Marg McAlister

Week 1 - Clear the Decks

Did you think I was going to start off by ordering you to sit down and work out a daily timetable for writing? To set some goals? To 'just write' and see what happened?

All of these things have a place in this program, but that's not your starting point. To set worthwhile new habits, you have to get rid of the clutter in your life - mental, physical and emotional.

That's what this week is all about.

You can tackle these three areas in whichever order you like. You might find that the physical effort of creating a writing space (or cleaning up an existing one) gives you time to think about how to prepare yourself mentally and emotionally for your new regime. On the other hand, if you're over-committed, you may need to start phoning around and saying 'no' to people before you get started.

Here's what you need to do to clear the decks. At the end of week 1, you should be ready to embark on your writing program.

Physical Clutter

A: Your Writing Space

Do you have a quiet space to write? Most writers work better with a place that's just for writing. If you work well with family chaos all around you, then by all means go ahead. The main thing is that you establish a writing space that's right for you.

Some points to consider:

• Computer time: you don't want other family members constantly harassing you because they want time on the computer. To write, you need only a very basic computer - and you can download Open Office, an excellent word processor, completely free of charge from www.openoffice.org If you can afford to buy a computer for yourself, a laptop might be a good investment, since you can easily take it to a quiet room or a patio. A laptop is also convenient to take away to writing conferences or meetings.

  You can also think about taking over an older computer for yourself, and investing in a new one for general family use.

• Comfort: these days you don't have to spend a lot of money to get a good office chair and desk. Check out office supply stores or second hand stores. Make sure you're comfortable during the time you spend at the computer.

• Reference & Computer: put up some shelves within easy reach of your writing area. You're sure to want to keep reference notes and drafts somewhere. A few shelves and a small filing cabinet should serve your needs.

  Most research (and communication with other writers) is done on the Internet these days. Broadband is becoming cheaper, and if you get a wireless connection you can access it from your own writing area easily.

If you already have a writing space, use this week to clear the clutter and make sure you have everything you need at hand. If you have old reference books and files that you never look at any more, get rid of them. To increase your efficiency, you need to make sure that your surroundings work for you.

B: Your Wider Surroundings

After you have secured your writing space, take a look around you at other areas that need de-cluttering. If you can live with a messy house and a car that has so much junk in it that it's virtually a spare closet, fine. Ignore it all. BUT - if you feel that the mess around you will constantly prey on your mind ("how can I write when all around me I see evidence of how much there is to do?") then use this 'Clear the decks' week to attack the house. Be ruthless. If you haven't used something for years, or you don't like it, throw it out or give it away.

You don't have to do all the work yourself, either. Co-opt others who live in the house to help. If they're going to make your life difficult by complaining non-stop, then lay down the law. Either they help, or everyone puts in for a professional cleaner. (It's amazing how soon kids will change their tune if it's a case of "give me a hand or put this week's allowance towards a cleaner - your choice.")

C: Your Physical Condition

It's all too easy for writers to become unfit and unhealthy. You sit for hours at a time at the keyboard. Your back aches, your neck aches, your eyes get sore and that sciatic nerve can kill you after a day at the computer. The worst side-effect is a growing unwillingness to sit there... which leads to procrastination... which can lead to the end of your writing dreams.

Make an effort to stay fit, and your energy levels will rise. More energy means clearer thinking and higher motivation. It is SO worth it, believe me.

It's more than likely that you're just skimming over this bit because you've heard it all before. In principle, you agree that it's a good idea to get up from the computer every hour or so and do stretches and walk around... but when you're engrossed in a scene, you don't want to!

Please, don't just read this and forget it. You really do need to look after your health. You really do need to move more during a writing session. And if you write all day - you need to incorporate some exercise into your day.

The first step is to get a decent chair and desk. We've already addressed that. The second step is to do some serious exercise. This is simply to keep your blood circulating and to maintain the energy to write, although weight loss could be a nice by-product.

Choose Your Exercise

If you already play a sport or do regular exercise, you don't need to be too concerned. Probably all you need to consider is doing a few stretches as a break from the computer, or taking ten minutes to hang out the washing or vacuum the floor. Common household tasks often involve bending and stretching - so why not get those tasks out of the way during your computer break?

