Verified by 
True story: Between when I typed the title of this post and when I began writing this sentence, I spent ten minutes scrolling through Facebook just because I wrote the word “Facebook.”
That’s how powerful distraction is, and how susceptible we are to its siren song.
We live in fascinating times, and we have faster and easier access to news—and other people’s opinions about it—than we have at any other time in history. For writers and anyone else trying to make art, this is good and bad news.
The good side: there’s an incredible amount of material out there, ready to inspire you.
The bad side: all this information presents an incredible challenge to focus, especially during this twist-filled, entertaining election carnival.
How can we feel like active participants in democracy and in the experience of sharing this cultural moment without allowing it to wreck the focus we’ve fought to create in our lives?
Get your tech to serve you instead of serving it.
If having your phone glued to your hand is making it harder to tear yourself away from news or social media, put space between you and your portable technology. Don’t keep the phone in your bedroom, or keep it out of reach so it can’t be the first thing you grab when you wake up. If you block out time for writing or other creative work using a timer, don’t use the clock app on your phone—use a kitchen timer, watch, or clock, and turn your phone off during your creative time. If you leave the house to write at a coffee shop or the library, channel the olden days of answering machines and dare to leave your phone at home.
Block out time.
In the morning, decide on set times dedicated to social media and the web. Ideally, choose it after your writing time for the day—it can be a reward for all the writing you accomplished. Or try this: at the beginning of the week, pick which days will be social media activity days and which will be social media blackouts. On the activity days, Tweet, Facebook, and Instagram with impunity. On the blackout days, don’t open the sites or apps, no matter what’s going on in the news cycle.
Limit your election news intake.
There are plenty of gentle ways to put limits around how much commentary, and conversation you allow yourself; think of it the way you might sweets or other foods you try to enjoy sparingly. Set a limit on how many articles you read or videos you watch per day. Or manage it by time—I will spend no more than X minutes per day consumed with election coverage. One writer I know makes a $5 donation to her preferred candidate every time she indulges in reading an article about the opponent.
Even if you skip an entire week of coverage—no articles, no news-watching, no reading Facebook posts—ask yourself, would you miss anything crucial that you wouldn’t be able to find out about a week later? If you don’t want to give up the feeling of involvement, set aside time to contribute in a meaningful way by volunteering at your local grassroots office or polling place—but do it in addition to, not instead of, your creative work.
Remember that obstacles can inhibit your work, but they can also bring out your best.
In stories, all heroes encounter obstacles in their paths; without them, stories wouldn’t be very interesting. These moments of struggle are when their protagonists grow and become worthy of the rewards that often follow. When you overcome the impediments to your focus—put down the phone, close the app, quit your Internet browser and begin to write and make art—you’ll experience the satisfaction of that growth.
And it’ll feel even better than a Facebook binge. Trust me.
