Scribus Interruptus

This story starts and ends with a kid. Had I not had my kid, I probably would never have decided to just sit down and start a blog one day. Before my kid (and by extension, my blog), I had been used to long stretches of time to do whatever I wanted. Unfortunately, I wasted most of that time just screwing around on the internet. I had to learn to hustle a lot more to make ends meet and make the family financially sound, but I couldn’t bring myself to just do more mindless work and my schedule was chaos.

I am very much a creature of habit. I want to just sit down and do whatever given task and just knock it out in one go. When I start a task, I want to see it through. Unfortunately, having a kid doesn’t really lend itself to that. Most of my blog entries are stop and go affairs interrupted by someone throwing up (at least it’s not in reaction to me), or by literal crap.

I may be a creature of habit, but I’m also a finisher. If I start a task, I need to finish it. I had to learn a lot more and get a lot better at not just writing, but time management, prioritization, and focus in order to keep up with the pitter-patter of little feet. By focusing on the process itself, I can get back to where I was quickly. Restricting the process ends up ironically making it freer.

Finding the Rhythm

One of the hardest parts of writing is finding the rhythm. The rhythm is more mechanical and the flow is more organic as far as I’m concerned. The contrast between the rhythm and the flow creates the subtle movement which I need to make my work move forward. But, to even get near the flow, I need to be able to tap into the mindset to just write and find my rhythm.

You know what the easiest way to find a rhythm is? To cheat and use something premade. If I can’t do it on the fly, I plan it in advance. There are days I get 5 minutes without distractions if I’m lucky, so I need to spend my free time planning what I’m going to write and how. Creating a plan means I create a framework I can call on to know what each paragraph and sentence is for.

A plan doesn’t just mean detailed notes and all of that. Why are you writing? What is the purpose of the article? What question are you trying to answer? Who is it for? You need to know, and internalize, all of this. If you can’t internalize it, give yourself a shorthand to tap back in. Some people would argue this tramples on the creative process, but there can’t really be a creative process without something to create.

I’ve been interrupted at least twice by this point while writing this paragraph (three times if you count editing). My little girl learned how to slam a shelf (the whole thing) into a wall.

My trick to keep going is to have a plan for my rhythm. I plan out what I’m writing about in general, as well as the rough points I’m making to get me there. If the rhythm is predictable, it’s easy to make it to the next beat, and at worst you skip a measure. You can always go back later and spice it up, and if not, just make it that much more impressive for the melody or the rest of the track and use the solid rhythm to hold it all together.

Finding the Flow

I just heard the glorious sound of a shelf slamming against a wall again. I haven’t quite lost my flow though. The rhythm is keeping me going since I know what I’m writing, who it’s for, and why. The more regular the beat, the easier it is to get back into.

You base the rhythm off of the interaction between the drum and bass in most music, and you base the flow off of the rhythm. Once you have the rhythm, it’s much easier to get back in the flow, especially if you know what and why you’re writing. The flow in writing is the tone and the natural connectedness of each idea. When you don’t flow, your writing becomes stiff and unnatural.

If I do lose my flow between the sounds of a screaming child and the rest of the chaos that is life, I try to just find the beat and just write. The trick here is to accept that you may not write anything relevant to the current piece or worth keeping at all. You might be a measure or two off in your writing. I keep these types of writings and usually end up using them for something down the line, or as a stepping stone to something better.

If you lose your flow, just start writing. Go over what the purpose of the section is, or document in general, and see if you can’t capture a piece of it. It might end up being an improv section which is thrown out, it might be the catalyst to something better, and it might be exactly what you need. Don’t necessarily start where you were, just write. Focus on the process for productivity.

Finding the Right Notes

Let’s go for broke on the music metaphor here. You need the right notes to make this whole thing work. You need to figure out what the rhythm of the piece is going to be, you need a natural flow to make it have the right movement, but you also need to know what milestones you’re aiming for and how to make it more than a backing track. All of this becomes what is going to make your piece worth caring about.

I focus on making notes which give me the goal of what the piece is. I dive down into what each section should contain, and then further divvy it into topics I brainstorm. Think of it like counterpoint in music, give yourself some fixed “correct” notes for certain topics, even if they’re stiff, and fill in the rest. At least part of it will be “right” and it’s hard to get too far off track.

It’s like a blues pattern, you aren’t going to have an original progression, and a lot of parts will be more or less fixed, but what’s in between is what makes the song special. If you clamp down too hard and rigid, you end up losing the flow again because you have a specific idea which may float off. Scaffold the key notes and improvise the rest naturally.

Finding the Right Time

It’s pretty cliché to say, “wait until the right moment to write.” If you’re going to be inundated with interruptions though, it’s pointless (and even counterproductive) to try and be productive. Sit and spend time with your kid if they’re banging on the office door and wait until you get the time to write. Take that interruption and turn it into something positive.

I try to write when I get time, and I definitely make time to write, but if it isn’t going to happen, it isn’t going to happen. Learn to give up when there’s no point in continuing. You don’t just keep doing the same thing over and over the same way and expect different results. Turn the interruption into a win elsewhere and then wait to write when it makes sense. When life gives you lemons, turn them into something to sell.

Building a habit writing is important, but it can be hard to find the time in a consistent manner. Being consistent is essential, but you can’t always be consistent with the time with a modern family and modern expectations. Be consistent with the process and the results since you can actually control those. If you can control the time, great, but if you can’t, focus on the actual writing process.

When you nail down the process, the rest will fall in place. It might not be as glorious as it would be if everything were perfect, but jumping on a bike for 10 minutes whenever I can is better than just sitting and waiting for the right time to get my ideal 30 minutes in. Capitalize on what you have and not just what you want.

Facing the Music

I couldn’t just end without a music pun after all the work I put into the music metaphor. This method will help you write, but the writing can be a bit inorganic and rigid. The trick is to use the method and either write and rewrite, or else edit heavily. Structure and scaffolding makes for a safer approach, and makes the results more consistent at the expense of just doing things on the fly.

As you internalize these processes, it gets easier and easier to adapt and do things without as much planning. You can throw out what you planned and adapt, or you can go a different direction. No plan will survive an encounter with the enemy, but I’d much rather have a plan even if I know it’s subject to change.

Conclusion

If you’re struggling with interruptions, be they internal or external, try focusing on a ground up approach for your writing. This approach seems commonsense, but to truly internalize and ritualize it is much harder. Focus more on what you’re doing and why.

Plan out the rhythm of the piece. Figure out the purpose of the piece, who it’s too, and why you’re writing it. Once you have a solid rhythm, find the flow. If you lose it, follow the rhythm and planning to get back to where you were. Don’t be afraid to throw things out. Make sure your notes are solid, both the backing to your piece and what you write to keep track of what you’re doing. Don’t try and write when it’s not going to accomplish anything. You’ll just get frustrated and waste time.

Having a kid has forced me to follow this for far more than just writing, but the techniques work and they work well. A lot of people are afraid to restrict the creative process for fear of it choking the life out their work, but sometimes you need a crutch to walk. Without scaffolding my process, I’d end up with a whole lot of nothing.

Featured image by HeungSoon from Pixabay