There have been times throughout my writing life when I have noticed that certain items, moods, and places bring in the best of my writing. Many people from the littlest kid to a pro athlete have developed routines that bring their best attitude and mindset to their passion. So, if I showed you a glimpse into my small writing routine, it could help beginners or others develop their own.
#1 Set the House
Write without Distractions
First, for friends who are moms or have a lot of household responsibilities, setting the house up for success while you are preparing to write is essential. I hate when I am in the middle of writing a scene and someone or something interrupts my writing. It throws off the creative flow and almost ruins the entire thing.
Setting and preparing the house could include telling your partner or kids that you need a certain number of minutes to yourself. While I recognize this type may not work for everyone, the setting also can include waiting till everyone is asleep before you even begin writing or waking up early.
Having the means to be able to sit and write uninterrupted always comes first in your writing craft.
#2 Interact with Workspace
My workspace is sacred.
It is filled with my ideas and is used as an extension of myself. When my partner walks into my workspace (which is a small L-shaped desk and maybe a chair in our shared office room), he understands that some things on my desk are not to touched or something can not be put down (like mail). Respecting your workspace feels like respecting myself and it's nice.
I love making my space my own so it could also bring figurines to my desk or a new fake plant here and there. Now, interacting with my workspace looks like cleaning the spaces off or a small organizing session to make sure everything is in its place. Before each writing session, I enjoy having a new 'clean slate' on my desk to move away distractions that may make it hard to deal with and hinder my writing.
#3 Get Items
Probably the most important thing for me.
Getting items for a writing session includes plenty of something to drink or snack on. Any time I have to stop and move away from my desk to grab something is a disruption to my work. There have been many times where I am writing a good scene for my novel and I reach for my cup of tea - and there's no tea. I drank it all. Now I have to die of thirst or stop and leave to get it.
Other items I get are notebooks, sticky notes, and plenty of pens. There may be an idea that pops up while I am in the middle of a scene that might go well somewhere else or I remember that I need to call the doctor. Writing these little ideas saves me stress and lets my mind return to focusing on my writing piece.
Get items - drinks, snacks, comfort objects - you will need for your writing session to let you focus solely on the piece at hand.
#4 Ignite Creative Flow
Finally, how I spark my flow.
Once I sit at my computer and want to start, even if it doesn't pertain to the piece I really want to write, I write. That is how many of these blogs I will post later have come about. I start writing and writing ideas, all different ideas, till I'm ready for the real piece.
I've found myself realizing about a year ago that my spark of writing is useless until I put words - any words - on a screen or paper. It must be down. Many others use this method without even realizing it - pre-world building, notes to yourself, notes to a partner, balancing your checkbook, so much can go into this ignition of flow as long as you are writing and being in the present.
A Piece of Advice
Writing is my life. Many other writers have left me advice when I was a little girl that I still follow and take to heart. Many pieces of advice I got work but I still struggle with. There are so many styles of writing and voices to be heard that other beginner writers feel uncomfortable coming out as a writer - it took me 4 years to come out as a writer to the world because I was scared of the negativity I'd hear.
"It's not a real career"
"Unless you're a New York Bestseller, you'll get nowhere"
I love writing so I pushed that negative comments aside and flourished. I have three poems published through a contest while I was still in middle and high school and managed to make it to my high school's literacy magazine before I graduated in 2018. I still have a lot to write.
So my one piece of advice that I have always turned to (and still struggle with) is just to write. Write anywhere anyhow. On your phone, a piece of paper, or a napkin if you have an idea at a restaurant - just write. If you are in a writing session, write first. Edits can come later. If you start editing while you are writing, you will not get anything done.
One short story I've written took me four weeks to complete instead of about a week due to the edits I did a couple of lines back, then writing more, then editing again. It just doesn't work and will bring the finished product days or weeks behind.
So just write.
It won't be the end of the world. Many authors go through rounds of editing so do that last.
My routines and the advice I've heard as awarded me - not just with writing but awarding myself with simply writing. If your passion is just as strong, simply writing awards you to.
What are your routines? Advice for novice writers? Or just some hard facts about writing.
I can't wait to read them!
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