Thinking about writing

I’m writing a book this November. There’s a library in TK called Write A Book where members are encouraged to write a book publicly and ask for feedback as they go. So I decided to try it out. It’s an experiment to see if writing there helps me stay focused or if I wander away like usual.

I’m writing the only book I feel qualified to write: How to Think about Writing (Instead of Writing). It’s been two years since the idea first appeared on my radar, and since then I’ve thought about writing the book. And thought about it some more.

Essentially, it explains a mindset shift I’m trying to install in my own brain to become a more active writer. There are seven main themes.

1. Completion: You’re not broken. You’re already a working system.
2. Adaptation: Rules don’t write stories. You do.
3. Belief: Doubt is useful — but not while discovering what you think.
4. Friction: Resistance does not get in the way of writing, it is the way.
5. Capacity: The mind gets overwhelmed. That’s not a failure — it’s feedback.
6. Action: Writing isn’t planning. Writing is a performance.
7. Becoming: Identity is a feedback loop shaped by action.

What are the potential failure points?

• I let my focus wander.
• Social anxiety overwhelms me (positive feedback is often worse for me.)
• And of course, there’s scope bloat and grandiose plans. Maybe this should be a five-part series of books?

If I don’t finish, that would be a signal that my own mindset shift didn’t take.