Get Started #1: Write For 15 Minutes
This article is for: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced—i.e. ALL of us!
The hardest thing about writing poetry isn't what you think it is. It isn't mastering line breaks, or knowing how to get ideas, or writing stunning lines. It's simply this: getting started.
If you've ever managed to get into a really good writing groove for a while—anything from a couple of days to a few weeks, or even months—then you probably know that writing is easy if you're already writing.
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Once you've got a poem and it's going pretty well, then it's the simplest thing in the world to keep working on it. Images and phrases for the poem you're working on come all the time; if you have problems, solutions occur to you; and you simply can't stop yourself coming up with ideas for new poems as well. You experience the deep, joyful satisfaction of successful creation every day, and you have no concerns about your ability to do it better and better over time.
Sounds like every poet's dream!
But if you're like almost every other writer I know, often you're in the opposite condition: you're stuck.
Far from joyfully creating, it feels impossible that you will ever write anything ever again! What's more, you're pretty convinced that everything you have ever written and could ever write is a load of trash—and really you should just give up on poetry and de-grease that oven you've been ignoring for the last 6 months.
That's a very painful place to be, and you might think this means you're not cut out to be a poet.
No really good, successful writer every felt that way and didn't write anything for a week/a month/a year/a decade—right?
Wrong! This happens to all of us—as soon as we stop writing. And it can also go away, for you—as soon as you start writing again.
You see, your problem is this: you've stopped for long enough to let your fears to get the better of you.
Every creative artist has fears. We all fear that we know nothing, that our work is no good, and that no-one will ever care about it. We can be scared because we’ve got no ideas, or because we’ve got a good idea and we’re afraid to mess it up, or because we just think we don’t know enough about poetry.
At these times, the safest option often seems to be—NOT to write! We tell ourselves we want to, but deep down we don't want to take that risk of failure. So we don't get started. Another frustrating day goes by without you getting a word down.
OK, that's the problem. What's the solution?
Here’s the easiest answer that I know:
Write for just 15 minutes, then stop.
Or 10 minutes, or 20 minutes, or even 5 minutes. The exact amount of time doesn't really matter, so long as it's short. Here’s the method, and it’s one I use all the time.
Pick a time you when can definitely write: when you'll have control over your attention and no other demands.
Set your time limit (I use the timer on my phone, so I don't have to keep track of the time).
Start to write.
When the time is up, you can stop.
No guilt, no feeling that you should have done more, or it isn't enough, or 15 minutes won't get your chapbook manuscript ready: you can just stop, put the poem away, and contentedly go and do something useful, like cleaning that oven or walking the dog.
Next day, do the same thing: another 15 minutes. The next day, another. And so on.
That's it! Nothing else is needed.
Does that sound too simple to help?
Actually, it's a very profound technique that uses three powerful tools to get you writing happily.
Tool 1: You’re Lowering The Stakes
You can't do anything much in 15 minutes, right? So there's no need to worry about what you're writing. Seriously, who could possibly screw up in just 15 minutes, or 10, or 5? All you’re doing is just jotting down some words that might come to nothing and might get thrown away. And that should deactivate your fears: you're off the hook, and hopefully you can start to rediscover what got you into poetry in the first place—the sheer bliss of writing it.
Having said that, don't worry if you feel uncomfortable and stressed the whole time at first. Because it's such a short time, you can still muscle through it. Just write, and don't worry about the quality. Anyone can face writing for 5 minutes, or 10, or 15! And at least you're writing, and over time, it will get easier, because of the next 2 reasons.
Tool 2: You’re Changing Who You Think You Are
15 minutes might be a very short time, but it's not nothing. When the time is over and you close up your laptop or notebook, you can be happy in the knowledge that you have worked on a poem today. Over the course of a few days, this is going to change your ideas of who you are.
You're not a failure—you're working on a poem!
You're not a pathetic wannabe poet—you're a poet who is actually creating a poem, and every day too, forsooth!
In other words, you're learning that your critical voices are wrong, so you can write with joy and freedom.
Tool 3: You’re Feeding Your Unconscious
When you work on something for a short period every day, you give your unconscious mind what it needs to start helping you. Later that day, while you're cooking the dinner or brushing your teeth, your unconscious is still thinking about your poem—and when you next sit down to write, it may well throw you some ideas that totally sweep you away! You'll forget you ever started by thinking your idea was pointless nonsense, and suddenly see why it matters and how it can be shaped. And again, you can write with joy and freedom.
Next Steps:
Pick a time when you can be undisturbed to write.
Pick a time limit and set it on a timer
Start writing!
When the timer goes, you can stop.
Do the same thing tomorrow.
And repeat until you find yourself freed up. It will happen!
