This is the second part of my short series on lessons I’ve learnt from climbing, and how they relate to writing. For the first part (a brief introduction), click here.

This time, I want to consider progress. While I enjoy both climbing and writing as activities in themselves, I also want to improve‌—‌climb harder problems, master new techniques, write increasingly engaging stories, learn how use words and punctuation more effectively, and so on.

There’s a notion that doing an activity regularly leads to progress, and this is true. We also tend to assume that this progress will be a reflection of the hours spent on that activity‌—‌work for a certain length of time, and reap a relative amount of progress.

But this isn’t always the case. In my climbing I’ve had months when I haven’t seen much progress, when I feel like I’ve plateaued. There are weeks when I slip back, when for no clear reason I simply can’t climb as well as I did previously. There are times when I put in the hours and I can’t see any tangible benefit.

Then there are times when things seem to fall into place, and I suddenly find my climbing improving faster than I expected.

Progress isn’t a straight line. It’s closer to a series of peaks and troughs, or steps. The general trajectory is upward, but along the way there are those plateaus and dips.

Disregarding (for the moment) the notion of ‘good days’ and ‘bad days’, I think this comes down to something similar to ‘levelling up’ in video games. As I work on trickier problems or new techniques, every fresh attempt involves a tiny amount of learning‌—‌my mind figuring out what to do, my body accustoming itself to different movements. These tiny micro-steps don’t initially show themselves, but they have a cumulative effect. Eventually, my mind and body figure out the particular move or technique, and I find success. This has knock-on effects when I attempt other, similar routes, and after the ‘plateau’ of those invisible micro-steps I suddenly jump up.

I’ll give you an example from another activity. Back when I worked in outdoor activity centres I got into kayaking. As I grew more confident I wanted to learn how to roll (using my body and paddle to right myself after a capsize without having to come out of the kayak). I was fortunate in being around others who knew how to do this, and who were willing to help me.

It took ages. For a long while I could understand how to roll a kayak, and knew what my body needed to do, but every time I went over I ended up floundering. It became frustrating when those patient friends repeated their advice, because I already knew it‌—‌it simply didn’t work for me. I couldn’t convince my body to do the necessary movements.

Until I could. All that struggling paid off, and I righted myself. And once I’d rolled once, I could do it again, and again. Yes, I still had times when it didn’t work, but more often than not I was successful. It was only a short while later I managed a hand-roll (a more advanced technique involving righting a capsized kayak without using a paddle).

This type of progress also applies to my writing, although it’s harder to see. But I can give you one example.

In much of my fiction I use close third-person perspective. This means that I’m describing events in the third person (’he opened the door’, ‘she collapsed onto the chair’), but staying close to a particular character‌—‌the scene is experienced through that character’s perspective.

In my older books, especially in early drafts, I used phrases like ‘she saw’ or ‘he noticed’‌—‌‘she saw the dark clouds approaching and felt a twisting in her guts.’ It’s not necessarily wrong, but it’s clumsy. If I’m writing in close third, then I’m already describing things from that characters’ perspective‌—‌anything visual I describe is by default something they see, because if they didn’t see it I wouldn’t mention it. So that ‘she saw’ is redundant. Worse, it can be distancing. A better way of phrasing that sentence would be ‘the approaching dark clouds twisted her stomach.’ It’s tighter, and it’s more intimate.

I don’t know when I learnt about this, but even once I understood it I still used ‘she heard’ or ‘he saw’ or other variations. It took many hours (years?) of writing before that lesson had gone from something I ‘knew’ into something I ‘did’. And even now, especially in early drafts, I find those phrases slipping in. But I’m far more likely to spot them in the edit.

So I now understand that progress isn’t a straight line. But what about those times it seems to regress? What about those sessions at the climbing wall when I struggle with what should be easy routes? What about those times when the climbing doesn’t flow like it usually does?

This could be down to tiredness, especially after a hard shift at work. It could be down to illness‌—‌that cold I’ve been ignoring, or some other ache or pain. Maybe that niggling awkwardness in moving my shoulder is more serious than I realise.

