What We Learned from Just Writing

Last week, I held my first Just Write! virtual workshop, and it was such a success that I've decided to hold them regularly.  Not only did the participants write (and come away excited, motivated, and proud of what they had done), but I did as well.  As a matter of fact, the creativity and motivation lasted long after the workshop was over, even inspiring an idea for a book, which I've already started.  Almost unheard of for me!

Here are some of the things we learned from the Just Write! workshop:

• Schedule your writing, and then be in preparation mode before that scheduled time.  We found that when we're in the mindset of what we would be writing, when it comes time to write, we were off and running, not lagging and dragging.
• It was great to feel part of a group and know that others were writing at the same time, even though we had hung up from our hourly check-ins. And it was much less distracting than if we had all been in the same room trying to write and create.
• We protected that time, which was a new experience for some of us.  From hanging up from phone callers to waving people standing in our doorways away, we truly respected this writing time, which meant we were respecting our dreams.
• Writers need support. While writing itself may be a solitary activity, it helps when we have support and understanding, especially from other writers.
• We are our biggest enemy/critic.
• It felt like a luxury to have this time to write, and we reveled in it.
• There are different kinds of writing, and some kinds of writing take different energy.  We followed the energy, even if that meant we changed direction in our original plan.  That meant that what we wrote had a powerful impact, instead of being forced.
• It's important to have a connection to the next writing session, whether that's an outline with the next point to start on, a question to answer, a task to fuflfill, or any next step.

If you'd like to join me for other Just Write! workshops, click here. You can sign up for one, two, three, more, or all workshops in 2011.  And find out what you learn from just writing.