by Sally Crawford
1. Establish A Writer’s Routine
Harnessing your energies and putting them to work on your writing is quite a test. I don’t mean occasional writing. I mean the work of writing every or most days. This becomes less difficult if you establish a writing routine. I wonder how other Arvon people struggle with this?
I have been trying since I got back from an Arvon course last May to establish my own routine. First of all, I ‘Arvonized’ my writing space to make it good to work in. But that’s not all I’ve had to do. At Arvon, it’s not just the ambience but the routine that makes it all work. Finding this routine has turned my usual practice – of writing in the spaces that come between day job, keeping up with family and friends, avoiding becoming a recluse, etc. – on its head. I’ve discovered that it’s perfectly possible to prioritize writing; other things will still get done.
Because I now write as soon as I wake up. I might or might not make a cup of tea first (a travel kettle now lives with me in the bedroom). But I immediately get back into bed and sit up with sheets of paper and a pen and write while my mind is relatively uncluttered. Indeed, more often than not it has often come up with its own ideas for what happens next all by itself.
In fact I get more done. It takes far less time to let 3–400 words flow out from the tip of my pen than it does to sit down at my desk waiting for those words to come. That can take hours. And a plus: early morning writing leaves you with a nice warm feeling that lasts through the working day.
An important tip here. I’ve just had a couple of weeks off, so I found it easy to write my 3–400 words. Back at work this week, I’m finding it harder. Don’t stop. Write 100 words; write 50 words. The important thing is to keep up the momentum. Don’t lose touch with your story.
Next – Sally Crawford on Trying Something New
Just read it: excellent advice. I think that the MOST important thing is to write something EVERY SINGLE DAY – no matter how little. Momentum is all…
Si
As far as I’m concerned, I don’t have to have a routine as such. I just need to have more than one thing on the go, so that if I get fed up with the big thing (which is difficult, and needs thinking about) I can do something else.
Michael Spring
Thanks so much, both.
Writing is like a rather stiff muscle that aches unless I exercise every day to get it to work properly.
Having different things on the go is a good thing as well – one can switch about – although care has to be taken IMO otherwise one never actually finishes anything (see part 4 for more on this).
I just hopped over here from the link on your London blog. Very nice, concrete advice. I agree morning is the best time to write — unfortunately this year my morning priority if communicating with my daughter in the USA over MSN. The timing works out — 6am my time, 9pm her time. But next (school) year I want to transform that into writing time.
Anyway, I am going to be thinking about all of your advice as I do have a project in mind.
Hi, Betty,
Thank you! The funny thing is, I really thought I could do this somehow ‘overnight’. No; it’s a process; it takes the time it takes.
Step by little step you get there. You’ll find a way.
Good luck.
Ah, I’ve been carrying around a little notebook, but only the banal gets recorded.
Hello, tut-tut,
Practice, practice, practice . . . and perhaps try the more casual approach – a folded up piece of A4 (quarto in the US) stuffed in a pocket – rather than a notebook.
I can see I might have to try & do a piece on where ideas come from, although the short answer is ‘everywhere’.
Try a sensory piece:
- close your eyes and listen;
- hold something (a leaf; a shell; a pebble) in your hand;
- taste (a thin slice of apple or peach placed on your tongue)
and write about that;
or a seeing piece where you get up really, really close to something – use a microscope if necessary.
We have to jog our senses to be more alive to our surroundings.