Creative procrastination

[Phyrebrat]

At the risk of enabling myself (and others) further, I post this for your delectation.

I really do find this is my process when writing.

But rather than calling it procrastination, I suspect it’s a case of letting my subconscious do the work. It’s usually how I approach the 75 word challenges, too.

I wonder what the stats might say about the winning entries in terms of late vs early posting?

Anyway here’s the link.

TikTok - Make Your Day

 

[tinkerdan]

I procrastinated on my first novel--you might say for over 30 years.
That resulted in a massive piece of work that was all muddled up floating around in my head all those years; collecting more and more words as the years rolled by. I'd guess with a 75 word piece, procrastination would look like about 750 words or more and just wouldn't work.

 

[sknox]

I'm not sure how useful that word is. Is it a synonym for "not writing"? No, not that, though not writing is a key component. Does it mean not writing when I had said I would? As in: I meant to write this afternoon but I procrastinated. I know in my own work there are long stretches during my so-called writing time when I'm not actually putting down words (or editing them). It's just thinking in between sentences and scenes. So my attention is on the writing even if no actual words are coming out. But if that stretches on? If I take a break, have a cup of tea, write a thoughtful and insightful post on SFF <g>, is that procrastinating? Or is it the mental equivalent of stretching?

The more I think about it, the more I think procrastination is one of those words that is sneakily pejorative. We don't mean "not writing" but "bad not writing". It's whatever time that is spent where we judge of ourselves (or, less often, just others) that we are wasting time.

In direct contrast, we like to speak of inspiration. Well, inspiration usually happens when I'm not writing. I'm out for a walk or taking a shower or lying awake at 2am, or some other activity where writing is damned inconvenient. I don't call that time procrastination. Fooey, sez I. I'm going to show "procrastination" to the door. I hereby declare all time I spend during my self-named Writing Time in my Writing Place to be truly and formally Time Spent Writing. And, by definition, creative time.

There, I feel much better. Thanks, Phyrebrat!

 

[Astro Pen]

Failing to procrastinate properly has cost me dear over the years.
You have a choice of do it now, whatever, and wake at 3:00 AM thinking "Oh god, I didn't think of that."
Or procrastinating and putting the plan into action like a well oiled machine, having considered every permutation.
...Except the unexpected one.
For example:
I wrote a romantic story about a swan, which someone published in an anthology. In it the swan gifted a fish to its female companion.
'Great' I thought, until, post publication, I found out that swans are vegetarian!
(No one has complained yet.)

 

[Phyrebrat]

Yes procrastination has a value judgement attached. As a 52 year old neurodivergent with late-diagnosed ADHD I’ve had it levelled at me all my life along with ‘laziness’.

That’s not to absolve myself on procrastination, but that its application should be more nuanced.

Anyway, what I found interesting was the approach to writing or creativity as delayed. I find it far more conducive and productive.

nb @tinkerdan — I feel your pain; I spent 10 years on my first attempt at my novel and it came in as a messy 225k. However that’s not procrastination, just a prolonged birth. Procrastination relates to not starting, as opposed to taking a long time.

 

[tinkerdan]

The true spirit of procrastination is the object of making sure you have something to look forward to doing tomorrow.

 

[AnRoinnUltra]

This thread inspired me to post about a new project and stick a virtual goalpost in the electric ether. I think a goal like that helps get thoughts down, or electronically recorded at any rate. I'd never do any writing without goals and I've been making them up.
There's probably a fine line between ploughing away at gibberish, and trying to map out a perfect story that will never exist.
I like heading off into the hills alone to figure a story -it's not always practical and sometimes comes to nothing but I count it as writing, not dossing

 

[Oligonicella]

Wait... There's a schedule to these things??

 

[Wayne Mack]

Wait... There's a schedule to these things??

I was going to write up a schedule to procrastinate, but I never got around to it.

 

[THX1138]

From what I have seen in my own submissions to the 75 (And 100 and 300) is not only taking a few days to think about the stories in mind from many angles, but if I wait a day or two before submitting, so I can rethink and review the story, the results are more rewarding.

Very, very rarely will one of mine do well when written and submitted in less than an hour. It has happened a few times, but I still wish I waited.

