“It’s not the writing part that’s hard. What’s hard is sitting down to write.” – Steven Pressfield
Most experienced writers/authors will be the first ones to admit that no matter how much you love writing, there will always be a constant battle with yourself when it comes to writing.
Although some days will be easier than others, the main problem with writing is that there is very little reward until the job is completed. Of course, there is personal satisfaction that you are working towards your goal of authorship but aside from that, it is a lot of work with no immediate return on investment.
For example, it may take you months of daily writing to finally finish your novel or non-fiction book. During this time, you’ll have to go through the process with no positive feedback or reward for the most part – until it’s done.
So how do you keep going?
The answer is simple – HABIT. You need to build an unstoppable writing habit.
Like author, John Steinbeck said, “In writing, habit seems to be a much stronger force than either willpower or inspiration.”
Here are nine techniques you can apply to build a writing habit so that you can create content consistently instead of procrastinating constantly.
1. Routine vs Commitment
There are two ways to make writing a daily habit. The first method is to set a fixed time every day when you will write. This will be your daily routine.
For example, you may have two 1-hour writing blocks from 8 am to 9 am and from 12 pm to 1 pm. That’s a solid 2 hours of writing before you call it a day.
With this method, you’ll be at your desk ready to write at the specified time… daily. No exceptions. This is a fantastic way to build a writing habit.
However, not everyone can follow such a fixed routine. You might be a shift worker and your scheduled changes regularly. Or maybe you are a stay-at-home mom with a lot of commitments and unpredictable days.
In situations like these, what you’ll need is a writing commitment. For example, it could be a one-hour writing session after the kids fall asleep or setting aside time after your work day ends.
The time you write doesn’t matter. What matters is that you set a goal to write for a block of time each day and you fit it into your day when you can.
You may have a goal of writing for one hour a day. If your schedule is crazy, you can even break it down into two 30-minute blocks and fit them into your day when possible.
Be flexible with the timing but not the daily goal. This is the best way to make writing a habit, even with an unpredictable daily schedule.
2. Find your zone
Some people are larks who are brimming with energy when they wake up. If you find that you can wake up early and write peacefully when everyone else is asleep, this is your ‘zone’. Stick to it and you’ll find it easier to write.
On the other hand, some people are owls and do their best work in the middle of the night when everyone is snoring away.
There is no right or wrong answer, you just need to find when is your best writing ‘zone’ and stick to it.
3. Give yourself two minutes
“Start writing, no matter what. The water does not flow until the faucet is turned on.” ~ Louis L’Amour
There’s a reason why most people struggle to start writing. The subconscious mind views the task as ‘unpleasant’ work.
So, the brain starts conjuring up very plausible excuses not to do the work and just procrastinate – or engage in all kinds of busy work instead of doing what matters – writing.
This is your mind’s innate instinct of self-preservation. It’s keeping you ‘safe’ from the difficult work. However, nothing ever grows in a comfort zone. So what you’ll need to do is use a simple method to trick your mind.
The easiest way to do it will be to tell yourself that you’ll only write for 2 minutes. Anyone can write for 2 minutes. This is neither overwhelming nor tiring. Your mind will be less resistant to the task. You will get the water flowing as the quote suggests.
Set the timer for two minutes and start writing. What you’ll discover here is that once you start writing, you’ll keep going after the two minutes are up. Resistance usually only happens before you write and seems to melt away once you break through the inertia and gain momentum.
However, if you’re still not in the mood to write after the 2 minutes are up, stop writing and go do your other tasks. Come back and try again later for another 2 minutes and see how it goes. If you still aren’t into it, just let it go. On some days, you just won’t be the right space to write – and that’s ok too.
What’s important is that you gave yourself that 2 minutes to write. That ensures you’re still writing daily – and it helps to build the habit.
4. Clutter-free
Keep your desk and/or writing space free of clutter. A neat, orderly work environment will have a positive effect on you. It just seems easier to write when your surrounding environment is clean and tidy.
So do some decluttering and keep your working area simple and efficient.
5. Work in batches
Batching your tasks means that you’ll do each task one at a time until completion.
Here’s a simplified version of what that looks like:
Research: Before writing, you’ll do all the research you need to do. Once your research is complete, then you’ll start writing.
You won’t be writing 2 pages and then running off to do more research and then coming back to write some more. This disjointed approach will not only interrupt your writing flow but will also be more time-consuming.
Research first. Then write.
Writing: During this phase you will be writing your book. All of your research should be done and the only thing you should be focusing is writing.
Editing: When all of the writing is done, start editing. Don’t edit while you write – it can create creative blocks and make the writing process more tedious than it needs to be.
Once you finish editing then move on to the other moving parts like beta readers, professional editors, formatting, cover design, etc.
The point is to stay focused on one task at a time until it is completed.
When you approach your content creation in this way, not only does it make things easier for you, but you’ll also be more likely to stick to the writing habit since you’re more organized.
6. Shifting your mindset
Instead of viewing your writing work as a mundane chore that you must do, look at it as an activity that you get to do. You have an opportunity to sit and put your thoughts on paper.
So many people don’t have the freedom or talent to do what you’re doing. You are choosing to write for a reason. No one is forcing you to write. So remember why you are choosing to write your story and enjoy the creative process instead of fighting it.
7. Forge your identity
Runners run. Fighters fight… and writers write.
You’re a writer, aren’t you?
So write. Embrace your flair for writing and identify as a writer.
This is what you do… and you’re good at it. Once you understand that writing is not a chore, but your calling – you’ll be much more likely to stay on course. Use affirmations if you need to bolster your belief in your identity as a writer.
8. Tracking
Track your writing habit daily. You may either track by the number of words/pages you’ve written… or the time you spent writing. Whatever it is, you must track your progress.
9. The Seinfeld Strategy
Jerry Seinfeld once recommended a strategy where you’d have a wall calendar of the entire year. Every day you do your writing, you’d put a bid red X for that day. Your job is to keep the chain of crosses going for as long as possible.
This is a very visual way of building a habit. Once you get some momentum going after two weeks or so, you’ll want to keep the string of X’s going for as long as you can.
Just monitoring if you’ve stuck to your routine and completed your writing for the day will help immensely when it comes to making the writing habit a part of your lifestyle.
Apply the nine tips in this article assiduously and within a month or two, writing will become second nature to you. While you may face resistance every now and then, you’ll be much more likely to write – because that’s what you were born to do.