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Beating procrastination, the thief of the Storyteller’s time.

Have you ever started to plan a story only to put it aside five minutes later … for the seventh time? Simply put, this is procrastinating. If this is what’s happening to you, here are some tips to help you beat this thief of your precious time.

Tip 1 - Accept you are procrastinating

As a start, accept that you’re procrastinating. This must be done in a matter-of-fact way. Do not scold yourself or let anyone else scold you. Just accept it. It might help if you quietly say to yourself, “I know I’m procrastinating. I accept it and now, I’m going to do something about it.” By the end of that sentence, you’d have changed your focus and you’ll find that you have a more positive mental attitude towards the work ahead.

Tip 2 – Make a List of things to do

This is one of the most useful things you can do once you’ve accepted that you’re procrastinating. With storytelling, go back to the basics and make a list of the things you need to look at for your story. For instance, look at elements of storytelling like the theme of the story, the plot, characters, setting and ambience and style. 

Tip 3 – Identify the parts of the story which are causing this procrastination.

Once the list has been prepared, analyse each element closely. Which one is causing you problems and delay? Is it the case that my characters are not properly developed? Is it the case that the setting is not proper? Does the story not make sense because it has deviated from the main theme? 

Tip 4 – Set a time scale by when these tasks should be finished.

Once you’ve identified the problem that’s causing you to procrastinate, you must go through the most important step which is to deal with the problem in a set time frame. This is one of the most important steps which people are usually unwilling to do and a word which could be used to describe it is ‘stick-to-it-tive-ness’. It means that you do not move, be it mentally or emotionally, until you have completed the task before you. Even if the end result is not the best ever story you’ve told, finish it. Once the story is complete, you can then begin to edit the story as you please until it becomes perfect.

Tip 5 – Seek inspiration

If you find that even after the designated time you’ve set to complete the task, you’re unable to do so, then there’s a chance that you may be lacking in inspiration. Here are some of the ways in which you can seek inspiration to help you become more productive when telling your story:

• Read something completely different from the kind of story you’re trying to tell.

• Go for a walk.

• Watch a movie.

• Invite some friends out to coffee.

All of the above are may be termed ‘short interludes’. They help a person find his or her equilibrium and focus, which is necessary for one’s creative juices to flow so as to tell that story.

Tip 6 – The reward

When the story is complete, particularly when it has been difficult to do so, it is important to reward yourself. Rewarding one’s self does not need to involve huge sums of money. It can involve simple things like eating a piece of chocolate, speaking on the phone with someone you’ve not done so in a long time, having a luxurious bath, reading that book that you’ve not had time to in so long, etc.

The above are but six tips to help a storyteller when he or she becomes stuck during the creative process. In all, opportunities to tell stories are limitless and should they be missed merely because the storyteller was procrastinating would be altogether a shame.

Here’s to your storytelling success.