When I first started writing, I heard that 95% of anything is just showing up.

But how do you show up? Day after day after day? Writers become masters of avoiding that pain, choosing to do anything else, even housework, rather than sit down, and begin writing.

One of the things that gets me started is the timer . . . and trickery.

You set the timer for 10 minutes. Tell yourself it’s only for 10 minutes. You can tolerate anything for 10 minutes.

But make it a friendly timer, something pretty and with a nice sound. That way, in case you DO get into the flow, the timer will not snap you out of it.

timer from iStockphoto.com #000009443672