The creative process isn’t always smooth sailing. If that happens at the beginning of the project, I call it “a false start.”

We writers tend to beat ourselves up about these non-linear beginnings to our projects, but penalties for false starts are mostly happen in sports, not writing. 

In creativity, a false start can actually help you learn a lot about yourself. For example, I started the first chapter of my second novel, OF WITCHES AND WIND, three or more times, and each time I got increasingly frustrated. But when I thought back to that period, that was the most I’d learned about MY particular writing process—including creative tools I still use today. 

So, if you are having trouble starting a project and you’re being hard on yourself about it, ponder these questions: 

  • Who’s punishing me here?

  • Is there an actual penalty? Or just one in my head?

  • Could this false (a.k.a.) non-linear start be an opportunity for me to better understand my own creative process or the needs of this particular project so that I can bring to life better? 

  • If so, what have I learned? 

If you’re curious to know more, especially about writing OF WITCHES AND WIND’s first chapter, I go deeper in this video.

 

If you’re having trouble with a project or experiencing writer’s block (or creative block), here’s another article that might be helpful: