Salaam friends,

Hi friends,

I have been thinking about this question a lot: why can’t writing be fun?

I’m comparing the energy and enthusiasm I feel when I sit down to write with when I watch a movie, go out with friends, or play my favorite sport. It always takes more out of me to sit and write than to do many other things. So here are the reasons I came up with:

Lack of Immediate Rewards

Unlike watching a movie or hanging out with friends, writing doesn’t often offer immediate gratification. Sadly, most of our brains have been rewired to seek instant gratification due to social media, next-day deliveries, and the availability of anything that comes to our mind with a few clicks. It’s a privilege that comes with a cost. But the key is to find joy in writing sessions by sharing it with friends for feedback more often, trying to publish small pieces, and attending open mics to read some of your work. Celebrating the small victories will create a positive loop that reinforces the practice and makes it feel more joyful.

Our Fears Prevents us from Writing

My fear is that my writing will not connect with people, I’m spending all this time to write and no one will want to publish it, and am I even doing it right?

I recently did an exercise from Alan Watts’ the-90-day novel where he asks to list all of your writing fears. I did. Then he suggested that those fears will be the same fears the characters I’m writing about have. For me, that was a learning moment. Characters we write about are often a piece of us, or a piece of someone we know. And looking at my fears as material to use for characters I was writing made me think about my fears as an asset as opposed to a roadblock. Plus, who doesn’t experience self-doubt?

Finding Personal Meaning

Why do you write? Is it for fame, fortune, or something more personal? For me, writing is about representing my Yemeni heritage and sharing the Muslim experience in a way that's never been done before. Connecting with the deep, personal reasons why we write can reignite our passion and commitment. And every time I remember that, I feel a sense of responsibility to get my stories out. But every time I think about my age, when I will be published, how rich I will become when I publish, and the awards I will receive (none of that’s guaranteed), I feel less motivated.

Creating the Right Environment

It’s hard to maintain focus in a chaotic environment. I live in New York City, which I love, but it feels like I’m running from the moment I wake up till the moment I go to sleep. So having the right environment means a place with no distractions. Tim Ferriss suggests “writing while your social circle is asleep.” This reminds me of a time when I used to wake up an hour before work to write. It was the most consistent time period where I was writing.

Enjoying the Process Over the Product

Often, we focus too much on the end goal—a published book, an article, or a completed script. This focus can drain the joy from writing. It’s essential to enjoy the process. We write far more often than we publish or celebrate, so learning to love the act of writing itself is key to long-lasting fulfillment. And for me, that joy comes from how often I sit to write and forget that I’m writing—I’m there allowing my fingers to type, and for my world and characters to come to life on their own. It’s when I don’t worry about a misspelled word, a grammar rule, or if the character’s left ear is still there. Just one word next to another, for an hour or so, then come up for a deep breath.

🔖 Quote to ponder
“I am what time, circumstance, history, have made of me, certainly, but I am, also, much more than that. So are we all.”
—James Baldwin

📸 Through My Lens