Two Tips to Help You Build a Writing Practice
One of the main reasons writers struggle to make progress is because they don’t have a reliable practice. Even if you’re someone who abhors routines, you can still benefit greatly from building a system that fits you and your personal strengths.
In this article, I cover the first two things you should do to help you start building your personal writing practice.
Let’s hop to it!
If you’re a writer, there’s almost no better feeling than sitting down with your WIP and diving headlong into the story world. When the act of writing is going smoothly, when a blank page never stays blank for long, then it’s incredibly easy to allow yourself to be swept up in the flow of your ideas.
Sometimes, that flow is more of a rush. Something heady and addictive, and it has the power to take the controls and drive the story on its own.
This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. If your Muse is locked in and delivering you solid material, I say “Go for it!” and enjoy the ride. Even the most swoony approaches can yield marvelous results.
But what if you find that you’re not really making progress despite the excitement you feel for your WIP? What if you realize you’re not actually writing on a regular or a consistent basis despite loving the act of writing? What if you’re writing more for the escape from the real world and less for the goal of building your skills or finishing your novel?
(If that’s you, someone who’s writing for a hobby or for pure escapism, then you can probably bounce out of this blog post now.)
So, if you’re a writer who struggles to write regularly or consistently (even though you love the act of writing and you love your WIP), then you’re in need of a writing practice that supports YOU.
NOT ALL WRITING PRACTICES ARE THE SAME
You may have a practice that has worked for you in the past, but chances are, if your real-world life has shifted, if you’ve grown, or if your WIP is unlike your previous projects, then you need to do some tinkering to your practice.
Following the practices of other writers can also lead you into trouble. While it can be inspiring to learn how your favorite author balances their real-world and writing lives, their strategies are based on who they are—their personality traits, values, moods, habits, support system, etc. I call those “natural writing forces” and they are different for every single person. (I talk more about this below.)
You have to know who you are, both in the real world and in the writing world, in order to construct a practice that works for YOU.
START WITH YOUR WHY
Knowing why you want to be a writer and knowing why you want to work on this particular project will help you set up a strong foundation.
When your base is solid, then it can handle most (if not all) distractions, disruptions, and disturbances that come through.
I’m a big proponent of journaling. You don’t have to journal to do the following Discovery work. Just run the assessment in whatever way feels good to you.
DISCOVERY WORK
Step 1: Answer the following questions.
When I think of being a writer, this comes to mind:
If I could do anything with my writing (no limitations on money, time, experience, etc.), I would:
I feel [insert emotion] when people ask about my writing, because:
My inspiration comes from [list sources] because:
If time was never an issue, my schedule to write would look like this:
If money was never an issue, my goals would look like this:
I want to be known for my writing in this way:
The best feelings I have when I’m writing or thinking about writing are:
The worst feelings I have when I’m writing or thinking about writing are:
This is what I value about writing:
Step 2: Go through your responses above. Add anything else that comes up for you. The questions above are really just a sampling of what you could ask yourself, so dig deep here! Again, because each person is different, each person will have different questions that apply to them.
Then, write a letter to yourself summarizing your responses.
Step 3: Put the letter away for about a week or so and then re-read. Try to distill the letter to a few sentences that state why you’re a writer. This may take a few go-arounds until you’re comfortable.
Step 4: Once you feel comfortable, pin/post your WHY somewhere in your writing habitat where you can see it easily.
NATURAL WRITING FORCES
This is a term I coined a thousand years ago (well, it at least feels like that long), and if you’ve followed me for a while then you’ve heard me talk about this.
Natural writing forces are the external and internal energies that impact your writing. We’re talking personality traits, habits, moods, values, goals, skill level, and more.
Many people don’t know which of these energies support them and which of these energies hinder them in their writing life.
This lack of knowledge is a HUGE obstacle in writing journeys. Think about it: If you were to go backpacking in the White Mountains, you’d research what you need for the trip. You’d check weather and hiking conditions. You’d buy supplies and equipment. You’d also make some kind of inner assessment about your physical abilities and mental fortitude: “What about my bad knees? Can I rough it for a whole week? What if I’m two days in, and I really hate it?” If you’re someone with health concerns, you’d consult your doctor to make sure it’s safe to go. If you’re inexperienced, you might talk to a hiker friend to get some tips.
