Beginning to Write

Beginning a writing project is often the most difficult part of the writing process. Just getting those first few words on paper can seem impossible. This is because, as writers, we often focus on the end product instead of the process. Writing is process in its purest form and finding value in the process is what writers must learn to do. The reason we struggle with those first few words is because we already have the finished product firmly set in our minds and the gigantic leap we must make from that first word to the finished project overwhelms us. We are defeated before we have even started. Learning to enjoy the process involves focusing on one word, one sentence, one paragraph at a time. Just writing from one sentence to the next, one paragraph to the next, without thinking about the end result, will eventually find us at the end. This is how runners finish a race - one stride, one stretch of ground at a time, until suddenly the finish line is in sight. The smart runner, the enduring runner, has envisioned the next step and the next step and the next step in his mind, but never the end of the race. Likewise, the wise writer focuses on the next word, not the finished work. Allow yourself to linger in the process of writing and you will find it easier to reach your goals.