Good Advice
Recently, I was asked to lead a workshop on “Good Writing Habits.” I like the topic, but the problem is there are a lot of best practices out there, much of it contradictory. And not all advice will work for everyone.
For example, a common piece of writing advice is to write every single day, no matter what. While discipline is certainly necessary with writing, I have a hard time sticking to a practice every day.
A practice that works better for me is establishing goals. Maybe I want to write two new poems in a month. Or maybe I want to revise a poem in a week. That gives me the flexibility to work at my own pace while still having a measurable sense of progress.
The heart of what I’m getting at can be summed up in the wise words of my MFA mentor Ellen Dore Watson: “Take what’s good. Leave the shit.” Seek out advice on writing (or fitness, or financial planning, or whatever you’d like help with). Consider it all, but only keep what serves you.
On a practical level, we need to make systems that work for us. In his book Atomic Habits, James Clear says, “You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.” Whatever goals you choose should have systems (or habits) that move you toward those goals (this, by the way, might be the thesis of the workshop I lead later this month).
If I want to write two new poems this month, I need to set reminders or block off time in my schedule to write. If I leave the goal in the air without a practical way to reach it, those poems will never get written.
One last thing: Brass Ring Daily, a newsletter I subscribe to, is currently doing a series on what you need to achieve a goal. The latest installment, Stuck?, is a great read.