 

[farntfar]

I heard about this about 3 years ago, from a friend who is a little too convincing.
I expect to write my December 2021 entry next week.

 

[Dragonlady]

There is definitely something in this. I'm on draft 2, which is way harder than draft 1 as it has to actually be good (or at least better). So I frequently get stuck, and I'm learning it's important to open the document, and read it even if I don't have any words. This gets my subconscious ticking over. I will also often open it, stare at it, open youtube or chrons and 'procrastinate', and as I do this my mind will be turning over the things I need for my story, and the words will come. When stuck/in a slow patch I essentially have to allow longer to get the same words in as it needs time for my brain to be turning things over.

It might be better worded as 'creative brains need thinking time' than that creative brains procrastinate. I'm also an ADHDer, and often what looks from the outside like procrastination- avoiding something by doing other things- is actually 'help I am on youtube because my brain is stuck, it needs some more dopamine to get me unstuck, I desperately want to be doing the thing' - not really conscious avoidance.

 

[Plucky Novice]

There seems to be a societal confusion between procrastination and thinking time for me. If you search for synonyms of procrastination, you won't find anything related to thinking. I subscribe to the concept that your subconscious needs time to do its clever stuff, which is why you get great ideas when out for a walk or doing things unrelated. In fact, trying to sit and come up with great ideas almost never works. Loading your brain with all of the ingredients and waiting for it to work some magic, often does.

Perhaps it is that procrastinators benefit from this subconscious thinking time and so we confuse the two - like the chap in the video. So I'm not onboard with "Creative Procrastination" but "Creative Thinking-Time", it's just that sometimes they align. Of course, if you know the benefits of letting the ideas percolate, if it is part of your creative process, then you are not procrastinating at all.

 

[Phyrebrat]

There seems to be a societal confusion between procrastination and thinking time for me. If you search for synonyms of procrastination, you won't find anything related to thinking. I subscribe to the concept that your subconscious needs time to do its clever stuff, which is why you get great ideas when out for a walk or doing things unrelated. In fact, trying to sit and come up with great ideas almost never works. Loading your brain with all of the ingredients and waiting for it to work some magic, often does.

Perhaps it is that procrastinators benefit from this subconscious thinking time and so we confuse the two - like the chap in the video. So I'm not onboard with "Creative Procrastination" but "Creative Thinking-Time", it's just that sometimes they align. Of course, if you know the benefits of letting the ideas percolate, if it is part of your creative process, then you are not procrastinating at all.

Well said.

 

[THX1138]

Agree. I have put off writing my novel for over 30 years now to do research and to improve my writing skills. My novel is now a trilogy, in my mind, but still blank on paper. In the meantime, I have spent more time on flash fiction and short stories... Still, no novel.

 

[ColGray]

Yes procrastination has a value judgement attached. As a 52 year old neurodivergent with late-diagnosed ADHD I’ve had it levelled at me all my life along with ‘laziness’.

Dude, same. Diagnosed at 6, never treated or given tools and kind of found my way. When acute stressors with my daughter's treatment hit, all of my carefully crafted coping mechanisms of duct tape and bubblegum failed (shocking! /s) Years later, medicated and with professional help to actually build and implement strategies to work with, rather than struggle against, my ADHD, there are days where I marvel at how much time I wasted believing that I was just lazy.

However that’s not procrastination, just a prolonged birth. Procrastination relates to not starting, as opposed to taking a long time.

This. 100% this. Doing the work is doing the work, but doing the work doesn't mean simply fingers on keyboard.

 

[Oligonicella]

This. 100% this. Doing the work is doing the work, but doing the work doesn't mean simply fingers on keyboard.

I've told people many times that my whole life has been prep for the stories I write. My degree in science, my study of etymology, my fencing, MA and stunt career and my art. It's all wound up in my words.

 

[Harpo]

Displayed on my shelf here in front of me is this

 

[Steve Harrison]

Displayed on my shelf here in front of me is this

View attachment 116191

I must be extremely creative.

 

[Omits]

Like some here I've written some then stopped. Started again, gone over. Now I dream about writing more (I have 300K words atm with a weak theme). I call that procrastination for not getting seriously down to it.