My point here is that most people thinking about embarking on a backpacking trip will have a better (and safer!) experience when they have a general idea of what they’re getting into.
Sure, there are plenty of spontaneous people who are so easygoing and carefree that they have more fun when they jump without looking. They care less about the destination or the conditions of the journey as a whole and much more about the lived-in moment.
If that’s you, then guess what? Spontaneity and improvisation are part of your natural writing forces. You can use those traits to your advantage when you dive into the writing gig. You can still build a practice that embraces those seemingly rogue characteristics to help you move forward on your journey and accomplish your goals.
DISCOVERY WORK
Step 1: Observe yourself for a couple of weeks and take notes. Things to examine:
What is a typical day for you?
What’s your mood first thing when you wake up?
How do you spend your downtime?
Which people in your life are the most supportive?
What are your best habits? Worst habits?
If you currently write, are you satisfied with the frequency and duration? Do you feel inspired by your writing habitat? What would you change, if anything?
If you don’t write currently, then look at your typical daily schedule and pick some times where you could fit writing sessions. What about this would be easy to implement? What about this would be difficult? How can you make changes to accommodate your writing (on a regular basis, whatever that means for you)?
I’d like to add here that if you have trouble making objective self-assessments (and many of us do!), then it’s helpful to talk to a loved one who knows you very well. They can help you see things about yourself in a different way.
The other point I want to add is most people don’t act or behave in the same way every single day, throughout the day. This is why running an assessment over a couple of weeks is important. You want to get a typical view of yourself, but also keep in mind that you might react in an atypical way to something unexpected, annoying, or other. Take notes even in those scenarios!!!
Step 2: Read the statement from the work you did on your WHY. It may help to read the whole letter as well if you want to remind yourself of the nitty-gritty details. Using that as your reason for building a writing practice, re-assess the Discovery work you did on your natural writing forces.
This might get complicated and overwhelming, so take a deep breath! Your objective here is to state various intentions and goals and explain why these intentions and goals are important based on the information you’ve learned about yourself.
The point of this step is to establish a purpose for everything you do in your writing journey. People are more likely to stay committed to their goals if they understand why it’s so important in the grand scheme of things.
Some questions to get you started:
-My ideal writing schedule is [ . . .] because [. . .]
-The people I can count on to motivate me in my practice are [. . .] because [. . .]
-I need to learn [. . .] so that I can [. . .]
-A short-term goal I’d like to accomplish is [. . .] because [. . .]
-A long-term goal I’d like to accomplish is [. . .] because [. . .]
-The things I struggle with the most are [. . .], and this is how I’m going to overcome them:
-This is how I plan to stay consistent with my practice:
Okay, so you can probably see already that these questions are never-ending. You could literally devote days and weeks to this exercise. How do you know when to stop and move on?
My suggestion is that once you define a typical day-in-your-writing-life, then you could use that to build a writing practice that will work for you indefinitely. Of course, as you and your writing evolve, your practice will need to be tweaked to accommodate the growth.
Get concrete information on the following, and you can start your practice based on those details:
-Frequency, duration, and schedule of writing sessions
-The place where you’ll do your writing
-Boundaries to keep interruptions and distractions at bay
-A stepping-stone goal that can be accomplished within 30 days or less (stepping-stone goals are smaller goals that help you make progress toward a bigger goal)
-A daily creative intention (if you’re not up for writing, what other creative task can you accomplish just to keep those gears turning and your imagination burning)?
Writing practices can be reconstructed or revised depending on how things go for you. Perform weekly check-ins to monitor your external progress (how much writing are you getting done) as well as your internal landscape (how you’re feeling about the writing you’re doing).
Once you land on a practice that you can adhere to for at least a couple of months, then you’re ready to add bigger, long-term goals to your journey. Of course, this doesn’t mean you can’t be thinking or even working toward Dream Goals when you’re still constructing your practice. However, those goals might be easier to visualize or attain when you have a personal strategy to reach them.
Let me know what you think! Do you have a practice you can rely on? Are you struggling with this aspect of the journey?
Have a writerly day!
Kate