SASKIA
asked
Elizabeth Gilbert:
What advice would you give to those who wish to pursue writing but cannot seem to begin to put those ideas on paper?
Elizabeth Gilbert
I wish there was a better trick I can offer you than to say, "You must begin", but Saskia: You must begin. It's like asking, "What advice do you have for people who want to run a marathon but can't seem to start training?" Well...that's going to be a problem, right? Here is my advice, then. Do you have a kitchen timer? Or a timer on your smart-phone? Good. At some point today, sit down with paper or a laptop, and set that timer for 15 minutes. You are not allowed to stand up until the 15 minutes are over. During that 15 minutes, write something. Anything � a letter, a poem, a list of people you hate, a prayer, all your favorite words, a childhood memory, a dream. Something. You might even sit there for 15 minutes writing, "I don't know what to write!" You can copy text out of your favorite book. It doesn't matter. That's ok. But you have to write something for 15 minutes. When the timer goes off, you're done. Pat yourself on the back. You did it! Now do the same thing tomorrow. And the next day. You can do anything for 15 minutes a day. Trust me � stuff will start to happen.
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