Navigating the ups and downs of creativity can be challenging.
Let’s face it: we don’t always feel 100%, and on those low-energy days, it can feel difficult to get started on our writing.
All the same, maintaining consistency in your writing schedule is crucial for habit formation and momentum, even when motivation is lacking.
In today’s episode of The Writing Coach podcast you’ll discover 8 writing activities designed to kickstart your creativity and help you make significant strides in your book, even when the energy tank feels low.
Listen now!
The Writing Coach Episode #180 Show Notes
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The Writing Coach Episode #180 Transcript
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Hello, beloved listeners and welcome back The Writing Coach podcast. It is your host, as always, writing coach Kevin T. Johns here.
Have you picked up the SCENE ALCHEMY ESSENTIALS CHECKLIST yet? If not, pick it up today. It’s a list of over 20 questions you can use to analyze any scene you’ve written and then transform it into literary gold.
Well, I woke up today not feeling that hot, folks. I’m a little worn down, and got a little bit sick. And that happens to all of us. Sometimes, we are not always feeling 100% high energy and ready to live life or work on our books and on our creative projects.
But something you’ve heard me talk about a lot, just last episode, in fact, I was talking about the power of momentum and of habit formation and how challenging it can be to get back on track if we fall off track for some reason and if we don’t stick to our regular writing schedule.
So, just because you’re feeling low-energy or you’re feeling a little bit sick doesn’t necessarily mean all work needs to stop on your writing.
Now, of course, health is number one. You have to give yourself time to heal and get healthy; no one does great work when they’re not feeling well.
That said, I’m not really talking about being sick today. Today, I’m talking about those low-energy days, those days where you’re just not feeling super geared up to work on your book.
We will look at eight low-energy activities you can do to keep making progress on your book, even when it’s one of those days when you’re not feeling super energized. That way, you’re keeping the momentum going, the habit formation, and the forward progress on your project, even when you’re not feeling that great.
Crafting new material is always going to be the most energy-demanding work. Secondary is probably certain aspects of self-editing. Those two things are really cognitively demanding. Arguably, so are aspects of the planning process, especially at the macro level. Those are the types of activities that I would really focus on for those days when you’re ready to rock, sit down and draft that new scene. On the days when you’re feeling low-energy, here’s what you can do.
Read Back Over Your Work
Firstly, revisit your existing writing; reading requires less energy than drafting. Reviewing our work, understanding our manuscript’s progress, and identifying areas for enhancement during revisions is beneficial. To make this process even more effortless and cognitively undemanding, consider having the text read aloud to you. If a willing partner is available, having them read your work can be even better. However, more often than not, you’ll likely prefer using text-to-voice software. It’s a fantastic way to effortlessly review your work—just sit back, listen, and reflect on your material. Personally, I’m using Speechify at the moment. I’m not affiliated with Speechify, but after experimenting with various text-to-voice software, I find its features truly impressive. It has proven to be an effective tool for my current reviewing process.
Transcribe Your Handwritten Material
Another excellent low-energy activity is transcribing handwritten material. Since I often compose my initial drafts with pen and paper, there comes a point where I need to convert that material into digital form. This task is particularly well-suited for those days when energy levels are low, and active thinking is minimal. The beauty of the transcription process lies in what I like to call a “free revisions draft.” As you type, you inevitably make small tweaks and changes, turning a seemingly straightforward task into an opportunity for subtle revisions. Despite its low-energy nature and the perception of merely transcribing your handwriting, you’re essentially gaining a free round of revision in the process. It’s an ideal activity for those days when energy is limited.
Focused Editorial Work
As mentioned earlier, editing is generally a high-energy demanding task. However, there are specific aspects of editing that you can tackle on low-energy days. For instance, incorporating edits or feedback received from an external source is an excellent task for such days. Whether you’re collaborating with an editor or a writing coach, utilizing a low-energy day to implement the suggested changes can be highly productive.
Furthermore, simple editing tasks can be accomplished during low-energy days. This includes actions like running a scene through a grammar checker such as Grammarly or using a scene analysis tool like AutoCrit. These tools provide an efficient way to make subtle adjustments to a scene, whether it’s adding or removing a comma, addressing word repetitions, or other minor refinements. Such tasks are generally low-energy and, when using editing software, can be quite automated and undemanding.
To recap, we now have strategies like reading back over your work, transcribing handwritten notes, and editing specific elements, such as incorporating feedback or making small changes, for low-energy days.
Organize Your Files
Moving on, let’s talk about the importance of getting organized. Unfortunately, I’ve observed many writing clients struggling to locate the latest draft of a scene or, worse yet, finding themselves with multiple versions of the same scene that need to be merged—a potential nightmare. Some writers even express frustration, saying, “I know I wrote scene 46, but I can’t find it anywhere.” These issues often stem from a lack of organization.
Low-energy days present an excellent opportunity to review your files and ensure everything is clean and well-organized. Ideally, you should have a consistent naming convention, possibly including dates, to keep track of versions. Admittedly, we all fall behind on maintaining our naming conventions. Occasionally, during document edits, dates may not be updated, or documents might be given whimsical names to avoid the full convention. Writing a book typically involves managing several versions of numerous documents, especially if scenes are written separately. With a 50-scene book, for instance, you might end up with 50 documents. As scenes undergo revisions or receive editorial feedback, multiple versions of each scene may emerge.
