are those activities honestly helping you get the writing done?
• 2:33
  SPEAKER_00: So here's today's challenge.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_00: Keep track of the time you spend this week on writing related activities and see how it compares to your actual writing time.
• 2:43
  SPEAKER_00: A big thanks to today's sponsor, Thumbprint Creative.
• 2:46
  SPEAKER_00: You've heard me talk about my friend Christy Griffith here on the podcast before.
• 2:50
  SPEAKER_00: She owns Thumbprint Creative.
• 2:52
  SPEAKER_00: She's an incredible graphic designer and layout artist, and she also offers proofreading services as well.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_00: I have had Christy work on a bunch of my own books as well as a bunch of my client books, and she is fantastic, easy to work with, very reasonable pricing.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_00: She's really fast.
• 3:09
  SPEAKER_00: And I cannot really imagine a better creative partner than Christy Griffith, owner of Thumbprint Creative.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_00: So if you are looking for somebody to do the layout or cover design of your book, make sure and get in touch with her by going to go thumbprint.com.
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_00: It's go thumbprint.com.
• 3:25
  SPEAKER_00: Check it out, and I think you'll really enjoy working with her.
• 3:29
  SPEAKER_00: Or if you'd like a personal intro to Christy, shoot me an email at kent at dailywriterlife.com and I would be happy to do that.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks for listening, and I'll see you next time.