The Writer’s Guide to Agony and Defeat

43 of the Worst Moments in the Writing Life and How to Get Over Them

The Agonies of Sitting Down and Actually Doing the Work

15. You develop neck pain, suffer from carpel tunnel, and gain fifteen pounds of fat

Dr. Oz says that humans weren’t made to sit as long as we sit. You shouldn’t sit at a desk or work a computer for more than a few minutes at a time. You should get up and do jumping jacks, and sit-ups, and deep breathing. But you don’t, because you have this book to finish. You sit so long that your butt goes numb, your fingers tingle, and your eyesight starts to get weird. You go to the eye doctor who amps up your prescription and gives you a special deal on the anti-reflective coating that will make everthing better — only $1,400 for each lens. You go to your regular doctor to ask about the tingling, and she tells you that surgery is the only solution and that you should stop working so many hours at the computer, and then when you’re about to leave, she looks at the chart and says that you’re fifteen pounds heavier than you were last year. “How’s your exercise program going?” she asks. You lie and say that it’s going fine, when, in fact, your only exercise is standing up and going to the refrigerator. “Keep it up,” she says, and you go home, have a bowl of Ben and Jerry’s Cherry Garcia, pop a few Advil, and keep writing.

The way forward:

Make exercise part of writing your routine. There is abundant evidence — both scientific and anecdotal — that physical fitness and mental fitness go hand in hand. So sit your butt in the chair and write. Then get up and get moving. It’s as simple — and profound — as that.

“For me, writing is a discipline, much like playing a musical instrument. It requires constant practice and honing of skills…If I’m not at my desk by sunrise, I feel like I’m missing my most productive hours. In addition to starting early, I keep an antique hourglass on my desk and every hour break briefly to do push-ups, sit-ups and quick stretches. This helps keep the blood, and ideas, flowing.”

― Dan Brown

Stay tuned on Medium for all 43 of the worst moments. If you can’t wait to read all 43, check out The Writer’s Guide to Agony and Defeat.

There are cool contests and giveaways there, too.Jennie Nash is a writer and book coach who offers her tough love approach to the writing life in a weekly blog atjennienash.com. Follow her on Twitter @JennieNash. Medium readers can try out her Author Accelerator accountability and feedback program for free.