Or maybe it’s the temperature or humidity at the climbing wall.

Climbing is as much mental as it is physical, so if I’ve got things on my mind (even if I’m not fully conscious of them), this can have an impact. Those unconscious thoughts distract me, and I can’t effectively concentrate on my climbing.

Or it’s something else. Who knows? As much as I’d like to be totally in control of everything that happens to me, I know there are so many known and unknown variables that there are always going to be ‘good days’ and ‘bad days’.

And I’ve learnt to not only accept this, but also to go with it. If I’m having a ‘bad’ climbing session, I don’t let it frustrate me. Instead, I stick to easier climbs, maybe working on ‘basic’ techniques. Or I take things slower, spend longer watching and talking to others, or extend the coffee break.

I had one of these sessions this week. I felt weaker than normal. A couple of problems involved high foot-placements, and I simply didn’t have the flexibility. I had done similar moves before, but not on this day.

So I did what I could (I still managed enough that I could class the session as a ‘success’). And those problems that I should’ve been able to get up but couldn’t? A large part of climbing is ‘reading the route’‌—‌mentally running through moves hold to hold. So when I come back to these problems next week, I’ll already have that mental preparation done.

It’s similar in writing. There are times when the words flow, when my fingers fly over the keyboard and the pages fill. There are days when the ideas for story improvements fall into place, or where the edits come together just so. And then there are the days when each sentence is a struggle. There are days when my mind too readily wanders, when it’s an effort to focus on the work.

The days of struggle are frustrating. But I can’t get annoyed at them. I have to accept that I’m not in the right frame of mind for writing or editing. Pushing through might get a few words on the page, but is that time well spent?

I usually have multiple ‘projects’ on the go at any one time. At the moment I have this space-opera series as well as the spin-off series. I also have other writing-related activities, such as these posts, or newsletters, or looking at different marketing options. I have back-cover copy to write, or I could revisit existing copy. I have podcasts I listen to. I have various courses I could go through again. I could spend some time trying to better understand advertising, or coming up with ad copy and images. Or maybe it’s time to ‘refill the well’, to read for inspiration, to see how other writers approach their stories.

There is always something I could be doing. So if the words aren’t coming, or if the editing is leaving my mind spinning, then I can turn to something else. It might not feel as if I’m making progress on a particular book, but I’m still working on my writing. And after taking things easier, I’ll feel fresher for my writing session tomorrow.

Sometimes, the most productive thing to do is to take a step back and rest.

So, there are times when that progress plateaus, and there are times when it feels like I’m not only failing to improve but am going backwards. But, overall, I’m improving.

Since starting to push my climbing, I’ve made progress. Two years ago I worked on ‘red’ climbs (the walls I use have different colours for different grades), and by the end of the year could usually manage to complete about half the ‘red’ routes. A year ago I was regularly completing most, if not all, of the ‘reds’, and could occasionally manage problems in the next level, the ‘purples’. This year I’ve set myself the target of regularly completing two-thirds of the ‘purples’, and to complete a few of the ‘yellows’. Half-way through the year, I have managed just over half the ‘purples’ on the last couple of sets, and have managed one ‘yellow’. Okay, that yellow was undoubtedly soft for the grade, but it still counts.

Is my writing progressing?

If I look at ‘books published’ as a benchmark, then no. Last year I brought out the last couple of books in my ShadowTech series, and started work on this new space-opera. But we’re half-way through 2025, and so far only put out a box-set of the complete ShadowTech series, which didn’t involve writing anything new. I have an upcoming Kickstarter for another collection of previously-written stories (if you’re interested, click here). But I haven’t published anything new.

But this series (and the spin-off series) are a step up. I’m focusing on many of the lessons I’ve learnt over the past few years. I’m determined that these books will contain better writing‌—‌more engaging, with stronger character voice in both dialogue and prose. My rate of production might’ve slipped, but that’s because I’m focusing on quality of writing.

