A Pep Talk Against Distractions

Good morning friends.

What are your distractions in your life right now preventing you from writing?

Is it the television, is it the internet, is it the state of the union? Is it a noisy neighbor, is it a complicated friend, is it a person in your life who needs something that only you can give? Is it the heat, is it the rain, are you simply dehydrated? Is it the sound of voices from long ago that you still can’t shake, telling you that you can’t or your voice or story isn’t important enough? Or is it just that one song playing in your head over and over again that you can’t seem to get rid of?

All these distractions are working against you, and yet I know there is somehow still a small voice in you that is going to lead you through this tunnel of noise to the other side of it. Where there’s a place for you to sit, quietly, even if it’s just for an hour, with your laptop or your pen and paper. Where you can collect your thoughts and have a moment for yourself where you can just write.

When I imagine this place for myself, it’s just a simple table and a chair and a pretty little backyard and a gentle wind blowing in the trees. I carry that image with me and I try to channel it even in the midst of all the distractions. It’s just the place I can go to in my head. And then I can write.

This morning, maybe take a second to picture your perfect writing spot. It’s actually kind of a pleasure, isn’t it? And I honestly believe in the end achieving it is just a state of mind. (Even if you might have to buy some earplugs to get there.)

As for me, my distraction this morning is this newsletter. Even though I love to write it, I’ve got bigger fish to fry at the moment. So I’m going back to work now on the revisions of my first 100 pages.

But I’ve got some news to discuss first and then I’ll see you next week.

Big news #1: There will be a Mini #1000wordsofsummer on Labor Day weekend. Five days, five thousand words. You can find the full details here. This is our last chance to write together this year. I’m psyched. Let’s get some work done.

Big news #2: I will have more tour dates for A Reason to See You Again to announce in the future but I wanted to point out a few events that are ticketed, so you may want to get them sooner rather than later.

1. My Brooklyn novel launch at St. Ann’s Church with the glamorous and charming Mary H.K. Choi and hosted by my pals Books Are Magic will be on September 24. Mary is an incredible writer and interviewer and I am thrilled to have her join me. Tickets are available here and if you can’t make it, you can pre-order a signed copy here.

2. If you’re in Ireland (!), I will be doing two appearances at the Write By the Sea festival in the beautiful fishing village of Kilmore Quay on September 28. One of them will be a #1000wordsofsummer creativity talk and write-along. I think the class is limited to about 20 people. More details here.

3. I will finally be doing some events in my hometown of Chicago after five years away. I am excited about this master class I am doing on October 29 with Story Studio Chicago and Exile in Bookville. This is going to be one of my last events of the tour and I will be happy to see all of you and hear about your lives and your projects and answer whatever questions you might have. It’s going to be great. Tickets here.

OK. Stay steady, my buddies. And good luck with your work this week.

Jami

You are reading Craft Talk, the home of #1000wordsofsummer and also a weekly newsletter about writing from Jami Attenberg. I’m also on twitter and instagram.