Sci-fi queen Ursula K. Le Guin had a very interesting daily routine. It’s been on my mind ever since writer Michael J. Seidlinger tweeted about it last year.
Just like LeGuin, I confess that I, too, “tend to be very stupid” after 8:00 p.m. If I save my writing for the evening, I won’t do it. I just won’t. My brain is mush by that time. That’s exactly why I’ve been a morning writer for years. On days when I write, I like to wake up, have a cup of coffee, stretch my legs, take a shower, and write for as long as I can before the rest of the day commences.
But do I write every day? Hell no! Sure, daily writing works for some people—Stephen King famously swears by it, even on Christmas Day—and I have tried it before. For me, though, forcing a daily habit made writing feel obligatory. These days, I usually do my best to carve out some writing time four or five days out of the week. And on those days when I don’t write, I find myself longing to write again. I never felt that same longing when I was making myself write every day. I didn’t have time to miss it at all.
I’ve learned a thing or two about routines as I’ve honed my own through the years. Here are some tips for structuring your writing life.
Hunt for Small Windows of Time
I urge writers to find realistic routines that suit their busy lives. Start small. Thirty minutes a week is better than zero minutes, right?
I hesitate to suggest anything especially life-altering to your daily routine as we find ourselves in the midst of an incredibly stressful global pandemic (and, ahem, election season). Now may not necessarily be the time to push yourself to wake up earlier or go to bed later just to squeeze in some writing—we need all the rest we can get in a year like 2020. And for writers who have children at home, who are just trying to get their families through the day, writing time probably feels like some grand distant fantasy, like a real vacation or a COVID vaccine.
But I wonder if there’s a small (and I do mean small) pocket of time that already exists in your world. Perhaps you watch Netflix before bed a few nights a week. What if you replaced just one of those Parks and Rec re-runs with some writing time, and got in the habit of doing so on the same night every week?
Make a (Specific!) Plan
Just like making a voting plan for the upcoming election (nudge nudge!) can increase your likelihood of getting your ballot in the box—deciding the exact date and time when you’ll go to the polls, arranging who you’ll bring along to vote with you, making sure you remember to bring a form of identification, and checking your voter registration ahead of time—making a writing plan can lead to more attainable and effective writing time.
James Clear refers to this process of planning ahead as “implementation intention” in his book Atomic Habits. Getting in the habit of setting implementation intentions increases the odds that we’ll stick with habits.
It’s best to get specific with our intentions. “I should write sometime this weekend” is too amorphous of an intention for most of us. “I’ll outline that essay that’s been on my mind this Sunday morning at 7:00 a.m. at the kitchen table before the kids wake up” is brimming with implementable intention. It’s specific about time, place, and the involved writing project.
Make the First Step Easy
You’ve probably heard the recommendation of changing into your workout clothes right when you get home from work in order to increase your likelihood of squeezing in some exercise at the end of the day. I utilize a similar strategy prior to my writing time.
Before I begin writing, I grab a stack of supplies I’ll need during my designated time. The stack includes the same four things each time:
My laptop.
A pen.
A notebook for journaling.
A separate notebook for brainstorming.
You know how it can feel less dreadful to give ourselves specific commands? Like, “it’s time to change clothes” is a more specific and less dreadful command than one that requires many steps, like “it’s time to work out.” In the same way, I feel much more capable of taking the first step into my writing time when I tell myself, “it’s time to gather my stack,” instead of, “it's time to write.” Stack-gathering is a specific task that has almost no room for failure, so I always start on the right foot in a writing session.
Plus, gathering my materials ahead of time keeps me from having to stand up and exit the flow state when I’m writing. My first step gets me where I need to be and keeps me there. I bring my stack downstairs, sit at the table, and start writing, usually in a notebook first before I move to my computer.
And when I turn on my computer, I always start a site blocker—without it, I’ll almost certainly succumb to distraction during my precious minutes of writing time.
Start small with your writing routine and look for opportunities to build on it. And if you backslide, don’t beat yourself up. You don’t have to have a strict routine to be a writer. You just have to keep writing.
Next time, I’ll share my interview with author Candice Iloh about their writing routine. Candice’s young adult verse novel, Every Body Looking, is a 2020 finalist for the National Book Award! I read it in one invigorating whoosh and adored every single page.
If you haven’t already, subscribe to the newsletter so you don’t miss my chat with Candice!
Do you have a writing routine?
“No, but I do have some rituals! I put on my writing playlist, write stream-of-consciousness on kraft paper so it feels noncommittal, type my lines on a shutdown computer keyboard just to get a feel for the words, drink matcha milk tea, then set up my notes and laptop on a blanket and work on my stomach.” —Shan
“I'm most productive in the afternoon and evening. I write in my backyard—no phone, no Internet, no music. Just me, my laptop, and a giant water bottle.” —Kalee
“I wake up at 6:45, eat breakfast, journal, meditate, then pick one of my projects to work on until 8:15. It's not much time, but it's what I have for now.” —Jessica
Have you tried maintaining a writing routine? What helped you succeed? What causes you to struggle most when attempting to write regularly? Tell me all about it in the Lonely Victories reader questionnaire!
Really Digging This
Here’s what I’ve been reading and loving lately.
You may have already heard that Zadie Smith wrote an entire book during the first few months of the pandemic. She’s basically the Queen of Quarantine.
Published back in July, Intimations is a lovely collection of essays in which Smith breaks down the changes in her own writing process over the course of the COVID-19 outbreak. It’s a terrific companion to this historic time, and Smith’s wise words helped me better process the dumpster fire that’s occurred over the past six months.
Speaking of dumpster fires, I need this Christmas ornament.
What’s your favorite thing you’ve read in the time of Coronavirus? Leave your book recommendations for me in the comments!
Calling all aspiring novelists! My friend Jessica Hatch wants to help you get prepared to write 50,000 words during National Novel Writing Month, aka NaNoWriMo!
If you break out 50,000 words evenly, it means you’ll be writing at least 1,667 words a day for 30 days during NaNoWriMo. Hatch Editorial’s free October Boot Camp newsletter will prepare for this challenge. You’ll receive a writing prompt every morning this month that’ll help you build up to writing 2,000 words a day (which means you’ll have five whole days to rest during NaNoWriMo).
Take NaNo on this year without breaking a sweat. Sign up for October Boot Camp and get writing!
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“Writing alone can give you a very deep sense of satisfaction and lonely victory.” —Greta Gerwig