How Do I Motivate Myself to Write—Brandon Sanderson

Ok

This is so spot on when it comes to motivation. At least in my case..

My motivator is “When I’m done, I can experience it.” Like with cooking, making music and writing. Like bitch, it’s all for myself and even if I know what I’m gunna get it doesn’t change how good it is. Honestly it’s better in someways. So I will literally go back and read by stories from the beginning SO LANY TIMES while writing cause I’m enjoying it.

“YES, SENSEI!”

Really nice I'm definitely a carrot person. I really like how he said more or less "We're all differently motivated and that's ok". I feel like if I'm not this perfect machine stereotype, I'm not productive or working hard enough.

Where is my carrot?

Your not alone brandon sanderson I love reading so much, I love to count how many pages there is between each chapter I usually read one in the morning and one at night, but the real reason why I havent started brandon sanderson books yet is because I want to wait till the last metal, and dawnshart, and the stormlight archive is complete, I like to start a series and finish it, so i'm going back to reading one book at a time, I have about 172 books and counting I usually read them in turn, right now I am reading malazan book of the fallen ten book series, I started in 17 december last year and because I was doing two at a time i'm only on the third book now and only about 500 pages from starting the 4th book, my omg the chapters a long lol, but while I am waiting any short time and commuting between places I use my ipad pro apple book appt or some times libby appt, right now it brandon sanderson's emperor soul, then I might read hope for elantris and way of kings prime, and with me having 172 books so far, I prefer physical books mind you not that I mean any harm to the lest, I have misolanius and a lot of thrillers and fantasy, right now i'm into more fantasy and historical fiction.

You're hardly the first video game generation. I was playing Pong and Castle Wolfenstein when you were pooping diapers. :)

I love the idea of the video game inspired motivation system. Might use that, but my current issue is having a story that can fill whatever word-"maximum". I can't make an end to a project if I don't have an idea of the entire timeline.

Not sure if anyone will see this but I will happily receive any feedback

Thank you for this. I'm a classically trained musician, and most of the advice I had from my professors in school was that if you're a musician, you should always want to be practicing/performing. The fact that I had other hobbies and friends that weren't involved with music at all was always supposed to be a mark of shame of some sort in their eyes, but hearing that Brandon sometimes doesn't feel like writing makes me feel much, much better. That alone makes me want to write today haha.

Very nice video. I wish I could find my motivation to write...

... Or do anything... like living...

I didn't realize I was coming here for genuine life advice 👍 awesome

But for real, I love the feeling of turning the pages and seeing the progress going through a book. I hope books don't just turn completely paperless in the future. There's just something so nice about snuggling in with a physical book in your hand.

Is it weird I can just watch so many of these kind of lecture videos in a row. If only I could've done the same kind of thing with school stuff...

I don't write fiction, I'm a professional blog/copywriter. And man did I need to hear that advice. Thanks, Brandon!

Amazing advice

Right now on Brandon's website, all four bars ar at 100%. That is both satisfying and stressful.

I tried hacking my brain, but the things i discovered is not what i expected. The only thing worth hacking is knowing when can i die, to avoid this sad life.

The progress bars have not been showing much lately, everything is just sitting at 100%. We need a progress bar for things like WOK signatures signed

I have used reading and setting reading goals as an exercise to train myself to set other kinds of goals and get used to working hard to meet them. I don't really have a system to keep myself honest but just the idea of setting and achieving goals, no matter how big or small, has helped me in life.

I think deadlines kill my spirit. XD I hate them with a passion. This doesn't mean I don't use them sometimes, or try to finish things regardless. but man, I hate them. And they are often ineffectual. Works maybe half the time. XD Most of the time it's the joy of having finished things that drives me. :)

For a 100,000 years, humans like all animals rested when they didn't need something for their physical wellbeing. Food was in limited supply, and burning calories for no reason was against your own self interests.

We live in a different world now, but our biology is basically the same. The higher human brain in you needs to figure out how to train your animal body to perform work with no instant gratification, in order to meet your long term goals.

Being angry at yourself is like being angry at your pet. Trying to use it as a tool of motivation and training will not get you what you want.

