January 20, 2020
What are your top three distractions and how do you deal with them?
Did I get a new email? What’s the latest reddit post? Are the clothes ready to move to the dryer yet? And what’s for supper? Oh, did I remember to set the alarm so I get to work on time tomorrow? What’s that? My daughter wants to video-chat?
Distractions! They’re everywhere!
Which explains why my most productive time is later at night when all the interruptions of the day can be set aside. No phone calls, email done and done, social media satisfied. Nothing but music in my headset and words on the screen.
But what are my top three?
First off, family. As they should be. They are my priority. Their needs come before my writing. Their wants are negotiable. My wants come first sometimes, and that’s okay. Whether things like laundry and cleaning are needs or wants is up for discussion, and may depend upon how well my writing is going.
How to I deal with this distraction? Honestly? It depends. Sometimes with a smile, other times with a sigh. It’s not one I can avoid. Nor do I want to. Avoid it, that is.
Second distraction. Work. Is that considered a distraction or an obligation? I am getting paid well, and it supports my writing, but wouldn’t it be great if I didn’t have to plan my life around it? But until I write that million-copy bestseller, work is part of my life. Thankfully, my boss understands if I occasionally take a moment to deal with writing “stuff” while I’m on the job. (From his point of view, my writing is the distraction!)
Last and probably the worst on my list of distraction. Social media. Any of it. All of you knew that was coming, right? It’s a necessary evil for an indie author, but man, it can be a time-killer. I love seeing all the cool pictures other authors post; but that doesn’t get a book written. Reading reddit forums can generate new book ideas, or just waste time. There are a lot of good podcasts out there, but it’s like mining for gold to get useful information from many of them.
But out of all three distractions on the list, this is the one I can actually control. I can disconnect from the wifi, or unplug the network cable. Chances are, I won’t do that.
I can use self-control. You know, only visit the pages I need for research. And only until I find what I needed to know. It’s possible, but hard.
And the winner is, I use surfing as a reward. I get so many paragraphs written, and I get to visit a “fun” page. I finish editing a chapter, and I take time to read some of the newsletters I signed up for from other authors. (I’ve got to cut back on those. You send a newsletter once a month? Cool. Once a week? Okay. Every two or three days? Overkill. Bye-bye!)
That’s my top three distractions, but I’ll give you a bonus one. Playing games on the computer. (Not the cool ones, I’m talking solitaire-type games.) Playing one or two rounds of a difficult game can help me focus my thoughts when I get stuck in a story. It’s more of a tool than a distraction, although it wouldn’t seem so to a casual observer.
That’s my list. What’s on yours? Follow the links below and see what distractions the other authors on this hop deal with.
January 20, 2020
What are your top three distractions and how do you deal with them?
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Ha ha, two of yours are the same as mine. My kids have left home, otherwise I’d never get anything done!
But there’s always the phone calls to gab about whatever is happening!
I have boys. I think it’s the girls who chatter. When my sons call me, they usually want something!
My three girls chatter between themselves all the time, even though one is in Australia. There phones are always engaged and when we’re together they receive text messages constantly. Their conversations did provide me with inspiration for Andorra Pett though, so I’m not complaining.
I’m not a chatterer, but my daughter-in-laws are and so are my granddaughters. I think I’m a throwback.
I’m not one who can be on the phone for a long time. But video calls work for me. I can handle talking to someone “in person.” better. I guess seeing their faces makes it a more personal connection.
Social is a huge time suck! And, yeah, I do the games too when I really need a more or less mindless a-musement (not thinking). Supposedly it’s good for the neuro-synapses.
It’s not so much that games are mindless; they use a different part of the brain. I think that helps the creative side a chance to refresh.
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Family is a welcome distraction, it’s always a pleasure to hear from one of my children. I’m trying to wean myself away from so much social media, it’s easy when all Facebook shows me are adverts for courses on how to sell books. Perhaps they’re trying to tell me something?
It’s like podcasts- everybody is doing the same thing for marketing, so only a few have any success.
It looks like we all suffer from the same distractions or life problems. We must be very determined and dedicated to get our writing done all the same.