Hey, AuDHD writer! Yes, you with the million ideas and the perfectionism gremlin on your shoulder. Let’s have a real talk.
Ever get a brilliant idea in the shower or on a walk, and by the time you find a pen or open your notes app… it’s gone? Just vanished from that quirky working memory of ours. I get it. Our brains are like a browser with 37 tabs open and no idea where the music is coming from.
Here’s the thing:
Write it down.
Write. It. Down.
Even if it’s messy. Even if it makes no sense. Even if you’re convinced you’ll “do it wrong.” Write it anyway.
That weird idea you had while washing dishes? That line that popped into your head while standing in line? That half-formed scene, dream, or caption that made your heart race for a second? Write it down.
You don’t need a plan for it. You don’t need to know where it fits.
Your job is simply to honor the moment it showed up.
Because here’s the truth: a messy note is a gift to your future self. It might become the core of your next story, or it might just make you laugh when you reread it. But only if it exists somewhere outside your head.
For those of us with AuDHD (autism and ADHD combined) the struggle is real.
Working memory issues: If it’s not written down, it might as well have never existed.
Hyperfocus hijacks: One minute you’re deep into organizing, and the next you’ve wandered off to research obscure mollusks.
Executive dysfunction: Sometimes even opening the Notes app feels like a Herculean task.
And perfectionism: That voice whispering “don’t bother if it’s not going to be right”? Yeah, that one needs to be locked tight in an underground bunker somewhere.
Let’s normalize the mess. My notebooks and apps are full of disjointed thoughts, half sentences, “brilliant ideas” with zero context, and strange phrases like “talking plants” Do they all make sense? No. Are they all valid? Absolutely.
Messy handwriting? Still valid.
Bulleted fragments? Still valid.
Half-baked rambles? Absolutely valid.
Writing it down is not about finishing. It’s not about clarity or coherence. It’s about giving your brain a place to breathe. A way to offload, store, and revisit your creative sparks. Whether they become something, or simply serve as a breadcrumb trail back to yourself.
Don’t wait until the idea is polished. Don’t wait until the format is perfect. Don’t wait until your mind is clear and your system is flawless. That might never happen.
Do it now. Write it down in the middle of the mess.
Your thoughts matter, even when they’re tangled. Especially then.
Let them live somewhere outside your head.
You can always tidy up later, or not. But you can’t revisit an idea that disappeared because you were waiting for the perfect way to capture it.
So here’s your gentle nudge:
Write it down.
Even if it’s incomplete.
Even if it’s imperfect.
Even if it’s just for you.
Future You will thank you.
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Thanks for being you,
Brian R. King
Writer • Storyteller • Neurodivergent Guide
Helping AuDHD minds untangle thoughts and find their rhythm, one imperfect scribble at a time.