10 Effective Ways to Avoid Distraction While You Write

Nicholas C. Rossis

As writers, we’ve all struggled with people, thoughts, and objects constantly distracting us while writing. In my case, it’s an energetic 5-year-old who loves interrupting me to show me stuff like the dragon egg she painted as soon as I sit down to write.However, there are plenty of other interruptions in our lives.

Thankfully, there are as many ways through which you can reduce and even eliminate these distractions to make an environment for yourself to maintain a steady focus on the writing task at hand. Here are ten effective ways to ward off any distractions while you write.

Turn off notifications

Screens are distracting. And so are the constant pings from our phones that we’re habituated to respond to. Blocking out any distractions such as your phone or Chrome’s notifications sounds is important whether you’re typing on your laptop or writing on paper. If youturn off Chrome notifications

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Bibliophile humor

bluebird of bitterness

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14 Types of Creative Writing – by Melissa Donovan…

Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog

on Writing Forward:

When we talk about creative writing, fiction and poetry often take the spotlight, but there are many other types of creative writing that we can explore.

Most writers develop a preference for one form (and genre) above all others. This can be a good thing, because you can specialize in your form and genre and become quite proficient. However, occasionally working with other types of writing is beneficial. It prevents your work from becoming stale and overladen with form- or genre-specific clichés, and it’s a good way to acquire a variety of techniques that are uncommon in your preferred form and genre but that can be used to enhance it.

Let’s look at some different types of creative writing. As you read through the list, note the types of writing you’ve experimented with and the types you’d like to try.

Continue reading HERE

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Depressed – Tuesday Use It In A Sentence #tuesdayuseitinasentence

He came home from a rough day at work and curled up on the couch in a depressed funk. Within moments, his Pomeranian dog jumped up next to him, licked his face, and curled up next to him. Then his tabby cat curled up next to him as well and began purring. Slowly, his funk dissipated.

This post is part of the Tuesday Use It In A Sentence prompt, “depressed”:

https://stephaniecolpron.wordpress.com/2021/04/20/tuesdayuseitinasentence-depressed/

Writing Styles: Extroversion and Introversion

Story Empire

Hello SE friends, Gwen with you today, and together we’ll be exploring how extroversion or introversion affects our writing. Let’s begin with a story.

My husband and I are regulars at Panera Bread. With masks on and social distancing practiced, it’s a setting where we relax and chat about the latest crisis of the day. Whenever we go, I’m amazed to see a number of writers tapping away on their laptop – while music plays and people converse six feet away. It’s these writers who prompt my post today.

I’m fascinated by those who can write amid storms of any kind. These Panera colleagues sit with their coffee and breakfast roll, and when their phone rings, they laugh freely and enjoy the brief exchange. After goodbyes, they’re back to writing – unfazed. And when someone walks by, they often look up and say hello, and may even chat a bit…

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More Shakespearean Insults

Nicholas C. Rossis

Shakespeare’s Globe is a reconstruction of the Globe Theatre, originally built in 1599

From the story of how Shakespeare died a nobody, then got famous by accident to a Shakespearean insults infographic, the Bard keeps fascinating me. Having died 400 years ago last week, as The Independent reminds us, the great William Shakespeare was quite creative when it came to insults.

“I was seeking for a fool when I found you,” says Jacques in Act 3 of As You Like It, and that’s probably the tamest of the Bard’s barbs. Here are some more for your enjoyment!

1. “Scurvy politician”

In King Lear, Act 4, scene 6, we find this gem:“Get thee glass eyes, and like a scurvy politician seem to see the things thou dost.”

Shakespeare’s scurvy means “contemptible” or “despicable”, while he used politician to mean a crooked plotter or schemer who, in this quote from King…

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Three Red Flags – Warnings From ‘Writer Beware’ Blog – Written By Victoria Strauss

Writer's Treasure Chest

The last three notifications from the ‘Writer Beware’ blog, by Victoria Strauss, left me shaken, like so many others she provided us with. I normally try to spread word about scam, fraud, and other warnings as good as I can, but I refuse to drown ‘Writer’s Treasure Chest’ readers in negativity.

However, I think, it’s important that, in particular new Indie Authors know what dangers they might face when putting their books and their work ‘out there’. I therefore decided to publish one post with links to all three of Victoria Strauss’ warnings. Thank you for your great work, Victoria!

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SCAMMERS TAKING BIG 5 PUBLISHERS’ NAMES IN VAIN: A GROWING TREND

I’ve been doing the Writer Beware thing for quite some time, and I Have Seen Some Shit. 
But this solicitation from a Philippines-based publishing and marketing scammer calling itself Right Choice Multimedia (among other names) is one of the…

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3 Simple Tips For Handling Self-Promotion

A Writer's Path

by Meg Dowell

Self-promotion, especially when you’re first starting out, is the ONLY way people are going to know you exist. You don’t have someone bigger and louder drawing people to you. You have to do all the work yourself. And let’s be real: Most writers are not trained marketing experts. So what the heck do you do?

Basically, you do what most of us do. You look at how other people are doing it and try to follow similar principles, figuring out by trial and error what is going to work for you and what isn’t.

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Writing Rules vs. Writing Fashion: Should Writers Follow Fashion Trends? – by Anne R. Allen…

Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog

Fashion. It sounds frivolous, but it has serious effects on us all.

Right now, women are getting beard-burn from kissing men who sport the fashionable romantic-hero three-day stubble. And mothers are stifling their disappointment when their golden-haired boys get the fashion-victim shaved-sides hairdo that makes them look like a cross between Kim Jong Un and the Last of the Mohicans.

And have pity on the people over 40 who are hunched over their computers trying to decipher text from the latest fashion in web design: a tiny, palest-gray font on a white background.

Alas, fashion favors the young.

Writing fashion is hard on us too. Fashion dictates a good deal of what gets published these days, and it’s constantly changing. Write like Thackery, Kipling, or Walter Scott and you’re unlikely to find a publisher or an audience. That’s because writing fashions have radically changed in the last two hundred years…

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Captive – Tuesday Use It In A Sentence #tuesdayuseitinasentence

She stepped out on the stage, nervous to be in front of such a large crowd. She was determined to do her best, though, and took a deep breath as she faced the audience. Then she sang, putting all she could into the song. The audience watched raptly, held captive by her voice and her poignant song. As she finished, the audience rose to their feet and gave her a standing ovation.

This post is part of the Tuesday Use It In A Sentence prompt, “captive”:

https://stephaniecolpron.wordpress.com/2021/04/13/tuesdayuseitinasentence-captive/