Making Your Writing Time Productive

Imagine this. The dishwasher needs to be unloaded. Hey, at least you ran it, right? The laundry needs to be put in the dryer. The dogs are out of food. And if you don't blow dry your hair today, you're going to look like Mrs. Frizzle from the Magic School Bus... again. Maybe you even have kids tugging at your pant legs.

But finally you get a few minutes of precious writing time to sit down at your laptop. You look at the blinking cursor and the blank new chapter, and... where are you supposed to start? And then the oven timer goes off. And your window of writing opportunity ends as soon as you smell those freshly-baked brownies.

Several months ago, I read a strategy on Kristin Billerbeck's blog. She said she thinks about her characters and plot throughout the day so that whenever she sits down to right, she's ready to go. She's already brainstormed all that other stuff. This stuck with me, and I began to think how much more productive my writing time would be if I focused my attention throughout the day on my story. That way, even if I am away from my computer, I can still be working on my novel.

This week, I'm really going to make an effort to use this strategy and see how it affects my writing productivity. I've done this before, and it always works like a charm. Here are some ways I've found that preplanning, or brainstorming throughout the day, can affect your writing in a positive way:

1) It helps you stay focused on your goal for the scene.


2) It allows you to develop that goal well.


3) It helps you have a general "map" or outline of the scene, before you begin it, even if you like to write as a seat-of-the-pantster. 


4) It helps you make style-specific choices like POV that can save time during rewrites.

The cool thing about making up stories for a living is that you can do that wherever you are, whether it's a baseball stadium or a movie theater. Start looking for inspiration all around you, and not only will it save you time, but it will also broaden your imagination and your ideas for your characters.

Have you ever tried this strategy before? How does it work for you? What do you usually do to prepare for your writing time? Or do you prefer to just sit down and write?

Switch It Up

Chances are, if you're revising a completed first draft of a manuscript, you're going to start feeling burned out. It can be difficult to stay motivated and focused, especially when other projects call for your attention. Here are a few suggestions I have that I hope will help you avoid feeling overwhelmed.

1) Pray. Don't forget to reconnect with the Lord, who's the reason you're motivated to write this book anyway. If you lose your connection with him, you'll start feeling like what you are doing doesn't matter. Look to Him and the Bible for encouragement and affirmation.

2) Do something fun. Check Facebook for a while, or look at a few ebay auctions. Maybe you can find something that would be cool to write about.

3) Change your surroundings. If possible, go on a weekend trip. If not, go to Starbucks. A change of surroundings makes the world of difference in terms of reframing your perspective.

4) Have a friend look at your manuscript. There are only so many plot holes you will be able to see, because this book is your baby. A good friend, on the other hand, won't hesitate to tear it apart and tell you what works and what doesn't.

5) Stop overloading yourself with information. Getting ready for conference season, I've been trying to educate myself as possible lately, and finally struck a breaking point where I realized there was no physical way to internalize all the information the internet has available to me. Don't get so bogged down researching that you stop doing what's more important: writing.

Hope these tips have helped you. Do you have anything to add?