Endurance

Enduring in the world of writing is a lot like extreme sports. An Ironman event consist of a long swim followed by an even longer bike ride, finishing with a marathon distance run. Just completing is a victory!
     The same can be said of writing. Starting is easy…anyone can do it but finishing..ahhhh…that's the hard part! Professional athletes know that preparation is the key to success. The biggest challenge lies in the execution of the plan. Training consistently is the golden rule in every professional endeavor.
When writing we often start strong, the ideas quickly  translating onto that blank page. In my experience what can and does happen as the story progresses is that the flow slows or even stops. Our energies are diverted elsewhere by the day to day demands of living and working. When that happens we need to look closely at our process and determine a realistic response to get back on track.
     So how do we increase our mental muscles? Writers training can be as grueling as the physical disciplines. The same three basics apply. Diet, repetition and ATTITUDE! Lets take a look at some applications shall we?
     Diet. Are you reading in your genre to see whats current? Are you balancing that with new and perhaps previously unexplored areas? Are you doing the research to keep topic grounded and relatable? Most importantly in your writers diet are you attending seminars or conferences to improve your talents and build those ever important connections?
     Repetition. The grind of meeting your daily goal is often times more daunting than that trip to the gym. It's soooo easy to put it off for a day…or two…or even a week! That blank page can become a vortex, building quickly into a tsunami of epic proportions. If you're not meeting your prescribed goals then reevaluate them. Its better to reduce the word count than to berate yourself for failing to meet it!
     Attitude. The holy grail of life itself! Our attitude determines the eventual outcome of all our efforts. Staying positive will make writing as it should be…fun! Whether dealing with demanding schedules, physical ailments or publishing challenges the perspective you bring controls the ultimate outcome….focus on crossing the finish line…then coming in first place is simply a matter of time!