Practice is not just repeating the same action

In Matthew Syed's Bounce I found, what boils down to, a very simple premise. The simple idea struck a chord so strongly with me, that I think of it nearly every time I'm struggling to move forward in my writing.

I was drawn to Bounce initially as I enjoy the odd extended essay, or paper, on various scientific and psychological topics (I've studied at degree level in both, for my sins). It's quite a fascinating look at how a variety of individuals, musicians, baseball players etc., have achieved great things in their respective fields. What made them special? Why did they succeed over anyone else? Of course, another reason I plucked it off the bookshop's shelf was wanting to know how I could become a champion too. Albeit a writing champion. If there is such a thing.

Syed neatly demonstrates with case studies how some key element of a person's life can present them with an odd, sometimes barely recognisable, opportunity that in the cases of certain individuals, were pivotal to their success. Take baseball players. Syed tells us that many of the major league players had birthdays in the first 3 months of the year. Strange coincidence? Hardly. It was a result of the selection process way back in junior school. At that age, children who were the eldest in the school year were able to demonstrate more physical ability than those born a matter of months later. This was simply a case of children's physical ability changing so quickly at that age, but when selecting teams, this age advantage was easily confused with talent. Those children selected received more coaching as a result and the gap in ability grew wider. This carried through into high school and then adult life when it became a career for some of them. The older children in the year got an unexpected leg up and the younger ones missed an opportunity.

Another, rather amusing, example is that of a ping pong player who had a wicked technique positioning himself much closer to the table than any other professional players. He became legendary for his unique style of play and was praised for his lightening quick reactions when he was so close. Syed tells us how this happened. The player had first learned on a table tennis table in a cramped room that could only fit the table and the players in it with no room to spare. He'd practised for hours of his young life with no option to move away from the table edge. This awkward setup became the reason for his success. No other player was so practised at short range and their reactions were not as fast as a result.

Syed isn't just pointing out that odd opportunities help, (so don't start jamming yourself and your laptop into a phonebox just yet) but that the idea of talent itself may be a fallacy. What is talent? Syed lays out intriguing evidence that the key is not some pre-determined ability we are born with, but simply practice. (Yes, I'm British.) The research he cites concludes that several hours of practice each day, with the key purpose of improvement, over a period of ten years will create a world class musician, sportsman, artist etc. The 'ten year' part may make you gulp, but 'world class' is pretty damn enticing.

I took a few key things away from this fascinating book:

a) Practice is not just repeating the same action, it is striving for greater skill at each session.
b) Momentum and continuity of practice is extremely important.
c) It will take time and concentrated effort, a lot of each, but the results can be impressive.
d) Your unique life experience isn't just important for your style and the choice of subjects you can write about, but also your learning experience and your whole opportunity to be a writer.
e) No matter how awful I think my writing is today or how awful a particular draft is, I know that if I just keep at it, put the effort in and strive to improve, I will get better and so will the book.

The last point in particular gets me through some pretty low "what was I even thinking" days. It feels like a simple map to reaching my goals. It helps me keep the writer faith. Keep working hard and working often and it won't be in vain.

If you need some inspirational, superhuman myth busting discussion too, Bounce is a great place to start.

How to reach the top, by never giving up.

Looking a lot like a diagram of story structure, this great inspirational chart by Anna Vital resonates nicely with the writer in me. Now I'm going to expand on this a little.

'Stay alive'
Yep, 240 shots at success sound good to me. If it takes you a year or maybe two to write a book, that's still at least 30 bites of the apple by this reckoning. All we have to do is "stay alive"! On that note: take care of the rest of you, while your mind and finger tips are working overtime. Exercise! As writers we need this more than ever to counteract keeping our backsides in the chair. If you're short on finance, walk or run, short on time, get some gym equipment at home, short on everything, improvise - you're a writer, use your imagination! Pump a tin of beans in one hand while you type with the other. Attach pedals to your desk and cycle as you write. Do glute crunches as you sit in the chair. Whatever works, right? Exercise is also a great writer's block buster. Clear your head, wash away those doubts with an endorphin rinse and give yourself time to just think rather than continuously create (I've done some of my best plot doctoring on the indoor rower).

'Lower your expectations'
Good point, well made. You'd like some literary equivalency? J K Rowling was rejected 12 times before she found a willing publisher. Brazilian author Paulo Coelho published 4 books before his career as a writer took off. His third book, The Alchemist, had an initial print run of only 900 books and didn't go for a reprint at the time. The Alchemist has now sold over 65 million copies worldwide. Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code was his fourth book, not his first, with the previous three only selling well once the fourth book took off. It takes time, but it is worth it.

'Stronger'
Yes, you are. Much stronger than you would ever think. If this is what you really want, you will achieve it. Just Keep Going. Crush any doubts before they crush you and be a bulldozer on your path to success. Take pride in every hurdle you leap and every hill you climb. Strength comes not just from knowing your weaknesses, but recognising and remembering that you have overcome them before. Build on your strength and celebrate it.

'Persist'
The weeds could equally be the middle of your beginning, middle and end, or a rough edit, or the 100th rejection letter. Try something new, merge or switch out characters, start your next book, market yourself via a different medium or differently in your current media. Build your momentum and keep on fuelling it. Think of it this way, if you continue doing what you have always done, how can you expect different results? If you feel yourself or your work starting to plateau or stagnate, add something new. And I'll say it again. Just Keep Going.

'Fake it'
Wise words indeed, in fact I'd go one step further. Simply be an author in the present, rather than aspire to be one in the future. I have a whole lot to say about this in my upcoming writer's guide, but for now, suffice to say that if you set your goal in the future, it may always stay in the future. Act in the present exactly as you will act once you're successful. Schedule, work and think as a successful writer and you will be. Put another way, if you continue to act like an amateur, how are you learning to be a professional? Pretending is not pretending, it's practice until one day it isn't practice anymore.

'Don't compare'
This. Yes, yes and yes. Think of anything you have achieved in life. Can you describe exactly how you did it? Or where you got all the knowledge from that it took to achieve that goal? Probably not! You are unique and this is a great thing! No one but you can write the book you are writing. Equally no one but you will take the path to writing success that you are taking, so carve your own path with hope, pride and everything that makes you YOU.

'The dip'
Rejection letters come to mind, or the first novel not taking off as you'd hoped, you may even be flagging at the end of your first draft. Go back to our big name examples above, keep at it because you just don't know which of your books will strike that chord and rocket to the top. Each book you write will take you on this journey many times over on a smaller scale, so it's a ride you'll be getting used to. Learn with each trough and pick up speed for the next peak. Recognise the signs and cut off the troughs before you go too low. Replace a doubt in your mind with a positive wish or celebrate your progress so far. It doesn't matter whether you've written 2000 words, 200,000 words or sold 2000 copies, they are all points along the line to success, as long as you keep on moving along that line. I know you can succeed, as long as you Never Give Up!