On Wednesdays, I share posts, fables, songs, poems, quotations, TEDx Talks, cartoons, and books that have inspired and motivated me on my writing journey. I hope these posts will give writers, artists, and other creatives a mid-week boost.

In her latest release, 1000 Words: A Writer’s Guide to Staying Creative, Focused, and Productive All Year Round, novelist Jami Attenberg shares her advice and that of over 50 other writers.

Here’s an inspiring essay from Michael Weber:

Here’s something you probably already know: it’s too easy to avoid writing.

So my advice is to be hard on yourself about finding the time to write—extremely hard—but then be kind to yourself after that. Don’t worry about quality. Just put the time in, day after day. Make writing more important than any other things in your life. Because anyone can write when they feel like it, when they have a good idea, when they’re not sick or hungover or tired. I recommend writing when you don’t feel like it, when you have no good ideas, when you couldn’t be more busy and have a hundred reasons not to write. Turn writing into something you have to do.

My self-esteem is tied to my productivity. If I don’t write, I don’t feel good about myself. I’m no longer scared to write poorly because the worst feeling is not writing at all.

Source: 1000 Words, p. 161