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Writer's pictureS. A. Crow

How to Sail the Motivation Sea

Remember there is an ebb and flow to motivation.


Millions or maybe billions of people have the dream to write, whether it’s writing a blog, columns for news outlets, or the great novel. Sadly despite the strength of their dreams they either never truly start

or find themselves lost on the sea of motivation. Today we are going to discuss some ways you can navigate this sea and sail safely to your writing destination. We will cover the controversial topic of writing everyday, things to try when you have no motivation at all to write, and ways to reignite your motivation. If you are looking for a motivation to write this is the post for you. I have to admit it ties into my As the Crow Flies 1-on-1 author mentorship program, if you missed sign up, don’t worry our next program will be in June. Look for more information on it in May.


If you're looking for a motivation to write, the best method to ensure you end up with something that lets you be proud to call your own is to do these things:



So why would there be controversy over the idea of writing everyday, after all Ray Bradbury said: “Just write every day of your life.” Well there are a few authors that unlike Stephen King take some time off and spend it with family. I personally am taking a bit of a break from “author writing” instead I am focusing my attention towards my business needs, after writing two books in a row. Now when I am focused on a book I don’t write everyday either. I treat my writing like a business and write Monday through Friday and take the weekend off and let my brain relax, or should I say naw at a problem and spend a bit of time with the people in my life that mean the most to me. But, writing everyday, even if it is just a paragraph a day is a admirable practice especially if you have a full time job on top of writing. Here are a few tips for daily writing inspired by Writer’s Digest’s article by Courtney Carpentar about the book Writer with a Day Job by Aine Greaney.

  • Put a reminder to write in your calendar or an alarm on your phone

  • Pick that spot to write even if you wouldn’t think it would work. Michelle McNamara wrote about writing in her daughter's playroom after everyone had gone to bed in her novel I’ll Be Gone in the Dark

  • Tell the people that care about you that your writing everyday, one good reason is that you will either be in the zone or a crying mess at some point.

  • Silence that phone, wait for the kids to be in bed, if you can’t stand quite use music, basically get rid of distractions you know will keep you from writing.

  • Set little goals, I set a timer even on the bad days. I tell myself all I have to do is write to that timer and then I can do whatever it is I really want to do.

  • Remember the most important rule. Your first draft only has to exist. It doesn’t and won’t be amazing, more than likely it will be crap and that is a good thing. Anyone can write crap but they don’t have the guts to do it.


  • Think about why you want to write. Why are you putting yourself through this? What did you want out of it?

  • Spend some time with your characters. Take them out on a date, put them in situations that have nothing to do with the story your writing. What would they be like if you met them in the line at the store or if you had a flat tire.

  • Do something fun, create a book cover in my favorite design site and where I created my own book covers Canva


And finally ways to reignite your motivation when you are completely lost at sea. Annabel Candy with WritetoDone wrote the article 6 Proven Ways to Re-ignite your Writing Motivation


  • Do something to motivate you after all it is your story and only you can write it, talk to friends about it, set up a beta read on the material you have already, join a writers group.

  • Create a little imaginary stress of a deadline for yourself. Set a date when you want to finish the first draft, imagine that you have a publisher waiting for your novel and they gave you an advance. Some people do their best work under pressure of a deadline.

  • Give it as much commit as you would a relationship, because it is a relationship. Maybe go on a personal writing retreat, maybe that will be a later blog post.

  • Really examine how you spend your time and what distractions keep you from doing what you want. Personally I have turned off notification on my phone from the major social media apps.

  • Reward yourself for milestones. I admit I am horrible at rewards. One I am a struggling artist and small business owner so funds are low for me and I don’t see the things other would as rewards. Whatever your rewards are make a list for each milestone.

  • Try getting a writing buddy, someone that will ask you how it is going and you will do the same for them. Sometimes it helps to know that you aren’t alone on this journey.


Now that you know how to sail the motivation sea, you're ready to start writing without worrying about what will happen when the ebb in the tide comes.


Giveaway ending January 31, 2019

Giveaway for How to Master the Book-end Revision Technique E-book is ending at the end of this month. Head over to Instagram and search for @crowshirley look for this graphic on my profile and posts follow the instructions and you could be a winner.











About to start As the Crow Flies with clients

My business Blackbird Life Coaching just made a trailer for our podcast

Looking forward to further Live Stream Author Talks on both Facebook and Instagram check them out ever Tuesday.

Reading and knitting in my spare time.


How is your Goodreads 2019 Reading Challenge going I am currently reading:



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