Creating More Time To Write

By Author: Walter Stewart
Total Articles: 37
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Creating more time to write is about discipline. It is about training yourself to manage time. As a writer working alone, there is no one there telling you what to do and when; no one cheering you on to the finish line in a timely fashion. Consequently you can get lazy from time to time and squander the hours away. The productive use of time is ultimately left in your hands and is a personal judgement based on your actions during the course of a day, week, month, or year. You must, therefore, train yourself to use your time efficiently and to your best advantage.
A day has always been composed of 24 hours. We all start off our day with an equal amount of time. The reason some writers are productive during this period boils down to one thing: juggling of actions and activities throughout the day. If you are not successfully manipulating your daily agenda in order to devote more time to writing, here are a few ways to get you started:
1 - SET REALISTIC WRITING GOALS
Select a word-count goal, for instance, which you have a large degree of control over. If you can only write 500 words a day based on your schedule, ...
... don't set a goal any larger than that. Your writing goal must work for you. Write this goal down in a highly visible place in your work area: "Write 1 hour a day after lunch," or it could be an exact number of words to do, "Write 300 words a day for 30 days." Or you can set a goal of writing a scene or a passage. In the case of poetry, it could be a stanza, or two. You decide.
2 - SCHEDULE A SPECIFIC TIME FOR WRITING
Based on your unique daily life, decide when is the best time for you to write. Take a personal survey and become acutely aware of what you do with your time, then take the necessary action to change those habits to reflect your writing endeavors. In order to create more time to write you must redirect motivation, energy and organization in order to support what you really want to do. Once this time is established you must adhere to your schedule without fail. When you have made up your mind that you are free to write at that specific time, you MUST do it. NO EXCUSES! Remember, however, that as you begin to put your writing plan into practice there will be an inner resistance to writing which is completely normal. You must learn to forge past that resistance by using your raw burning desire to write. A real and true yearning to write will overcome your inner resistance to do something else on your scheduled writing time.
3 - WORK LIKE A PROFESSIONAL
People who are in an occupation or sport for pay cannot afford to wait for the right mood to hit them. They get out there and get the job done for the simple reason that it's their job. As a writer you must train yourself to do the same. When it's time to write, no sob stories allowed. Just start writing! If by chance the writing is not happening, don't force yourself. But don't waste your time either, by being idle. When the time to write is not productive, find other things to do to help move your writing project forward;do related activities that will benefit your writing.
4 - TAKE TIME OFF TO RECHARGE
You are a writer, not a machine. Take time off from your manuscript to give your body rest. Your energy level will determine how much writing you can get done in a set period of time. When you take a moment to refresh your mind, you return to your writing with renewed vigor and you will then be more productive during the next session.
5 - MANAGE YOUR TIME WISELY
If 24 hours is not enough time for you to get your daily writing goals accomplished, you must make better use of that time. Manage you time wisely by setting priorities and not allowing others to infringe upon your valuable time to write. Remember that writing is your chosen activity to pursue with all your heart and soul. It is only as important as you make it.
The clock is ticking. Successful writers create more time for themselves by staying aware of what their hours are spent doing. You too, can create a pattern of success that will take you to the next level. If you want to be an elite writer you must value your work and assign it to a planned place and time in your day.

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