Overwhelmed by ideas, but longing to finish that ‘Big Project’?

As a writer, I am constantly getting the first lines of short stories, poems or the theme for an article or post coming to me. Often, that’s as far as it will go. I’ll get another idea and forget the previous one. But my dream is to write books. Books are ‘big projects’ that I’ve never been able to stick to. And anyway, another idea comes along and I’m frozen in the ideas piling up. The ‘big project’ never makes it.

I recently decided to take my writing seriously. It has been a dream and need of mine since I was 6 years old: to, one day (read now), be a ‘writer’. Also I couldn’t not write. I couldn’t not have ideas come to me at all hours of the day and night. It’s just in me. So for decades I wrote, for myself. I accepted this for a long time. Then, I tried to ‘get published’ as a parenting article writer, I succeeded, several times, then lost the confidence. This time, however, as I entered another pregnancy journey, with no passion for anything but family and writing, I knew I needed to do something with this passion! I didn’t want to go into parenting, once again, with nothing for myself. So I got writing again. And… I stalled, once more: frozen by all the unfinished writing projects and ideas secreted away in every nook and cranny.

Now, I’m finally writing my first book. My dream is becoming reality. To get enough focus to do this I have learned strategies to deal with the overwhelm of all my ideas and the inevitable freeze response that comes.

1. Welcome all of your ideas but, write them in a separate ‘ideas’ notebook or document.

Rather than trying to ignore them, only to grieve my forgotten brilliance, I have a place on my laptop, phone and an ‘ideas’ notebook where I write every idea that comes to me. Having multiple places means no matter where I am I have a place to put these ‘brilliant’ ideas. I emphasise separate because, I know from experience, if you write the ideas in amongst fully fledged projects, they’ll get lost! This works for any type of creativity, whether it be writing, visual art (think sketch book to draw the bones of ideas) or business projects.

2. Pick an idea to focus on. Any idea.

In my first ever Writer’s group, I was gifted (read hit figuratively over the head) with a reality check. As everyone went around, they each shared their burning need to get their ‘project’ written. Every one of them had an idea that they were focused on completely, to the exclusion of all else. It came round to my sharing and I mumbled something about how different I was to them and how, for some reason, I didn’t know what my project was. But, they were left with little from me and I was left with an urgency to focus on something!

And that is where the reality check hit me: just pick one! Rang through my brain. I had heaps of ideas, so all I needed to do was pick one, any one.

It doesn’t really matter what you choose, as long as you choose something that fires you up. For me, this meant settling my brain down enough to acknowledge the main idea I felt most passionate about, in that moment. “Primarily, I do Australian nature writing”, was the way I introduced my work to my writer’s group, so I had already planted the seed for which project was simmering at the surface.

If you focus on one project to completion, the next idea can be chosen, worked on and completed, and so on. Believe me, if you continue to only write down ideas and start projects, none of them will ever be completed and your dream will remain just that: a dream.

3. Create accountability.

For internal accountability I dedicated myself to my project. It was easy to dedicate myself to writing a book about all I’d observed and researched in nature over the years. So that is what I dedicated myself to. I wrote it down. I refer back to it regularly.

‘I dedicate myself to…’ fill in the blank.

When I began writing again (before I froze from overwhelm) I created a Writer’s Group. They are my external accountability. I don’t want to let them down each fortnight, so I produce something to do with my project, to share with them. They want me to succeed, just as I want them to, which creates a positive ‘pressure’ to give them something I know they want to see.

4. Give yourself freedom!

Allow yourself space to dream of new things (by welcoming ideas) and making space to finish smaller projects, when you need to do something different.

Dedicating my focus on my ‘big project’ of writing a book, doesn’t mean to the exclusion of all else. For me as a multipotentialite, I have a yearning to discover more; expand my experiences, so I allow myself to take detours for small projects (like this article!) and I continue to write down every idea that comes. These things help me to not feel bored or boxed in by my one focused ‘big project’.

How is my ‘Big Project’ going?

So far, the fire is burning strong and I remain inspired to continue, without feeling forced or pressured to only work on that. My freeze response has disappeared, as I know I’ve always got my ‘big project’ to focus on, or I can look through my ideas notes and pick a small project to complete quickly. For you, I trust that these suggestions, taken singly or all at once, will assist you in getting into the same groove.

Here’s to completed projects and fulfilling our dreams!

And, please, comment below if you have more questions about this, or related writing processes.

Summary:

• Welcome ideas, but write them down in a separate notebook/document, to come back to later.
• Pick an idea, any idea! But ensure you are passionate about it right now.
• Create accountability: with yourself and with others. Dedicate yourself to your ‘big project’ and remind yourself of this regularly. Seek support from other creatives to keep yourself externally accountable.
• Give yourself freedom! Allow yourself space to dream of new things (by welcoming ideas) and making space to finish smaller projects, when you need to do something different.