Giving Procastination the Heave-Ho...Now!

Ok, since nobody wanted to weigh in on the social networking front last week, I'm taking my thoughts in a new direction today...:)

But seriously, if anyone has any sudden epiphanies on how you fit twittering, facebooking, myspacing, etc. into your life (and what tangible results it has provided), still feel free to give a shout in the comments section. I do all of these things regularly, but I'm still curious about how fellow writers view all that extra time spent online.

Today, however, I've got something else on my mind, namely procrastination and the upcoming new year.

For the record, like many writers, I'm the queen of procrastination. I thrive from the sheer buzz of being so dangerously close to a deadline. And no matter what's going on, I can find a million ways to stay distracted while the clock ticks closer and closer to said deadline. In fact, my favorite way of not concentrating on my work is IMDBing my favorite actors (and even some I couldn't care less about) and reading their respective pages, right down to the really random trivia.

Of course, given that I review movies for work, too, I can easily justify this as "research," which makes me feel way better while I'm wasting time. But if I'm honest with myself, I'm thinking I'd get a little further on my current WIP if I wasn't reading about Hugh Grant's favorite restaurants or Jude Law's shoe size.

But I digress...

As the New Year gets closer and closer, (something I still can't believe, even if the calendar assures me that it's so), I think it's tempting for many a writer to put off his/her literary goals until the ball in Times Square has officially dropped. Starting on January 1st just feels a little more tidy somehow, a little more definite. But if the Queen of Procrastination has anything to say about it (and she points that finger right back at herself, too), she'd encourage you to keep right on writing. Yes, NOW!

After all, that's how New Year's resolutions get broken year after year, isn't it? We create this ginormous laundry list of things we want to change about ourselves and our habits, and then get upset when it doesn't exactly work out. But if we start being disciplined (or at least having a semblance of discipline) before January 1, well, that's one less resolution to break, right?

Now that doesn't mean that you shouldn't actually take time to enjoy the holidays. I'm all for that (and can't wait to do that myself). But getting into the mindset that you'll really start writing once the New Year rolls around is a whole lot of pressure to put on yourself. Remember Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither will your story be, so you'll want to take each and every opportunity you can to start crafting it.

So step away from the IMDB.com and start writing now. You won't regret it, I promise.