Procrastination can be disguised. You can fool yourself into believing that what you're doing is not a waste of time. I've got this down to an art form. It takes me a minute to realize it once I'm engaged, but then, like a smack to the face, it confronts me and I can no longer continue with the masquerade.
For example, I just finished two stories; one is being published at the end of the month and the other is pending approval. I have a 6-week deadline for another story that I'm hoping will make it into yet another anthology toward the end of the year, another story for another later deadline, and soon after I'm toying with the idea of starting a novel. Normally, of course, one would get out the word processor, notebook, laptop, or what have you and commence to writing, but me...I call on my procrastination to distract me but in a guise that appears to look like my procrastination is serving an important purpose.
Allow me to summarize. Instead of writing, I'm researching. I'm looking into marketing, networking, other places to submit future stories (stories that aren't done yet, mind you). The knowledge is helpful, yes, but at this point it is not necessary. Heck, I was even toying around with the author page options on Amazon, and a book with my name in it isn't even out yet. I do the same thing with my hobbies. Instead of painting I will research other paintings, or the subject of which I am painting. Instead of writing a song, I'll jump on youtube and watch others play songs. This can often kill the original inspiration and I will find myself not even partaking in what I was so excited to start in the first place.
A lot of effort goes into my non-effort, and here I am telling you about it instead of writing.
For example, I just finished two stories; one is being published at the end of the month and the other is pending approval. I have a 6-week deadline for another story that I'm hoping will make it into yet another anthology toward the end of the year, another story for another later deadline, and soon after I'm toying with the idea of starting a novel. Normally, of course, one would get out the word processor, notebook, laptop, or what have you and commence to writing, but me...I call on my procrastination to distract me but in a guise that appears to look like my procrastination is serving an important purpose.
Allow me to summarize. Instead of writing, I'm researching. I'm looking into marketing, networking, other places to submit future stories (stories that aren't done yet, mind you). The knowledge is helpful, yes, but at this point it is not necessary. Heck, I was even toying around with the author page options on Amazon, and a book with my name in it isn't even out yet. I do the same thing with my hobbies. Instead of painting I will research other paintings, or the subject of which I am painting. Instead of writing a song, I'll jump on youtube and watch others play songs. This can often kill the original inspiration and I will find myself not even partaking in what I was so excited to start in the first place.
A lot of effort goes into my non-effort, and here I am telling you about it instead of writing.
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