Writing is a workout for your brain, and I think we can all agree that working out is hard. So today it feels appropriate that I pull some lessons from my physical fitness journey into the writing journey – though it’s hard to say; it might have begun in the writing journey and crossed over into the physical fitness journey. But without further ado, let’s talk about three things I learned in the gym that I use to help me find motivation for writing and how I work through lack of motivation for those days when nothing can get me hype to write.  

Some days, I don’t work out until ten or eleven o’ clock at night. I’m tired. I’m probably sore from leg day or from riding five horses. And I swear those are always the days when my coach decides to add more weight to my lifts. No amount of positive talk or hype music can make that seem desirable to me in that moment, so I have to acknowledge that this is going to suck and I’m going to be better for it. When I have eight reps of the most weight I’ve ever deadlifted or bench pressed in my life, I know it’s going to hurt. There is no point in lying to myself. So embrace the fact that it’s going to burn like hell and that it will be making you better the whole time.  

Writing is hard. And there are those days when no amount of strategy or reward can make it seem appealing. You may be truly burnt out, which is when a break will do you good. But most likely this is a moment when you simply have to embrace the burn and write anyway. With no motivation. With no excitement. Acknowledging that this moment won’t be fun, that it will be character-building and muscle-building, makes it bearable. Every day won’t be skipping through a field of daises singing the “hills are alive with the sound of music.” Tough days happen, and it doesn’t mean you’re a failure or that you did anything wrong. It means you’re pushing your limits in the best way and that growth is coming.  

Growth can be almost as scary as failure. Picture me in front of that barbell again. The coach just upped the weight for my bench press although my chest is already burnt out from pushups. I use digital weight, so I have to press a button to turn it on. Not a single cell in my body feels emotionally prepared to feel that weight. I’ve learned to just press the button anyway, because the truth of the matter is that you’re never going to feel ready.  

There will probably be days when you don’t feel ready to write. You want to work on your outline a little more. You want to do more market research. Let go of the myth that you will ever be perfectly prepared. If I waited until I felt physically, emotionally, and mentally prepared to up my game, I’d never do it. I’d always want to prep for one more day; I’d want to hold off for just five more seconds. Sometimes, you just have to press the button and see what happens.  

What if the thing that happens is that you can’t do it? I overloaded that selfsame bench press one day and my muscles failed me three reps in. I could not lift that bar to save my life. The machine realized I’d tapped out and dropped the weight off, so I wasn’t pinned. I took fifteen pounds off, gave myself a pep talk, and went again. I didn’t have to get my feelings hurt. I didn’t have to get upset and quit because I’d failed at something. Why? Because there is no point of no return.  

We’re writers, not brain surgeons! Worst case scenario, we throw away some pages and have to write them again. We have all the leeway in the universe to make mistakes, to start over, to redo, to test the waters and just see what happens with zero consequences. Some days, I know I have to go for a run, but I don’t feel like I can do it. I tell myself ‘Let’s just go for a little bit and I can quit if I want.’ I’ve never quit in the middle of a run. Just knowing that I can quit if I want, that there’s a way out if I really can’t do it, makes me confident enough to finish. I find that same safety in tinkering with story lines, changing plot points, etc. I can always quit. I can always go back. With an endless supply of redo’s, you never have to be afraid to try something new.  

I hope this helps you change your mindset when you’re facing those tough writing days. For those times when you have to write without motivation, when writer’s block is holding you hostage, or when it feels like writing is just too hard, remember to embrace the burn and go for it anyway.