Top Ten Ways I Procrastinate When Writing….

I am not a procrastinator by nature. I am a planner, but it seems the older I get the more laid back I become and then before I know it, I am up against a deadline.  I always make my deadline, whether it is for writing or other obligations in my life. As I was thinking about how I procrastinate to avoid writing from time to time, I thought it would be a funny list to share… because let’s be honest, we’ve all been there.

1. Twitter– If I have actually got myself to sit down at my computer when I am procrastinating, I usually fall for the lie that I tell myself, “I’ll just pop onto Twitter for a second and see what is going on in the world..” Ha ha ha, silly me, a half hour later I am still scrolling through Twitter and NOT writing.
2. Homework– I am working on my graduate degree in Public Relations- I will be done in the fall. This is a lame way to procrastinate but, since this post is about outing myself.. yeah sometimes I use homework as an excuse to not write. The bummer is, I actually have to do homework, and end up wishing I was writing instead.
3. Housework- Yes you read that right, sometimes I would rather clean my house than write. I have been known to organize the closet in the kid’s playroom to avoid writing, this is a multi-day project.
4. Work Out- I am giggling at myself at this point, writing is turning me into a runner for the first time in my life.
5. Getting Trapped By TV.- At the end of the day, after a full day of work, dinner, kid’s homework, bath, and bed I am exhausted. My husband will be watching something on television and I will sit just for a second. Two hours later, I am still sitting there, wondering where the hell the past two hours went, but now I am too tired to actually write.
6. Home Project- I seriously, kid you not. I tiled an entire kitchen backsplash to get out of writing a chapter one weekend. That is a lot of work not to write.
7. I am Too Tired- Between my full-time job, owning a business with my husband, being a grad school student, raising two energetic children, being a wife to a wonderful man and caring for our zoo full of housepets I am exhausted. Man, I am tired just writing that.
8. It Isn’t Very Good- I think this is the excuse I hate most of all. I think every writer has that period of self-doubt while working on a project. I sure know I have on just about every project I have completed. It is that little voice in the back of my head that says, “you don’t have to keep working on this project, it isn’t very good anyway.”  Well, that little voice can go to hell, because I don’t quit, but I do procrastinate.
9. I Need to Run and Errand- “We need cinnamon for the french toast for brunch two weeks from now, I’d better go get it.” Yeah, the important errand that needs to run right away, but in reality can wait for a good ten days at least… that one is a gem.
10. I Just Need A Break- If I am in the middle of a project and I am really working hard at it, this is a good excuse to pull out. However, it is a trick. I don’t fall for it much anymore because that is when the voice from number 8 comes out. Writing only gets better the more you do it. Plus, if you walk away, you stand a good chance of losing your momentum.

In the end, more often than not, I do end up making myself sit down and write. It is the best feeling when I do write and get those words down. When I block out the world around me and stop thinking about all of the obligations I have, and just immerse myself in the work I am creating..that is magic. How do you procrastinate, from one procrastinator to another? Let me know in the comments below.