
It must be the first Wednesday of June, because here I am posting for the Insecure Writer’s Support Group. In addition to the delight of many silly gifs in this post literally no one asked for, you get me as a co-host for the IWSG, along with the wonderful Cathrina Constantine, Natalie Aguirre, Joylene Nowell Butler, and Jacqui Murray!
And our question for this first day of June is: When the going gets tough writing the story, how do you keep yourself writing to the end?

The answer has a lot to do with the dancing stuffy you see here. This is Gritty, the mascot for the Philadelphia Flyers NHL team. Gritty is 7 feet tall, bright orange, and known for doing the unexpected at random times in unanticipated ways.
I’m not saying we should strive to be 7 feet tall and bright orange, but I am saying we could all sometimes use the unexpected and slightly kookoo in our author lives. We can be gritty, in the way a little hard ball of rock sits in a shoe and refuses to be moved. We can be tough, tenacious, and determined.
How do I keep myself writing to the end? Sometimes, I won’t lie, it’s pure, gritted-teeth spite.
There are other methods to keep going, of which I will list a few. Some may resonate with you more than others. If you do end up throwing sweets at strangers, I would like to know how the writing goes afterward. Purely for research purposes, of course.
- You write tenaciously, knowing you will get to THE END because you refuse to live in a universe where you do not finish this damn book and so reality will re-shape itself to your will through pure, unfiltered resolve.
- Pretty sure this is what they call ‘visualization’ or ‘manifestation’ or something.
- Anyway, it’s scientific, and if you can’t trust dodgy internet science facts, what can you trust?
- You write for yourself, adding in all of your favorite tropes and the moments you really want to see. When the going gets tough, you add in any ridiculously self-indulgent thing because it’s your book and you can do what you want.
- YOU ARE THE GOD OF THIS UNIVERSE. MWAHAHAHA.
- You take a break, read other things because they’re inspiring and remind you why you want to write, and then come back with fresh eyes and a new-bleeding heart to splatter on the page.
- Since you’re writing what you would want to read, you start reading from the beginning and realize ‘holy blood of Hawthorne, I really want to know how this ends!’, so you get writing to find out.
- Alternatively, you start reading from the beginning again and realize ‘this is not going in the right direction’ and abort mission. Some projects will need major reconstructive surgery to fix giant plot holes before they can reach the mythical THE END.
- You take a break and give the book to trusted beta readers who will diagnose what’s going wrong, or at least tell you which part bored them so much they stopped reading, and then you know to add some explosions, a kitten or two, and probably aliens. All at once.
- You take a break and read some of your writing manuals for a bit of a kick in the pants and to gain ideas for hurdling over that saggy middle.
- A lot of these are following a theme, and that theme is taking a break.
- My writing breaks are usually filled with my day job, and boring things like paying bills on time and cleaning the toilet, and honestly by the time that part is over I’m genuinely glad to escape back to my alternate reality.
- So yay for the impetus that is fantasizing? I guess?
- Fuck it. Escapism is a coping skill.
- And if the choice is between living in a rapidly deteriorating capitalist hellscape or writing escapist fluff, BRING ON THE FLUFF, I SAY.

This is an awesome list! Must bear in mind my godlike powers!
It’s hard to be in the doldrums when you remember you are a literal creator of universes!
Unexpected and slightly kookoo — I love it. Thanks for co-hosting!
Or full on kookoo. Whichever works best!
Wonderful post! “Holy blood of Hawthorne” is my new favorite phrase. And yes, bring on the fluff. If I want serious, I’ll read the news.
Seriously! There’s enough bad out there. I don’t need to go looking for it.
Love your list!
Thank you!
I love living in fluff, far, far away from everything that is too real. Why I write and continue to write. 🙂
<a href=”http://emaginette.wordpress.com”> Anna from elements of emaginette</a>
Sending you a digital fluffy club high five!
Those are some pretty good writing tips. I’m all for fluff when you put it in the context you did. And as far as taking breaks go, I’m all for them. Now if I’d do less TV and more reading maybe I’d do more writing. Maybe. Maybe not.
Arlee Bird
<a href=”http://tossingitout.blogspot.com/”>Tossing It Out</a>
As you say, maybe. Maybe not. But TV can be good for critiquing the screenwriting and seeing where they’re going right, or wrong. So it’s research, in a way!
I think there’s something here for everyone. The good thing about toilet cleaning is it’s mindless and you can fix your plot holes at the same time!
If I must look at it in a positive light, I guess that works. LOL
Hilarious! Thanks for a much-needed laugh. And I whole-heartedly (whole-buttedly?) endorce dance breaks. Good for getting the blood from the seat back up to the brain.
