Overthinking and the Blinding Flash of Brilliance

 This Week's Topic: How Do I Stop Overthinking My Writing?

{cuts open skull}

{takes out brain}

{leaves it on desk}

No? Maybe not?

Okay, fine. 

I laughed when I saw this topic because overthinking things is so me. I can spend a whole day in a thought spiral for what amounts to less than a page worth of story. D'oh! What a colossal waste of precious time, right? 

So, how do I stop doing it? Yes, I appreciate that the question is "stop doing" versus "never do."  In accordance with the universal first step, one must recognize there is a problem. For me, that usually comes when a pee break forces me to step away from the computer. I have a habit of mentally checking my progress toward my daily goal during those moments of, erm, seated relief. (Yeah, I'm the girl who starts her day with "what do I have to get done today, what do I want to get done today, and what can I absolutely not do today.") That's usually when I realize I've spent the last two hours reworking the same damn page. When I return to my WiP, I don't let myself look at the mess I've created. I move on. 

Sometime around 2AM, the solution will come to me. 

The second way I realize I'm overthinking the problem is when I MAKE THINGS WORSE. Usually, I'm overthinking a scene or a moment when I'm trying to clarify and/or simplify the information imparted. Somehow in the throes of it, I make things more complex. Again, once I realize what a disastrophy I'm writing, I move on. I force myself to turn the page (or page-down the page?).  The Blinding Flash of Brilliance (BFB™️) will come once my subconscious has had time to noodle on it.

Overthinking a point of your story is bound to happen. The key to working through it is to realize when you've succumbed. Once you know you're caught in the thought spiral, you can break free. Give your subconscious time to figure it out, then you can go back and fix things. You know that process called Editing? Yep. It's where BFBs shine.