Writing Mistakes Writers Make: Not Pivoting When the Writing’s Not Coming
Everyone makes mistakes—even writers—but that’s OK because each mistake is a great learning opportunity. The Writer’s Digest team has witnessed many mistakes over the years, so we started this series to help identify them early in the process. Note: The mistakes in this series aren’t focused on grammar rules, though we offer help in that area as well.
Rather, we’re looking at bigger picture mistakes and mishaps, including the error of using too much exposition, hiding your pitch, or chasing trends. This week’s mistake is not pivoting when the writing’s not coming.
Writing Mistakes Writers Make: Not Pivoting When the Writing’s Not Coming
Writers are some of the hardest on themselves when it comes to their work. We manage expectations when sharing our projects with beta readers by saying things like “This is a really rough draft” or “I know the ending isn’t working” before they get a chance to form an opinion on their own.
I think a side-effect of these insecurities is giving up on an idea before it has time to really grow. I’m guilty of this, too—I know I have folders filled with half-finished ideas. This is because at the start of an idea, I’ll attack it feverishly and with enthusiasm. But when the ideas runs out, I’m left with nowhere to turn, and so I chock that up to another failed attempt at a story.
I doubt I’m alone in this, and while the job lays on my shoulders to usher an idea through to its end, I also think this perspective of seeing every creative crossroad as a failure on my part has something to do with hearing constant “butt in chair” self-discipline writing advice. My butt’s in the chair, so why isn’t the story advancing?
This is why pivoting to another story idea is important, and understanding that pivoting is not giving up on the story in the long run.
Don’t Be Afraid to Pivot
Pivoting from one creative idea to another isn’t about giving up on the one you’re temporarily tabling. Stories need time to marinate, and stepping away from active writing won’t stop your thoughts from ruminating.
Years ago, I wrote the best 50 pages of a story I’ve ever written in my life, and they’re still pages I’m immensely proud of. But once I hit a wall, I felt compelled to add it to the list of mistakes, that there wasn’t enough story to tell, and that I’d run out of ideas to see it through. But my writing group convinced me not to give up on it, and to simply set it aside for now and work on some other ideas I was waiting to pursue until after I’d finished this one. I pivoted away from those 50 pages and toward other ideas knocking on the door of my imagination.
Time away from those pages has only helped the idea take root. Not only has my writing since helped inspire new ideas for the story, but the books I’ve read in the meantime have helped me gain the confidence that the kind of story I want to tell can find an audience. And for the first time since I set that story aside, I can see it more clearly again. But more than that, time away from that story helped me start to build a library of finished stories that wouldn’t have seen the light of day had I not made space for them.
But pivoting requires intentionality. You can’t just say, “I’ll come back to it” and hope you do. Stay conscious of it during the time away, and let it remain in the space you’ve provided it with in your imagination. Go on a walk and think of the characters and where you left them, even as you actively pursue other stories. Let them exist and create history in your mind, so that when you do return to it, it’ll feel more like a memory than trying to conjure something from nothing.
There is something to be gained from recognizing when certain ideas don’t quite translate to the page like we thought they would. There’s no shame in manuscripts that miss the mark. But sometimes we just need to give our ideas time to catch up to our excitement for their possibility. Pivoting is not procrastinating, nor is it giving up.