BY NANCY KAY CLARK
CommuterLit editor & publisher
Copyright is held by the author.
FEBRUARY HAS arrived, the weather is oppressive and is telling you to go back to bed, your New Year’s resolutions have been dropped, family and day job obligations are getting away from you, the world is run by madmen, and when you do manage to steal 30 minutes out of the day to sit down and write, you can’t manage to write a page. And then you feel guilty about it — because everybody around you seems to be managing 3,000 words a day and popping out best-sellers every six months! What’s wrong with you?
Nothing. Nothing is wrong with you — except perhaps you’re being too hard on yourself.
Repeat after me:
1. Thinking about your story while taking a walk or a long bath is writing.
2. Doing research and jotting down notes is writing.
3. Working on outlining and structure is writing.
4. Talking out a character problem or a plot point with the fellow members of your writing group is writing.
5. Letting your first draft lie dormant for a month, so you can return to it with fresh eyes, is writing.
6. Getting a good night sleep is not slacking off.
7. Even a sentence or a paragraph written is progress.
Yes, you do eventually have to write the whole story out, but kicking yourself each day that full manuscript does not materialize doesn’t help you — it just makes you feel defeated and eventually you’ll stop trying.
So instead, aim for some progress each week. And keep going.
Our Valentines Week 2026 contest is closed
We are now furiously reviewing each entry. Thank you to everyone who entered; we had 43 submissions. The first- and second-place winners, as well as the three runners up will be announced Monday, Feb. 9, and will be posted on CommuterLit throughout that week (the week leading up to Valentines Day).
Our next contest will be Poetry Week in April.
Missed last week’s posts?
Check them out here.
Monday’s story:
Regrets? “Miriam” by Nick Di Carlo
Tuesday’s story:
Mutual education. “Who I Was” by Patricia Dutt
Wednesday’s story:
From every viewpoint. “Rescued” by Maureen Murphy
Thursday’s sci-fi story:
Strange encounter. “The Fire Escape” by John Woodhouse