I’ve been guilty of it myself, long hours spent trawling the internet and writer’s biographies looking for the big secret to becoming a lighting rod for inspiration and hammering through that brilliant first novel. If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the last years of writing short stories and the odd failed novel draft, it’s that there is no great key to unlocking this mystery. The only way to achieve your goal is through hard work and dedication.

One of the beautiful things about being A Writer is that you can stand in the shower for twenty minutes, take a long walk in the middle of the day, or lie upside down on couch with your head on the floor and claim it as valuable and productive idea-generating time. Everyone has their own tricks and methods for brainstorming and working through problematic plot sections, but when it comes to the actual writing, it is one hundred percent necessary to eventually drop your butt into a chair, and to start punching away at the keys.

I know you’re looking for more. It’s why you listen to author interviews, and why you go to writer’s conferences to ask your favourite author whether she prefers to write in the mornings or evenings. It’s why you read blogs like this, and it’s often why you sit and daydream of that perfect Room of Your Own that will allow you to finally blast out that genius piece of literature you know you have inside you. While it’s always useful to engage in research on the craft, and to learn from those who have gone before you, there are as many methods for moving from blank page to finished manuscript as their are people writing books. The only one that will ultimately work for you is the one you sit down and follow through on.

Writing here in Costa Rica has taught me that it’s not always best to wait for that ideal situation to arise, but rather to take action when the moment presents itself. My initial plan for this year was to write what is for me a more difficult story about two old friends driving across Canada. There is something about my projected tone and pacing of that manuscript that needs a certain contemplative environment for me to write it, and I know that environment is right on the horizon once I return to Vancouver.

What changed for me, is that this superhero idea came to me with such force over a 24 hour period, that I knew I needed to dive right into it. In the beginning, it’s a fun story and is proving easy to write in the hectic environment of bars and restaurants which are the only real place I have to sit and type comfortably for one or two thousand words each day. The drive behind the story is able to withstand the distractions of my environment, and I’m able to get right into the work instead of drafting and plotting until I find that supposedly ideal environment.

I’ll talk about inspiration and idea generation in a future post, but once you have that wonderful and compelling idea, don’t stall too long. Sit your ass down, and write it. Find a time that works for you, and stick to your daily schedule. If you can’t commit to a schedule, make it a priority to find that time to write, for it’s only in the actual writing that you’ll find your way to the end of your manuscript.