Thanks, Brandon! I've been in a slump for a while now. I need the motivation. On a non-writing side note, what is the brand of your water bottle? I LOVE that pull-up lid/top.

This makes me feel so good. I do something similar. I have a spreadsheet that lists all my chapters with word counts and page counts and the thought of being able to make those numbers rise really helps to keep writing.

Gamifying stuff definitely does help for me. I'll try this out, I'm a burst writer and I lose motivation easily.

Love the topic of motivation. Great points and good guidance beyond just writing

Man, this lectures are priceless. I know your books are fantastic and I love them, but seriously you are making a huge difference for aspiring writers with this videos. <3

86th comment!!! 22 hours.

Gamification for the win!

(≧▽≦)

Oh man, how I needed to hear that being not motivated isn't a bad thing!

It is so nice to hear from an established professional something other than "Well, if you don't want to write every day why are you doing this in the first place?" I am 2/3 of the way to today's word count, I think this will help me get the rest of the way.

I'm going to recommend 4thewords to everyone here. If games and/or gamification motivate you at all, I would recommend giving it a try. It's been incredibly helpful to get me writing since I started.

here's how you motivate yourself to write. you pretend that you're going to go homeless if you don't sell a story in the next 72 hours. and hey, myabe you don't but it worked for myself.

O
M
G

That's an MTG mana symbols shirt.

"So you mean the curse only affects the young ones?" Sir Goodfellow struggled to imagine the pain and horror of becoming an undead. The town elder shook his head and corrected the knight.

"No, not the little ones, so far they are safe in their innocence. The curse appears to only target those who are emerging into adulthood. The responsibilities of adolescence is already of burden for most. Even at my age I find it difficult to get started in my own tasks." He sighed deeply. "My heart weaps for what has transgressed here." The elder gazed across the field of freshly dug graves around them. "Promise me, you will destroy all progress the Necromancer has made. Please."

Sir Goodfellow considered the journey before him. He had no cheering crowds to support him this time. He saw only a group of grieving villagers too busy providing aid to their loved ones. He couldn't project how long his task would take, and wondered if he could simply quit and do something else. Anything else.

A small child dressed in dirty rags approached him with a sorry looking mule. "Sir Goodfellow?" Her voice was weak and faint, but brimming with honor. "You will stop the bad one?"

"I will do what I can child." He wasn't sure if he was being completely honest with her.

"My father is scared. He saw what happened to my sister and is afraid that I am to follow. He says you can take Corkscrew to ride" She patted the animal. "He isn't smart or strong. But he can help. And these too." She held out a bag. In it, a carrot attached to a walking cane by a long thin chord, and an axe.

The knight was puzzled. "I understand the carrot and the stick, but an axe?"

The little girl smiled and whispered, "To hack their brains."

I’m a huge fan!!

"No chocolate for you today Matthew.." Looks off to the side and sees two Hershey bars calling my name, tempting me with their chocolaty goodness.
Curse procrastination!

I motivate myself by remembering the look on Obi-Wan's face after he successfully dismembered me.

I just love this man





Thats all

Can you make a video on writing characters and situations that feel authentic? Should a person continue writing even if they are not satisfied with thecurrent status of their story? Are authors(or you) truly satisfied with how a book turned out? Do you ever want to go back and change an element of your previous stories?

So dicipline is always good👍👍

Why can you run for President of the United States?

...Oh yes, I can figure this out for myself, it's because you are way to smart to do something so ridiculous with your life/time.

I needed this.

This is literally what I needed! I’m almost in high school, play games, and ofc I read. I haven’t been motivated to write for three or four days! That all changes now!

I would've thought his biggest motivation these days would have been if he doesn't write, he doesn't eat. :)

We need to get Brandon to coach George RR Martin

“Every being is motivated by different things”.

Reminds me of Master Shifu training Po, in Kung Fu Panda.

Yeah I can't set rewards and punishment for myself because I know I'm full of shit. I have to have external motivators and friends to help hold me to my rewards and punishments. But also things like you can't have dinner until x amount is completed don't work cuz my ADHD does that all the time just from existing I spend an hour telling myself to go get dinner before I finally can and it takes all my energy and concentration to get myself up to do that.
I just really really struggle with motivation