Regardless of your energy level, it’s crucial to take time, especially during low-energy moments, to ensure that you remain organized and stay on top of your file organization.
Mind Mapping
I previously noted that extensive big-picture planning can be mentally demanding. However, an effective strategy during low-energy moments is not traditional brainstorming but rather mind mapping—a visual representation of your ideas. This approach involves branching out and delving deeper into key words and associated thoughts, creating a visually engaging exploration.
It’s not about typing out entire pages; instead, it often involves a pen-and-paper approach, jotting down words and concepts here and there. For instance, if you’re a fantasy author, consider mind mapping on a specific theme, such as dragons. You can explore various aspects like classic historical dragons, fire-breathing dragons, talking dragons, flying dragons, dragons from different regions (north, south, east), and those inspired by Eastern or Western fantasy. By branching into these subtopics, you can uncover a plethora of potential material that serves as inspiration for your fantasy book. The process is not only productive but also enjoyable and interesting, making it an ideal activity for low-energy moments.
Scene Level Beat Sheets
Moving on to beat sheets, particularly at the scene level, let’s address the challenge of facing a blank page. Personally, I never sit down to draft a scene without a plan. I aim to fill that page with words as efficiently as possible. My approach involves outlining the key structural beats of the scene and identifying a few connecting beats in between. In my scene structure method, I focus on establishing a character with a desire, taking action to achieve it, encountering progressive complications, reaching a decision point, and concluding with a cliffhanger.
Even on low-energy days when crafting beautiful prose seems daunting, I can still have a productive writing session by working on these structural beats. For example, if my character wants a banana, I determine their action (ask someone, go get it themselves), the progressive complication (the person refuses), the decision point (will they go themselves?), and the cliffhanger (no bananas on the counter). Jotting down these structural beats isn’t excessively draining, but it’s a crucial step in laying the foundation for a well-functioning scene that can later be enriched with prose.
So, when energy levels are low, beat out that scene. Identify the major milestones, emotional beats, or structural moments that need to happen, and get them down on paper. It’s a valuable process that isn’t overly demanding, yet sets the stage for a compelling scene.
Research
Another enjoyable writing-related activity is research. Regardless of your project, chances are you’ll need to delve into some form of research, whether it involves reading online articles, going through library books, or conducting interviews. These tasks are typically not as energy-intensive as the act of sitting down and writing.
For instance, during the story planning phase—stay tuned for the upcoming January 2024 edition of STORY PLAN INTENSIVE—we encourage writers to identify the genre of their intended book and pinpoint its major conventions, obligatory scenes, and iconography. A fantastic and low-energy approach to achieve this is through a movie marathon. If you’re planning to write a cyberpunk novel, for example, watch three cyberpunk films with a notepad and pen in hand. Jot down every instance where similar elements appear in all three films. In just one afternoon, you can become an expert on the conventions, obligatory scenes, and iconography of cyberpunk or your chosen genre.
Consider this a low-energy activity that still contributes significantly to your writing progress. Watching movies and taking notes might sound like a fun afternoon, but you’re simultaneously making major strides in advancing your writing project.
Draw a Picture
Lastly, if you find yourself utterly drained, lacking the energy to put fingers to keyboard or jot words into your notebook, consider drawing a picture from your book. This creative exercise has proven beneficial on numerous occasions for me. If you have a vivid moment in the next scene in mind but lack the energy to write it out, draw a visual representation. For instance, in the current book I’m working on, “Page Turners Part Three,” there’s a scene where my character fires arrows out of a bedroom window onto the street into goblins. I drew a captivating picture of her standing there, looking badass as she fired arrows out the window. This not only solidified the image in my mind but also aided in describing it when I eventually wrote the scene.
In another example from my book “M School,” which is set in an underwater facility beneath an oil rig, I needed to figure out the structure of the facility during the drafting process. I grabbed a pen and paper, drew a square with water at the top, added lines for floors, and began mapping out the rooms on each level. Here, we’re not just writing; we’re drawing pictures, creating maps, and engaging different creative muscles to explore our book’s world. Although it may not feel like writing or editing, these activities keep the creative momentum alive. The progress made during these low-energy moments becomes evident when you return to writing on a day when you have renewed energy. You’ll seamlessly pick up where you left off, thanks to these alternative but productive creative endeavours along the way.
To recap, here are all eight strategies for making progress on your writing during low-energy days:
Read back over your work: A less energy-draining activity than drafting.
Transcribe handwritten notes: Convert your handwritten drafts into digital form.
Incorporate edits or use editorial software: Focus on refining and enhancing existing content.
Organize your files: Ensure your writing materials are clean and well-organized.
Mind Map: Create a visual representation of your ideas, exploring keywords and associated thoughts.
Work on a beat sheet: Outline the key structural beats for the next scene or several scenes.
Focus on research: Dive into articles, books, or interviews related to your writing project.
Draw a picture related to your book: Engage your creative side by visually representing scenes or concepts.
So, even when you’re not feeling your best, there are plenty of ways to keep progressing on your writing and nurturing your creativity.
For additional tips and support with the revisions process, grab the SCENE ALCHEMY ESSENTIAL CHECKLIST—a simple yet effective tool to help you craft incredible scenes.
I hope you found value in this episode of The Writing Coach Podcast. Don’t forget to hit that subscribe button so you won’t miss the next episode. Until then, happy writing!
