Find Your Time to Write… And Stick to It.

Today, I had the inspired idea to wake up early (on my one day to sleep in), turn on my computer and write before having breakfast.

I quickly discovered that this scenario might have some problems after hitting snooze twice and reluctantly rolling out of bed thirty minutes after my planned writing rendezvous.

I wasn’t encouraged after staring at my computer screen for twenty minutes without having written anything I liked.

After 30 minutes, I started to warm up, but by then, I was getting distracted by the Publix blueberry muffins sitting on the table. I gave up.

Perhaps you are thinking: This writer is such a slacker.

Actually, I am a very task- and goal-driven person. Right now, there are at least three lists on my desk, and I’m happily scratching away at them as the day progresses.

I realize that writers can become guilty of making excuses and letting their writing schedules start to slip, but that’s not the point of this post. In fact, I decided to try this morning’s exercise because I had already met my weekly writing goal and wanted to experiment a little.

And what I learned is that I must clear away distractions before I can fully give myself to writing. The blueberry muffins were a distraction to my empty stomach. My unstarted lists were a distraction to my task-oriented mind. Before I could settle into my writing zone, I needed to tend to these distractions first.

Maybe some people actually work better with lots of things going on simultaneously. Everyone is different.

The moral of the story is in the title. It’s good to try new things – like a new writing schedule – but if you discover something doesn’t work, don’t waste your time. Just get back on your game, and stick to the writing routine that works for you.

For me, that means early mornings on Saturdays are probably out.