It feels like I’ve made several jumps forward recently, and I now need to consolidate that in these new books‌—‌a plateau in progress where I can put those lessons into practice.

That doesn’t mean I’m taking things easy, though. I’m still pushing, still striving to improve. But I’ll go deeper into that next time, when I look at practice in both climbing and writing.

This post is the latest in a series I’m running on Substack, chronicling my work on this new project. If you’d like to read these posts as they appear, please consider subscribing for free.

Over the next few posts I’m going to be diving into lessons I’ve learnt from climbing, and how they relate to writing. I’ve enjoyed climbing for a long time (roughly as long as I’ve enjoyed writing), but it’s only recently that I’ve become more serious (or maybe the word should be ‘intentional’) about both endeavours. Along the way I’ve noticed connections between the two activities. Lessons I’ve learnt at the climbing wall correlate to lessons I’ve learnt typing away on my laptop. And on reflection, these lessons could be seen as ‘life lessons’.

But let’s back up. I need to tell you a little about my climbing.

I’ve never been keen on sports. Never got into football. Didn’t play on any teams. I swam with the local swimming club, but I never pushed myself particularly hard. I think I was content simply ploughing up and down. Oh, and I did enjoy cross-country running at school. I wasn’t the fastest, but I could keep going. I’d settle into my own rhythm and enjoy a bit of alone-time.

Definitely introverted tendencies coming out here.

Then, in my twenties, I wound up working in an outdoor activity centre in North Wales. This introduced me to all kinds of new activities‌—‌canoeing, archery, hill-walking. And climbing.

And I enjoyed them.

In retrospect, I can understand why. These activities aren’t sports so much as physical pastimes. The aim isn’t to ‘win’, but to enjoy the activity itself. They had their social elements, but these weren’t too overt‌—‌going climbing with someone isn’t the same as going to a pub in a group. And, in all these activities, there’s a certain amount of time spent alone. In climbing, even when with others, there’s usually only one person actually climbing at any one time, the other belaying (’holding the rope’).

A quick note on the word ‘climbing’. It covers a wide range of activities, from mountaineering to bouldering. I started with multi-pitch rock climbing‌—‌using ropes and all kinds of metal-work, learning how to securely attach myself and others to the rock, often spending a whole day on a single route (usually with fairly long walks to and from the rock-face). Later I got into bouldering‌—‌climbing shorter routes that don’t require ropes. I now climb at an indoor bouldering wall‌—‌twelve feet high, lots of mats, short but tricky problems to solve.

Back to my climbing story. I enjoyed the activity, but I never particularly pushed myself. I was content on easier routes, enjoying the experience and the views. I never tried harder routes. I wasn’t interested in working on my technique.

Eventually I stopped working at outdoor centres, and life took various turns (as it does). I still had all my gear (ropes and so on) but didn’t go climbing.

Until, about a decade ago, I chanced upon an indoor bouldering wall close to where I was then working. And when a change of jobs made it convenient, I started going regularly. But I didn’t particularly try hard (I’m detecting a pattern here!) I was happy simply climbing. I might give a problem a couple of goes, but if I couldn’t manage it I’d move on to something else.

But, slowly, that attitude changed. I started watching others, and talking with them. I started picking up on different techniques.

And, over the last couple of years, I’ve been pushing. I now usually go twice a week. Rather than give up after a couple of goes on a route, I’ll ‘project’ it‌—‌trying different techniques and approaches, climbing different sections then trying to put it all together, and coming back to it over a few weeks.

I’m improving. I wouldn’t say I’m a good climber (I’m probably on the low end of average). And at my age I can’t expect fast improvements. I’m not as flexible as I used to be. If I injure myself it takes longer to recover. My day-job (lots of heavy lifting) helps keep me in shape, but I’m not in my twenties any more. I know I’ll reach a point where physical limitations mean I can’t push onto harder routes. At some point remaining at the same grade will be success. But until I reach that point, I want to keep improving. A few weeks ago I managed to get up a route graded v7 (I usually just about manage a few v6 climbs), and while I’m sure it was soft for the grade, this has spurred me on to try more climbs at this level. And to have any chance at completing them, I know I need to improve my technique as well as my ‘mental game’.

