Welcome to episode 2 of Manuscripting Pod, a show where I talk about writing, explore procrastination, and attempt to keep my inner critic hogtied and in the corner. In this episode, I talk about getting myself distraction free.
There are as many ways to avoid distractions as there are distractions. Avoiding distractions can be a distraction in and of itself. I had some serious FOMO when I saw so many people picking up the AlphaSmart word processors. Then I saw my RSVP cohost’s and the FOMO disappeared. I love the idea, a simple keyboard where you can see a line or two of the text you are writing and nothing more. The idea reminded me of the word processor I used in college- the Canon Starwriter (or something like that) that integrated a bubble jet printer into the word processor. I churned out papers on that thing for years. What a great tool. Seeing the AlphaSmart hearkened to not only FOMO but my own nostalgia. There was a time when I put my butt in the char and churned out words without an anxious thought just the impending deadline given by the professor. Lo, I would like to get back to those days.
As I discussed in the last episode, I’m a person who loves schedules. Give me a deadline and I’ll relentlessly pursue the project until it is finished or the deadline has passed. I have always done my best work with a deadline in place. Perhaps that is one of the reasons why Nanowrimo has worked so well for me. 50,000 words by the end of November. Butt in chair fingers on keys, Churn Churn churn. Boom done. The rest of my life has no deadlines. Unlike Nano the rest of my life doesn’t have deadlines, rather it has flexibility built in. If I don’t get my words in today, there is always tomorrow. No one will die if I don’t write today.
Nevermind that my creativity suffers and shrivels up. And my anxiety increases. Further, my nagging inner critic loosens her ties and runs free.
Links
Show Notes
- Jean Hawkin’s book As Long as Love Lasts
- jotterpad
- Productivity Challenge App
- OneNote App
- Slacker Radio
- Pandora
- Sennheiser CX300II
- Kindle Fire
- Amazon Basics BT Keyboard (no longer available, which is a shame they are great little BT keyboards.)
- Neoprene Sleeve for Keyboard