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And this is true of writing, as of everything else.

I’ve been having difficulties maintaining the writing discipline, but I’m hanging in there.

Are there times when you find yourself unable to hold on to your discipline, in writing or any other aspect of your life?

What do you do in that case?

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The brainchild of Arlee Bird, at Tossing it Out, the A to Z Writing Challenge basically requires 26 posts in 26 days based on 26 letters of the alphabet, one post beginning with each letter during the month of April, with Sundays off for good behavior.

As co-host, I’m asking you, my blogging audience, to challenge me with an interesting picture that you would like me to base my fiction on, and drop me story starters, each sentence/phrase beginning with a different letter (i.e. the first word of the starter must start with a different letter, from A to Z).  You can do this in the comments on this post. I’ll keep sending out this call till I have 26 pictures and 26 prompts that really challenge me! 

Damyanti Biswas

Damyanti Biswas is the author of You Beneath Your Skin and numerous short stories that have been published in magazines and anthologies in the US, the UK, and Asia. She has been shortlisted for Best Small Fictions and Bath Novel Awards and is co-editor of the Forge Literary Magazine. Her literary crime thriller series, the Blue Mumbai, is represented by Lucienne Diver from The Knight Agency. Both The Blue Bar and The Blue Monsoon were published in 2023.

I appreciate comments, and I always visit back. If you're having trouble commenting, let me know via the contact form, or tweet me up @damyantig !

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12 Comments

  • Sorry I broke up..I am trying my hand at the signature thing. AND we will all need discipline for the blog challenge!

    dreamweaver

  • All of your comments are great. But discipline IS the hardest to conqdreamweaveruer. Good luck and happy writing.

  • I am all discipline. I began writing just an hour a day. Eventually, I turned off the TV and began writing for 3 hours a day.

    Ten years later, I write 10K words a day and have five books published. Discipline really is everything. Even if I don't feel like writing at the computer, I take a walk, have a coffee, and take my notebook and ipad with me. I never believed I would be able to write this much until I just forced myself every day just to write a little more.

  • mish says:

    Thanks for the reminder – feels like the post was written for me…
    I've been terribly undisciplined since the onset of the new year.
    I'll try to find some interesting prompts for the A-Z Challenge.

  • Oh yes, I have issues with the discipline. There comes a time when I have to make myself buckle down and set schedules and make lists, because that seems to be the best way to get myself going again.

    Shannon at The Warrior Muse, co-host of the 2012 #atozchallenge! Twitter: @AprilA2Z

  • Donna Hole says:

    I have a hard time writing anything new when I have a story out on submission. But eventually I find a blogfest or other prompt to kick start me.

    Good luck with the A-Z prompts. I'm take April off for in hopes of completing some writing projects.

    …….dhole

  • I'm definitely struggling with the writing discipline right now.

  • Susan you are so right. That's exactly what I'm doing. Kyra, I like the idea of a nap. It always inspires me. Thank you Damyanti for reminding me to be more disciplined. That is how the tortoise beat the hare.

  • I have been getting better at this because I have put it on my google calendar and I make myself honor that. If I'm feeling not too writerly, reading a bit before often helps get over that.

  • Rick G says:

    Discipline is always an issue. For me the biggest is when I'm in between projects and need to start on my next. When I'm in the middle of a book I have just enough OCD going on to keep me going (and torment me should I dare take a day off). However, in between projects is an issue. There's usually just enough time to get a little lazy and for my personal demons of inadequacy to start harping in my ear wondering whether I still have it in me. I'm in the middle of that right now. I promised myself 2 weeks off and took it. However, I know I'm going to have to drag myself kicking and screaming back to the keyboard now.

  • Well, I'm sitting here reading and commenting on blogs instead of editing my WIP, so yeah, my discipline definitely needs some work. I'll get right on that. Tomorrow …

  • Kyra Lennon says:

    My writing discipline is almost non-existent sometimes, and it's REALLY hard to get the focus back. It usually happens when I'm tired, and sometimes a quick nap is better than trying to force myself to keep going.