Whole-buttedly! I love it. Thank you for stopping by today 🙂
Yes, S.E., we are the God of our stories. Yay! But who said being God was easy? Nuts! Not me. You are right. We could all “sometimes use the unexpected and slightly kookoo” in our stories to make them unique.
I love Gritty! He cracks me up. I hope the young man with the pie in his face didn’t get hurt when he fell at the rink. Thank you for co-hosting the IWSG question this month. Have a beautiful day!
Your outline is an illuminating tool.
With more than my share of curveballs and my own brand of quirk, I now breathlessly (well, sort of) await (please be kind,) suggestions from generous beta readers on the general readability of my latest work. It’s not been work at all, really. Until now. Now it’s practically torture. Funny how that goes…
Thanks for co-hosting!
Please be kind, beta readers! It is the writer’s prayer. Hope they have good feedback for you!
Awesome list! I have two words: Alien Kittens. I’d read that book. Thanks for hosting!
Right? Why has that book not been written yet? Happy IWSG day!
I’ve done a few of these things. Sometimes I power through out of pure spite because I refuse to let fictional characters I thought up beat me. hahaha I’ve also sent off the partial manuscript to a few of my trusted readers in hope they can see the forest in a sea of trees. If I’m not on some self-imposed deadline, I have walked away. Given myself time off in hopes less pressure will untangle the knot and clear a path forward. I’m currently stuck on a project I’ve been working on since the beginning of the year. I am quite frustrated with my lack of progress and had to switch gears to give myself the breathing room. Hoping the swerve will help and I’ll get it finished by the end of the year.
I hope so too! Sometimes you just need that different gear to get going again. Good luck with your project!
Lots of good ideas here. I like taking breaks….LOL
Oh me too. It’s sometimes my downfall! Haha
YES! PLEASE, bring on the fluff!!!
::WHOLEHEARTED APPROVAL::
Oh, SE! This is a wonderful post, and exactly it’s what I needed to laugh through this morning. 😂😂😂 Thank you! Thank you! Have lots of fun as you visit around co-hosting today!
So glad you got a laugh! Happy IWSG day.
Ha! Love your gifs. There’s a lot of truth to your methods, and a lot of good stuff to take away. Here’s to hoping for less struggles in writing and more of the easy flow to let us get to the escapism faster.
Thanks for co-hosting!
I am a huge gif fan, for sure. And a Gritty fan, so that works out well!
Escapism! YES! The place we go to write.
It seems to be resonating today! Happy IWSG day 🙂
SE, these are great resources! Thanks for co-hosting. And thanks for sharing your energy. I feel better already.
That is truly the goal with these posts, so I’m glad!
I’ve never heard of Gritty. He’s hilarious! Well worth the price of admission.
He is an internet gem. I was so happy to find that mascot!
Thank you for giving us this list and for co-hosting. YOU ARE THE GOD OF THIS UNIVERSE. I love this. I’m going to say this to myself over and over again.
Go big and get it written on a plaque for the wall. Why not? You are the god of your writing universe, after all.
I’ve been taking a break for too long. I like your advice. Finding out how the story ends ranks pretty high with me. Thanks for cohosting this month.
I hope you’re able to find out how it ends. That’s my favorite part, sometimes!
You’ve listed a few strategies I like to use. And thanks for hosting today!
Oh good! It’s not just me 🙂 Happy IWSG Day.
I also have had to take many breaks because of my job and family, but I wouldn’t have had it any other way. Taking breaks can help. I’ve been writing for 30 minutes four to five days a week and submitting a chapter a month to my critique group. It’s helped me make progress even when I didn’t want to.
That accountability! It sound terrifying, but I’m glad it’s working for you.
This was a thoroughly enjoyable post. Thanks for co-hosting!
Thank you! Glad you were able to stop by today.
Hi,
Very interesting take on the prompt. I smiled at some of the suggestions.
Take care and thank you for co-hosting.
Shalom aleichem
If I can get a smile, I consider it a job well done. Thanks for stopping by, Pat!
That made me chuckle! Thanks for co-hosting today.
Always the goal! Thanks for stopping by, Ninja Captain.
Thanks for the list and solutions. My favorite is #12
Something for everyone! LOL. Thank you for stopping by today.
Gritty is fantastic! What a fantastic list, and who could argue that cleaning a toilet will send you rapidly back into your made-up world and made-up people who never have to do anything so mundane. Seriously though, visualising is a powerful tool and one I really should engage with more. Thanks for the reminder.
The mundane is nearly always enough to send me running, it’s true. Happy IWSG day!