Sometimes looking back on my free-writing cracks me up. Looking through an old document I thought I’d never open again, I noticed the following. Apparently, I decided to come up with a mantra to get me started on those days when anxiety has me frozen and distracted. Y’know, like every day. Now, after it’s been buried for who knows how long, I like it.

“It should be a mantra that incorporates all the real reasons why I should get started and just write write write.

Things like:

Practice make progress, not perfect.

Also things like:
Murder your demons (But maybe not so violent and a little clearer so I don’t have to think about it. Something that means push those negative thoughts out of your head, but a little more metaphorical.)

You are good enough, you are smart enough, and gosh darnit, people like you. You have a unique way of thinking, you’re funny, and there is definitely a niche that appreciates your weird quirks.

You don’t have to do anything with anything you write. It can just live on your hard-drive. Better there than living in your head and never seeing the light of day.

Just think about how good you feel when you’ve either written something small, but wonderful or mediocre and quite long. You feel great when you get something, anything down. Productive. Like a real writer. Like the time the kids are in daycare is well spent.

So go to it! Stop looking at that blank page. Fill it with words! Any words! Just get in there and exercise those damn fingers! Exercise that muscle in your head called a brain. Once you get started, it will do the rest.

Like a hot knife through butter. All you’ve got to do is warm it up.

Warm it up with your typing.”