I’m sitting here today, wondering what to write about. Should I go with subplots? Maybe cliffhangers? I already have those posts ready, but the truth is, I’m just not feeling them. The spark that drove me to write them isn’t there anymore.
Has that ever happened to you? You start something, you’re excited about it, and then… nothing.
We’re told all the time: write every day, batch your content so you have something ready for the days you don’t feel like writing. That advice has its place, but here’s the thing, writing isn’t just about consistency. It’s about drive. It’s about your why.
Why do you write? What motivates you? Is it to fill the void with noise, or because you have something worth saying?
Readers don’t pick up a book to understand the author’s frame of mind. They pick it up to experience the frame of mind of the characters. They want to lose themselves in the fictional world you’ve built. Some read to escape reality (that’s me), others to cure boredom, and some because they’re seeking something very specific.
As writers, it’s our job to deliver the experience they’re looking for. If we can’t pull ourselves out of our own lives and into the lives of our characters, we won’t give readers what they came for.
Your book isn’t the place to unload your own baggage. It’s the place to escape, and to take your reader with you.
Getting Into The Mindset
If you want to give your readers what they’re looking for, you need to get into the mindset of a writer.
I hear the same advice over and over: set a routine, write every day, and eventually it will become a habit. Stephen King is a perfect example. He wakes up, grabs a coffee, and writes 2,000 words a day, every single day, including holidays. He just sits down and gets on with it. He shuts the door, both physically and metaphorically, creating a dedicated, distraction-free space where the act of closing the door signals it’s time to work. When the door is shut, the outside world fades away. It’s just you and the words. Sounds great on paper. The problem? Life doesn’t always play nice with routines.
The truth is, writing every day does work. What doesn’t work is deciding, “I’m going to write every day at 5 p.m.”, and then never actually doing it because life gets in the way. Something will interrupt you, a child, a spouse, a parent, a sibling, a friend, a neighbor, your boss. Someone will always need something.
So instead of trying to force a perfect routine that collapses the first time your day goes sideways, start smaller.
Step One: Get Comfortable With the Time You Have
Don’t start by locking yourself into a rigid schedule. Start by finding a time of day when you’re least likely to be interrupted.
For you, that might be early morning before the house wakes up. For someone else, it might be late at night when everyone’s winding down. It might even be a random pocket in the middle of the afternoon when nobody’s looking for you.
Start with just 15 minutes. You can set a timer if you want, but here’s the thing… once you get going, you’ll probably forget all about it.
The goal isn’t to finish a scene or hit a word count. The goal is to make that time yours.
Step Two: Find Your Trigger
Before you can write, you have to signal to your brain, We’re doing this now. That’s your trigger.
For me, it’s a playlist with over a hundred songs that run for about six hours. When I hear those songs in the background, my focus snaps into place. The noise in my head quiets. I’m not thinking about the laundry or the emails I haven’t answered. I’m thinking about the page.
Your trigger might be a song, an affirmation, a cup of coffee in a particular mug, a candle you light, or simply the act of sitting down at your desk and opening your document.
It doesn’t matter what it is. What matters is that your brain learns to associate it with writing.
Step Three: Step Into Character
This is where mindset shifts everything.
Before you start, do one thing: say to yourself, I’m not me. I’m my character. My problems are not my character’s problem. My life is not my character’s life.
Take a deep breath. Let go of your own life for a little while. Imagine what they’re feeling, what they’re noticing, what they want in that moment. Then open your document and find the best possible way to pull your reader into that experience without dragging your own personal baggage into the story.
They say, “write what you know.” They don’t say dump your life story onto the page.
When you write from that place, the words feel alive. And when the words feel alive, your readers feel it too.
Why Does It Matter?
Anyone can force themselves to write a scene. Anyone can fill a page with words. But readers can tell the difference between a story written with energy and intention, and one that feels flat or mechanical.
That’s why mindset matters. It’s not about waiting for inspiration. It’s about knowing how to put yourself into the mental and emotional space where you can create it.
Some days, the spark will be there naturally. Other days, you’ll have to light it yourself. But the more you practice stepping into that mindset, the easier it becomes to do it on demand.
And that’s what keeps readers coming back. Not because you posted every day without fail, but because every time they pick up your work, it feels alive.
If you’ve been struggling to write lately, maybe it’s not a lack of discipline… it’s a lack of connection. Find your trigger. Step into your characters. Make that space your own.
Because the truth is, your readers don’t care how you got there. They just care that you take them with you.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.