I've been unproductive lately (No big surprise) and felt that I needed a confidence booster. I wrote up these ten creeds and proudly display them in front of my monitor, reading over them for inspiration. I've decided to make following this list my long-term goal, and hopefully it inspires others.
1. You have permission to write utter, deplorable crap, so long as you get something done.
2. You have permission to write whatever you want - Prose, poetry, journal, blog - and in any genre you want, so long as you get something done.
3. You have permission to excuse yourself from quality, as you're still new at this game, so long as you get something done.
4. You will not fear critique, knowing that you can't please everybody anyway, so long as you get something done.
5. You will schedule yourself a specific block of time when you absolutely must write, and then write on creative epiphanies later, so long as you get something done.
6. You will read anything you get your hands on, from authors familiar and unfamiliar, and then you will use them as inspiration to write something better, so long as you get something done.
7. You will listen to your characters and tell their tales as truthfully as possible, regardless if you have absolutely no idea how to go about it, so long as you get something done.
8. You have permission to remain humble and occasionally dejected, remembering that a wise man once said that confidence is a consolation prize to those less talented, so long as you get something done.
9. You have permission to place your rejection letters in a folder marked "Rejects" and compare it to a folder marked "Accepted." Your reject folder will be a lot thicker at first, but eventually your accepted folder will be thick enough, but never quite thicker than the reject, that you can live with it, and it doesn't matter, so long as you get something done.
10. You will never quit this game because you love it with all your heart, and nothing else matters so long as you get something done.
The Ten Creeds of Writing
1. You have permission to write utter, deplorable crap, so long as you get something done.
2. You have permission to write whatever you want - Prose, poetry, journal, blog - and in any genre you want, so long as you get something done.
3. You have permission to excuse yourself from quality, as you're still new at this game, so long as you get something done.
4. You will not fear critique, knowing that you can't please everybody anyway, so long as you get something done.
5. You will schedule yourself a specific block of time when you absolutely must write, and then write on creative epiphanies later, so long as you get something done.
6. You will read anything you get your hands on, from authors familiar and unfamiliar, and then you will use them as inspiration to write something better, so long as you get something done.
7. You will listen to your characters and tell their tales as truthfully as possible, regardless if you have absolutely no idea how to go about it, so long as you get something done.
8. You have permission to remain humble and occasionally dejected, remembering that a wise man once said that confidence is a consolation prize to those less talented, so long as you get something done.
9. You have permission to place your rejection letters in a folder marked "Rejects" and compare it to a folder marked "Accepted." Your reject folder will be a lot thicker at first, but eventually your accepted folder will be thick enough, but never quite thicker than the reject, that you can live with it, and it doesn't matter, so long as you get something done.
10. You will never quit this game because you love it with all your heart, and nothing else matters so long as you get something done.
