How to Find the Perfect Time to Write
If your dream is to be a writer, you will have to sit down and write over time. Whether you’re spending National Novel Writing Month in November, or dreaming of being a writer “someday,” the inevitable first step is finding time to do so. Here is a 15 minute exercise in that direction that you can do today.
You’re going to pick multiple writing periods – early morning, late night, travel times, whatever you’ve got – and listen to them. One day is fine; This gives you ten chances through early November. Here’s what the process looks like:
- Find a 15-minute chunk of time (no commitments or those you can get off of).
- When the time is right, get ready with your laptop or laptop.
- Sit down and write.
If you plan on writing a novel, it will take you over an hour or two each day, but that’s okay if you start writing a novel with ease. Fifteen minutes is ideal for a short diary or story planning, or for an episode of an audio novel writing course .
You can learn a lot in fifteen minutes. For example, you will learn how to customize materials and environments so that they are the least distracting. And after so many meetings, you will learn to better come to work. Don’t just take it away from me; This idea originated with Dorothea Brande in 1934, and she included it as a key step in her book, Becoming a Writer . Here’s what she said about scheduling:
Now this is very important, and it can hardly be emphasized too much: you have decided to work at four o’clock, but you have to write at four o’clock! There can be no excuse. If you are immersed in conversation at four o’clock, you must apologize and keep your commitment. Your consent is a duty of honor and must be strictly followed; you have given yourself a word, and you cannot refuse it. If at this hour you must get out of the heads of your friends, be ruthless; the other time, you will find that you have made some effort to avoid falling into a similar dilemma. If, in order to get the privacy you need, you have to go to the toilet, go there, lean against the wall and write.
Some of the writing moments you choose will turn out to be dire, and the only way to know is by auditioning right now. Maybe you bring your laptop to bed at 11:00 pm and find yourself falling asleep as you type. You might try to write during your lunch break, but your brain won’t stop worrying about deadlines and appointments. Great, you’re narrowing down the possibilities. Choose another time tomorrow.
And if you can’t bring yourself to complete any of the planned letters at all, Brande has some wise but harsh advice (italics): “ If you repeatedly fail at this exercise, stop writing. Your resistance is actually greater than your desire to write, and it’s late for you to find another outlet for your energy. “