Motivation

I have none. Seriously. There seem to be too many projects/errands that need to get done and I'm exhausted! So...one way to motivate myself to write is to take the advice of one of my fellow RWA members who gave a presentation in January on the subject.

Multi-published Romance author Lynn Crain brought each one of us a tiny notebook, like these...



And shared her secret to motivating herself. She has about 4 different notebooks that she uses for every project, but her motivation notebook seems to be her favorite. She shared from inside this little square motivating quotations, stories, lists and experiences that she refers to every time she needs a little pick me up.

From that presentation on I've been carrying around my little notebook and paging through it often these days. Here are a couple examples from mine:

When refering to research, synopsis, query: If you want to be an author, wouldn't you want to do it right?

When referring to school: You are in school to get that credential, to get noticed, and to be a professional.

From a feminist text I read for school: "Write! Writing is for you, you are for you; your body is yours, take it." -Helene Cixous, The Laugh of the Medusa.

Song: "Firework" by Katy Perry

Three tips to combat stress: 1. Time management 2. Eat right 3. Exercise

Top 5 Creative Writing Tips (I don't remember where I found these): 1. Write first, revise later 2. Show, don't tell 3. Start in the right place 4. Find trusted readers to give feedback 5. Read

When referring to genre hoping when writing: "You're the artist-it's your job to write what you love." -Anna

So what motivates you? Do quotations and a little book help or hinder your progress?