If you’re a writer, it has probably happened to you. You’re headed to your desk or favorite writing spot to tackle a project. Suddenly, you veer off toward the kitchen and make yourself a cup of tea, instead. Or you start scrolling on social media or performing mundane tasks, like cleaning out your junk drawer. Before you know it, an hour has gone by, and you haven’t written anything yet. Authors procrastinate for many reasons.
It might not be problematic if it only happens on occasion. However, if you feel like you’re developing a procrastination habit, then it could become an obstacle to your success. In this post, you’ll discover seven issues that are often underlying causes of writer procrastination.
Here’s why many authors procrastinate
The following list is not extensive, although it includes some of the most common reasons why authors procrastinate:
- Goals are not specific
- Task feels too daunting—writer is overwhelmed
- Writer doesn’t like the topic
- External stress
- Unattainable goal
- Fatigue
- Environment not conducive to writing
Perhaps you can relate to several of the issues shown in this list. The bad news is that such problems might be causing you to procrastinate. The good news is that most (if not all) of these issues are typically temporary and resolvable.
Writers must set clean, attainable goals
Authors procrastinate when they haven’t set clear goals. If you just can’t seem to get motivated to complete your writing project, ask yourself if you have set clear, attainable goals. If your goals are too lofty (unattainable), it’s just as bad as if your goals are too vague. For example, if you set a goal to “write a book,” that is not specific enough for daily writing work and might cause you to procrastinate. Similarly, if your goal is to “write a best-seller,” this might be too high of a standard. After all, even best-selling authors don’t always write best-sellers.
While it’s okay to dream big, when you’re trying to stay motivated to complete daily writing projects, you’ll want to aim for specific, attainable goals. For instance, a goal for a particular day might be to name all your main characters. This goal enables you to focus and is undoubtedly attainable for a single day’s work, as well.
Address other procrastination issues as they arise
Certain issues might be out of your control, such as external stress. You might have a family crisis or lose a job or have an argument with someone, etc., which puts a damper on your enthusiasm as a writer. To overcome procrastination, try to resolve the issue that is causing stress. In the same way, if you’re not getting enough sleep or are unable to concentrate because of surrounding noise or other distractions, these, too, are resolvable issues.
If you simply don’t like the topic you’re writing about, you might have to bite the bullet and keep going. This might be the case if you’ve been assigned a book or a deadline, for instance. If that’s the case, try to focus on the more likeable parts of the project and work your way through as best you can. Most authors procrastinate from time to time. Assess the situation, determine if there’s a problem, and do what’s necessary to become productive again.