So that’s where I am with climbing. And there are clear parallels with my writing development.

I’ve always enjoyed reading, and loved writing stories at school. This was pushed out by guitar playing for a while, but one winter, around working shifts at a local flour mill, I wrote a draft of my very first novel. I wrote it in pencil, in exercise books.

And it was terrible. I’ve since typed it into a computer, and I still have the file somewhere, and that’s where it’s going to stay. An achievement to have finished a story of novel length, yes, but it’s not something I’d want to inflict on readers.

Fast-forward to about ten years ago, and work wasn’t going well. I think I turned to writing as an escape (and I may expand on this later). In 2015 I made the conscious decision to ‘get serious with writing’. I wrote (or edited) every day. I planned a series. In 2016 I released the first three books in that series.

As of last year, and I had around twenty titles out. I was coming to the end of my third series, and was planning a new project. That project is the subject of this collection of posts‌—‌my space-opera series and spin-off series.

And, as I’ve previously mentioned in these posts, I felt this was a gear-change. To pull this series off I needed to focus. I need (and want) to vastly improve my writing.

So, I’m currently striving to improve in both climbing and writing. And, as I mentioned earlier, I’m seeing more and more parallels between the two. Lessons I learn at the wall relate to writing, and vice versa.

One of these lessons is that it is hard to improve in supposedly solitary activities without other people.

The kind of climbing I now do, bouldering, requires no ropes. I don’t need a partner to tackle a route. Once I’m at the wall I choose a problem and climb.

And I can make progress on my own. But it’s slow. I don’t know what I don’t know, so when I’m stuck I can’t always see a way forward.

Climbing with others helps me overcome this.

There’s a wonderful camaraderie amongst climbers. The atmosphere in climbing walls is always friendly. There is always someone around who’ll offer advice or suggest a different approach to a particular climb. As I rest between climbs I can watch and talk to others, picking up new ideas and techniques.

This help doesn’t have to come from ‘better’ climbers either. There’s one particular climber I often see at the wall who doesn’t manage the higher grades I climb, but when he’s on the wall he moves with incredible control. Watching him reminds me that I need to focus on my technique rather than throwing myself at holds. And because he relies on technique rather than strength he’ll approach problems from different angles, showing me more efficient ways to climb.

The encouragement from others is important too. So is the opportunity to rest and talk‌—‌when climbing on my own there’s too much temptation to keep going rather than allowing my body the rest it needs between attempts.

And, even for an introvert like me, there is a certain pleasure in being around others who share common interests.

Other people are important in writing, too.

Yes, a large part of the appeal of writing is the solitary nature of it‌—‌shutting myself off from everything and diving into imaginary worlds. But if I want to improve, I need to learn from others. This can be at a remove‌—‌reading books or listening to podcasts. It can be more direct‌—‌taking courses or attending conferences. And it can be even more personal.

I’ll admit I struggle with this. I’m as introverted online as I am in real life. Interacting with others, even on social media, is something I find hard. But I’m realising more and more that I need the support of other writers. If I’m part of a group of writers I have others to bounce ideas off, others to ask for advice. Being in a community of writers would provide encouragement along with practical support. Also, in the same way that watching others climb and reflecting on what I see can improve my climbing, seeing how other writers do things (be that craft-related or in marketing and advertising) can offer me fresh perspectives and new ideas.

So, my first lesson‌—‌community is important. Even if it means pushing beyond my comfort zone, I need to reach out to others if I’m serious about improving.

Next time I’ll examine what climbing has taught me about the nature of progress, and how that relates to my writing.

This post is the latest in a series I’m running on Substack, chronicling my work on this new project. If you’d like to read these posts as they appear, please consider subscribing for free.