On Writing routines…
In the last post, we talked about the guilt of a non-practicing writer. Every writer has at one point or the other in their writing careers faced a ‘non-practicing spell’ where they are unable to devote time to writing. In this post, I want to spend some time discussing writing routines that would ensure a continuous flow of words onto the paper.
Over the last year and a half I have tried experimenting with various writing routines. I wrote late at night, early in the morning and sometimes in the afternoon. These days (since summers are back in Delhi) I am back to my early morning routine. Along the way, I have gathered a few tips that I would like to share on this blog with other writers (and I hope It’ll help you chalk out a routine that works for you and keep at it.)
Determine the time that works for you: Haruki Murakami wakes up at four in the morning and writes for five or six hours whereas Franz Kafka (who kept a day job) always wrote at night. You must determine which time works for you. I can work either early in the morning or late at night as I prefer to write when everything is quiet around me.
Determine the length of a writing session: My writing sessions can vary anywhere from 45 minutes to one hour. I like to keep my writing sessions short because I have a short attention span (and a long writing session makes me feel like I am attending a class at a university.) However, if you can write for two to three hours at a stretch, you can have longer writing sessions on your calendar.
Keep realistic goals: Setting small goals in the beginning really works for me. When I am starting off with a routine, my objective is to keep repeating it (so that it becomes a habit) rather than aiming for higher word counts. For example, if you start with 500 words, hit your target word count for a month daily before revising the word count to a higher number.
Keep sessions dedicated to editing: If I start writing regularly, I fall behind on my reading and editing. So, I keep sessions dedicated to editing my work.
Read a lot when you aren’t writing: The source of all new ideas for me are other books so I ensure that I usually read two books a week. It inspires me to write more.
