life, writing

Writer’s A.D.D.

Lori

laptopwritingI’m pleased to say that I’ve been writing and editing again. So, this isn’t going to be one of my longer, philosophical posts. Well, maybe . . . because I seem to get easily distracted. I don’t have A.D.D. in regular life, so what the heck happens when I’m writing?

Am I the only author that does this?

I’m trying to find another way to describe a scene, so I go to the online thesaurus. A word there inspires me for a blog post and I start jotting down the idea. I get some notes for the blog written and plan to switch back to writing my novel, but I hear a ding on my facebook page. I switch tabs to see who’s talking to me. I converse for a minute or two there, then go back to my the manuscript window.

My cell phone sings its text prompt. Ooh, goody, who sent me a text? I slide open the phone’s screen. Haha. My friend sent me something funny. I text her back.

I put down my phone and set my eyes back to the computer screen to write. Except, the first thing I notice is the blog tab for Lori’s Lane, so I switch over to see if anyone has commented lately. No comments. Hmm, let me check my stats page. Click. Oh boo, hardly any clicks. No one finds me interesting.

Oh well. Better get back to writing.

I go to my manuscript. Wait, what thesaurus word was I looking up again? I click on the thesaurus tab. Oh yeah. Hmm, which word should I use? A few different words roll around in sentences in my head. I try them out on the screen. Nothing works.

Maybe some music will help.

Over to the Pandora app. I click on my Journey-Rock station and start singing Don’t Stop Believin’. I realize that lyrical music is distracting me, so I switch to my classical station. Ahh, that usually inspires.

I set my eyes back to my manuscript page, fingers on the keys.

Nothing happens.

I wonder if anything new has popped up on facebook.

No. Stay focused. Write.

Okay, I’m done with this blog post. Back to my manuscript window.

Do any other authors suffer from Writing A.D.D.?

Please tell me it’s not just me, and if it is, please lie.

 

Published by Lori

Observer, thinker, learner, analyzer, and author. Love dogs. Enjoy cooking, laughing and spiritual centering.

36 thoughts on “Writer’s A.D.D.”

  1. Laughing at your writer’s ADD. I think a LOT of us experience that! (And, after a little digging, I can usually discover a fear at the root of things. The fear of nothing to say. The fear of not knowing what to do next. The fear that no one will like it anyway. A boredom. A tiny anxiety. A fear of the abyss, of the creative process itself.) I don’t think a lot of others think of fear this way. They think of fear as something blown up. But I am thinking of it like…whatever isn’t love is usually fear in some form. I think the Course of Miracles says this.

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    1. Yes, A Course in Miracles says what you’re speaking of with love and fear being opposites. And, I love digging deeper into this stuff. I’m pretty sure that mine is fear of my work sucking! Ha. Also, of how difficult it is to come up with just the right sentence to convey images, thoughts and feelings to a reader. It gets so complicated and it’s difficult to dig deep to convey these things.

      BTW, this topic reminds me of a hilarious movie. Have you ever seen this one? It’s called, Defending Your Life. It’s a light-hearted look at life after death, learning with each cycle, and overcoming fear. It’s one of my favorites of all time, staring Albert Brooks and Meryl Streep. If you haven’t seen it, I highly recommend it.

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      1. I have not heard of it. And I love how you have the courage to say about your fear. Thank you for saying that. For sharing about the complications. Way cool…so many don’t have the courage to even admit that.

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        1. Hmph, that’s funny. I don’t see myself as having courage to say my fears. I just say what I mean (sometimes to a fault). I’m afraid of so many things and see myself as a wimp (fear of spiders, flying, panic in a crisis, public speaking, etc, etc, etc). But, onward I go …

          Thanks so much for the nice comment, Kathy.

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    1. Well, the ideas can’t always come, but even when they do, I tend to stray.

      Nothing wrong with reposts. New followers get to see them, and regular followers don’t mind seeing them again because they’re entertaining.

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  4. I have been there – too many times. I guess this happens to the best of us. I hope you managed to finally get something written, without interruptions from Viber, watsapp, youtube – phew! The list is endless. 🙂

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    1. Hi Miss Z Lady. Yes, I did get some done this week, especially on Friday. Hopefully, the production will continue as I begin this next week. May we all keep up the good work. Thanks for sharing.

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  5. You pretty much just described my every day. And my ADD is not limited to blogging, Facebook and texting. I do this at work. I’ll be mid-project and decide I need to check in on something else. I get distracted and leave one project behind for another. I do this while cleaning house. Reading. The only thing that doesn’t inspire ADD in me is the television. It usually puts me to sleep!

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  6. It’s easy to get distracted – I don’t have ‘pings’ on any of my notifications, so one less distraction there, and since I started writing longhand – and using a paper thesaurus, I’m not tempted to go online so much!

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    1. Hi Andrea. It’s so good that you’ve found ways to remain focused. My mind tends to wander seemingly no matter how I go about it. Keep up the good work. Thanks for sharing your process.

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  8. I think we all do this. There are so many distractions. Lately, I’ve been getting more writing done in the later evening. At that point, my daytime work and distractions have quieted down, and I can just focus on my manuscript. The downside is, I don’t get much time to relax before I go to bed. And I need my downtime.

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    1. I know what you mean about needing downtime. I especially need it before bed so I can fall asleep.

      I also get caught up in doing research for my novel while I write. If I need to use a dialect in a dialogue or to know a certain trend, I get stuck and can’t write until I fill in those blanks.

      Thanks for sharing your experience, Carrie.

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  9. Staying focused is a killer when you’re a writer. There’s research and staying connected to fans and other writers, all of which gobble up what little time we can find to actually write. And then I have the added bonus of being a chronic daydreamer. Strangely enough, I don’t think about the story I’m currently working on, but rather stories I would like to write in the future. So while I’m plotting out these future novels, I’m not getting anything done on the novel I’m actually writing! It’s a vicious cycle of too much imagination and too little typing.

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    1. Oh yes, I do that, too. My mind whirls with future scenes and story ideas. The only thing I have under control is setting time aside to read blogs. I usually let them sit in my notification box until my scheduled time.

      Thanks for sharing your experience and letting me know I’m not alone.

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    1. That word processing machine is a great idea, Jill. Sometimes I research the novel as I go along. I know people who say they mark the spots on their rough drafts where they need to do research and go back to fill those spots in after they get finished. Sometimes I feel stuck if I can’t get the researched info in there as I go along. But, the vicious circle takes me back into all the corners of the internet universe. 😛

      Thank you for sharing your experience and what you’ve done that helped. I will definitely keep that in mind.

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  11. It isn’t just you. I write, then I research, then I find something interesting on one of the news websites and before you know it I am looking at websites about celebrities that haven’t aged well. A.D.D. in life and in writing – what’s a person to do?

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    1. I thought you might be able to relate, Angela, yet you get so much more done than I. You are ahead of me by about 100 books. Okay, so I’m exaggerating, but it might as well be. 😉 I do admire your work ethic. I don’t sit down to write as often as you. My own fault.

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    1. I know, I should go offline, but I use the internet for thesaurus and research as I go along, which is also distracting. It’s a never ending circle I tell you. 😛 Thanks for sharing your experience.

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