I have 5 blogs. I’m a freelance writer, a ghost writer, a
published author and I edit websites and sales pages. I could never keep up
with my tasks without a writing timetable which gives me structure and purpose.
My time table is the first thing I open (and leave open all day) when I turn on
my computer.
Having a writing routine can seriously give your
productivity wings. When you get up in the morning, do you wonder what you’ll
write today? Do you frantically try to meet tomorrow’s writing deadline? Or do
you just browse the Internet and decide what you’ll write based on how you
feel?
Having no writing
routine is detrimental to your writing health
When my last child went to secondary school I became
extremely stressed and was ill for 6 weeks. For nine years I’d been walking
one, two or three kids to the Primary school. At 3 P.M, (as long as I wasn’t
filming) I would stop writing and drive down to the school to pick them up.
Now, all of a sudden, because we live right opposite the secondary school my
kids attend, I’ve lost this tiny part of my routine. I couldn’t work properly
because my subconscious was trained to work after
I returned home in the mornings from the stressful school run.
I’d known for a long time that having no particular routine
was bad for my writing. It made me half as productive as I could be. This
situation only verified what I already understood:
Having
no writing routine divides your attention between the things you could be doing and the writing you should be doing.
No
writing routine cultivates an informal approach to your writing. If you’re not
doing it as a formal job, you’ll never be motivated to earn from it.
No
writing routine halves your chances of productivity. You flow wherever the
day’s waves take you.
No
writing routine means you’ll spend more time on social networking sites because
you have no ‘work ethic’ pulling you back to reality.
How my writing
routine helped me progress as a freelance writer/author
Years ago I used to write random blog posts for whichever of
my blogs I felt drawn to that day. I had several blog posts going out each
week, and decided on a whim which one should get a new post. In those days I
also wrote articles for websites which paid next-to-nothing for my beautifully written
and well-researched pieces. My books were stuck on the computer and I was
getting nowhere with publishers. I was in a very bad place writing wise and
decided I had to do something about it:
I
decided I was worth more and quit writing for low-paying sites altogether.
I
resolved only to write/edit for clients who pay me properly.
I
spent time working on my blogs to make them better so marketers who wanted
links to their websites had to pay me more for these.
I
decided I was going to structure my writing so I could be more productive time
wise.
I
made a writing and Internet time table. I was only allowed 20 minutes on
Facebook each day. When this was done, I had to come off, regardless of what I
was doing. (If I was in a ‘conversation’ then I had to excuse myself and say I
had to go back to work).
Best
of all, I would stop all random blogging. Each blog would have my attention for
1 day in the week (not the entire day – mind). I would publish a post on this
blog, give myself half an hour to comment on blogs in that niche, and another
half an hour to promote the new post. This way, all my blogs would be updated
regularly, but with only 1 post per week. This made my posts more popular, more
well-read, and encouraged my readers to become more interactive (there were
fewer posts to read and look out for).
(I
now spend more time with my family because I’m not galloping to catch up with
work late into the night. The computer goes off at 9 P.M as part of my routine,
so all important work has to be done first thing).
Advantages of having
a writing timetable
I’ve benefited greatly from having a writing time table. Not
only have my blogs flourished because of it, my productivity as a writer is
close to where I want it to be, and know it could be.
I
no longer spend 2 hours on Facebook looking through family photos of school
friends.
Answering
my emails is timed precisely, so I skip personal mail until evening, or leave
them for when I have more time.
A
writing timetable means I have to turn off my email when I’m working – it takes
away the annoying distractions.
A
writing timetable gives me a focus for each day. It allows me time to spend on
Quora answering questions and promoting my brand, but it also gets me off the
site after the 20 minutes allocated to it – twice a week.
A
writing timetable ensures I do all my paid work on time. It makes sure blog
posts are done when they’re supposed to, and that all articles are shared on
social networking sites I’ve identified.
How you can make a
writing timetable
Here’s just an example for you. You can do this on an excel
document as you wish. Feel free to change it to suit you, but there is one
important condition: you have to keep this document open on your desktop all
day to guide you. Look at it, follow it to the letter, and it will do its job
well.
DAY ONE
For
half an hour: Take time to meditate and make look through your old notes
(writing ideas and picture) and become inspired
20
minutes for emails – work only
20
minutes for answering comments on your blog
1
hour for writing
1
hour for editing your old articles and looking for new clients
1
hour for sharing your new post and networking on Facbook and Twitter
Lunch
Continue
with your own timetable and don’t forget to include an hour each week to
follow-up with potential business clients.
DAY TWO
Do
some physical exercise for half an hour – even if it’s just deep breathing – to
prepare for the day
20
minutes for work emails
20
minutes for answering comments on your blog
30
minutes for building back links and submitting your blog to RSS sites
2 hours of writing
30
minutes of planning and researching a blog post
Lunch
Continue
with your own timetable
Feel free to use an excel sheet with this. Please let me
know in the comment section how this timetable could help you become more
productive with your writing work.
Anne Lyken-Garner is a published author. Her latest book,
the inspirational ‘Sunday’s
Child’ was published by American urban publishers, Pulse. Anne is also a
freelance writer, blogger and editor. She writes for, and manages 4 blogs and
edited The Writers Bureau online student magazine for 2 years. Anne specialises
in writing, relationships and confidence building. Her other passions include
DIY and home improvement.
Apart from writing, Anne works in TV, and is dedicated to raising her 3 young kids. You can make contact with Anne here:
Apart from writing, Anne works in TV, and is dedicated to raising her 3 young kids. You can make contact with Anne here:
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