If you are a complete couch potato (or computer addict) then it's time to choose some exercise and work it into your day. Try for half an hour a day - more if you can. The easiest and cheapest exercise is simply walking. (It's also one of the most effective.) This is adaptable to suit most people... walk slowly at first and build up; start with a walk around the block and increase it to half an hour (more if you enjoy it.) If you have access to a treadmill, you might be surprised to find that increasing the incline can burn more calories than increasing the speed - and is easier on the joints.

If you want to commit to building your fitness and losing weight at the same time as establishing a good writing routine, think about joining a gym or a swim squad. The important thing is to find an exercise that you LIKE. If you don't enjoy it, you won't continue. There are plenty of options - dancing (tap dancing, jazz, line dancing, ballroom dancing); swimming; gym; rowing; bush walking; boxing... the list is endless, really.

Just get moving!

Eat Wisely

If you're one of those writers that finds herself at the fridge or the pantry looking for consolation when a scene won't work, then stock up on yummy HEALTHY food. If you're going to resort to comfort eating, then you might as well make sure that it doesn't do too much damage.

Prepare for your day before you sit down to write. Fruit is always good. Cut an orange into eight pieces, ready to snack on; prepare a fruit platter (whatever is in season - cherries, strawberries, rockmelon, watermelon, apples, bananas etc). If chocolate is a 'must', have a snack-sized bar ready (and don't eat the whole packet!). Buy low-fat dips and cut up carrot sticks.

This is all pretty basic stuff - but everything in this writer's KickStart Program will have a common theme: being prepared and being committed. Your aim is to make sure that you don't sabotage yourself because you haven't planned ahead.

Mental Clutter

By 'mental clutter' I mean anything that is competing for space in your mind. Don't confuse this with emotional clutter - we'll come to that in a moment.

Mental clutter is usually caused by:

Worrying too much about other people (apart from responsibilities to those who are truly dependent on you - small children, aged parents). Anyone who's old enough to make their own decisions should take responsibility for their lives. You can be there as a backup and a sounding board, but you have your own life to lead.

Taking on too much. This one is incredibly common. Your head is spinning because you're on a committee for this and a work group for that; you're on the canteen roster and belong to two different social clubs and you play a sport... and you have to remember where all the kids are at any given time and what they're doing next...

The solution here is to write down the things you LIKE. Keep those. (You may even have to cut down on some of those if there are too many. You can't do everything!) Be ruthless with the rest. It's quite likely that people will beg you to stay on - but you have to be firm. Just tell them that you're over-committed and for your own sanity you have to cut down. Don't be wishy-washy and say you'll think about it. Just say something like: "Sorry, but my mind's made up. I've enjoyed the time so far, but it's time to let someone else take over." You will feel an incredible sense of freedom when you cut loose!

Mental clutter can also be caused by your not knowing what you want to write. You may have too many ideas, or three books in various stages of development (all of which you like). You may also have other writers pressuring you to write what they write.

If you have too many writing projects (or opportunities) and it's doing your head in, use this checklist as a filter:

1. If you really need to earn an income and one project will pay more than another, choose that first.

2. If you have several ideas for a book, then:
   • Choose the one with the main character you like best; or

   • Write a scene for each and choose the one that flowed most easily or 'felt' right, or

   • Choose the one that seems to have the best chance of selling.

3. If you have several books or projects already started, then:
   • Pick the one with the characters you like best, or

   • Pick the one with the clearest and/or most appealing plot, or

   • Pick the one that's the furthest advanced.

Emotional Clutter

This might be the hardest obstacle of all. Emotional problems can manifest as procrastination, depression or ill health (or all three). Only you can know what is affecting you emotionally. If you are feeling sad/depressed/angry etc then you need to get at the underlying reasons.

Sometimes your anger at the world can originate from having no time to yourself. If that's the case, you need to look at every possible avenue for getting some time. If others take you for granted, you're the only one who can fix the problem. You are at LEAST as important as all the others in your life. Surely you can give yourself equal time?

If you are feeling trapped, for whatever reason, it's important that you act to give yourself more freedom. That will clear the way for you to spend more time on your writing, if that's what you really want to do.

Your goal for Week 1:

Clear the decks physically, emotionally and mentally. Organize your life so you have a clearer path ahead to develop your writing career. You won't do any writing this week - you're just preparing yourself mentally.

Next week you will work out what you really want to write and establish a flexible timeline that will work in the real world - no matter how busy you are.