LIFE LESSONS
On Not Writing
A Memoir on the Art of Procrastination
Here are excerpts from a review of my New York Times bestseller: On Not Writing: A Memoir on the Art of Procrastination.
Don’t talk to me about the craft of not writing
Writing isn’t about following a routine, reading a lot or making an impact. It’s not about providing entertainment or inspiration. It’s not about focusing on the reader or using the word ‘You’ more times than not. It was never about any of that. In the end, it’s about enriching yourself in the shortest time. By any means possible. It’s about writing for yourself and your interests. When inspiration strikes. Throw in essays of your imaginary sex life and the hacks you never follow. Then follow those with plenty of ‘How I made a gazillion dollars in 65 hours’ type articles.
That’s the stuff that’s thrilling!
Don't talk to me about reading and writing a lot
Instead, binge on Netflix from the time you wake up. If you do go to sleep. All the while stuffing your face with ice cream, potato chips and beer. Then swap cat videos and memes as you browse for the next series. Forget all that stuff on meditation, journaling and fitness. Or drinking eight glasses of water a day. And, don’t even bother with setting a daily word count.
Don’t talk to me about NOT having time for social media
A writer who does not spend hours scrolling the net will soon run out of things to say. Every good writer knows this.
Margaret goes in-depth on the day it all started. A chance encounter on a Reddit subgroup turned her gloomy days into addiction level bingeing. “Those first days, when the world went silent around me, when my family went hungry and I didn’t sleep or shower for days. Those are the days I will always remember.”
I take my phone everywhere I go. I take my phone to the bathroom to watch an episode or two while I answer the call of nature. I watch a full season every day. I watch it as my tea brews, as I brush my teeth and do my laundry. I watch an episode as I feed the baby and as I make love to my husband. I have my earphones with me all the time because I never know when a free minute will open up.
Margaret will go into a time when she was struggling with publications and curation, or should I say flopping big time. She will tell you all about the routines she didn’t follow, which led to the writing of this book. She will tell you of the series that was cut short by COVID-19 and ended her bingeing, for an hour. She will tell you all about the dips and the lows, there were no highs in her 15-day career.
This has been one of the most inspiring books about not writing I’ve ever read. Margaret talked about examples of the work ethics of writers, but the one that resonated with me the most was of Ryan Fan.
He used to publish, EXACTLY, three articles a day, sometimes four before going to work.
If his articles went viral he moved on to the next post. He didn’t sit around basking in the glory. If he got home exhausted from his job he still sat his ass down and cranked the next article. During the summer he woke up at 5 am to complete his morning run before it got too hot.
“I had chills run down my spine because that is what it means to be a writer…dedication to the craft.”
A dedication I will never have.
Stay tuned for more excerpts from my best selling book: On Not Writing: A Memoir on the Art of Procrastination.
As always thanks for reading. Keep the comments and corrections coming.
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