Consistent Writing: Building a Routine for Success

If there's one thing the writing community can't get enough of it's habits.

While we have our good habits, bad habits in our community are a dime a dozen.

Most of us don't sleep enough, we don't sit properly at our desks, we never take eye breaks, and don't even get me started about our procrastination habits.

However, if there was one good habit you were going to adopt as a writer it would be this.

Consistent writing.

If you want to be a successful writer, a subjective term depending on what you want out of your writing career yes, but if you want to see your books making their way across the page and heading to a shelf near you - the best thing you can do for yourself is to build a writing routine. 

Now here's how. 

1. Set Clear Goals

Consistency for me is going to look different from consistency for you.

While I revolve my writing habits around writing in the morning for a few hours before getting on with other work and then again late in the day before bed, this may not work for you.

If you have a full-time job, or responsibilities such as school, children, taking care of pets, or other family members, your routine needs to be something that fits within the time you have available to you.

The best way to find this time to to set a goal for what level of consistency you wish to achieve.

Do you want to write for one hour every day? Do you want to reach a certain word count? Do you want to reach a weekly goal instead?

You can't begin thinking of crossing the finish line if you don't know where it is.

2. Create a Dedicated Writing Space

Now that you know what you want to achieve, you need to know where you're going to achieve it.

Much like your goal, this is going to be tailored to you, your situation, and what you have access to.

Some writers have desks with ergonomic chairs and others have the corner of the overloaded dining room table.

Whatever you have, make sure it's tailored to your needs. Distraction-free, and won't give you back problems.

3. Schedule Writing Time

Now that you have your goal (written out clearly in some place where you can be reminded of it) and a place where you are best suited to achieve it. It's time to put them together and set the when.

Some writers find that they do their best work early in the morning with a strong cup of freshly brewed coffee and the sounds of chirping birds.

Some writers wait until the world is asleep, writing by candlelight in the still on the night.

Some writers scribble hastily in a notes app on their lunch break or in the car while they are waiting for their children to get out of school.

Whatever time you have for writing. Make it your time for writing.

4. Repeat

Here is where the consistency part of this article comes from and how you turn all of these parts into a writing routine that will move your story forward on its path to success.

Whatever your writing time is, make sure you stick to it come hell or high water.

It doesn't matter if you only have one day a week or every day of the week. Whatever plan you made for when, where, and your goal - stick to it.

If you fail one day or one week, pick yourself up by bootstraps, brush it off, and pick it back up when the next scheduled time comes around.

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Building a writing routine is one of those things that can and can't happen overnight.

Sure I'd love it if every time I made a plan I was able to stick it out, but sometimes life just gets in the way.

That's just what life does.

Building your writing routine into your already established habits will help it slip into your life easier, but it's only through consistent dedication and commitment that it's going to stick with you.

You've got this!

Best,

B -

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This story was originally posted on Medium.

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