How To: Make the most of Your Writing Process.
For me, writing comes in waves. Some days I’m killing it–can’t get the words down fast enough, having to pause and jot down ideas on my phone because I’m having so many and I don’t want to forget them, absolutely killing it. And then there will be weeks at a time where there’s just n o t h i n g. No ideas. No inspiration. Weeks where I stare at the page and wonder how in the world I’ve ever managed to write anything in my whole entire life, much less a book.
What I’m learning is that if you want to make the most of your writing, you need to treat both of those times the same: the days of inspiration and the weeks of drought. You do this by having a process. What works for everyone is different, but these are a few things I’ve found that work for me.
Start things off already inspired. I have a pinterest board full of words and quotes that inspire me. Taking the time to scroll through those or read a chapter in a book I love gets my mind in a creative place. I think, “I want to write words like that!” And so I do. Or, I try to. Which, for the purpose of this post, is quite good enough.
Set goals. Have some sort of idea about what you want to come out of this writing session. Whether that’s a certain amount of blog posts you want to write, a number of pages you would like to fill, or a set amount of time you want to write for. Having something to strive for will keep you from slamming the computer shut or throwing your notebook at the wall.
A hot drink. Or a cold drink, if it’s too hot. Either way, something that tastes good that you enjoy, but that isn’t going to be distracting. For me, food is incredibly distracting, but a mug full of my favorite coffee inspires creativity.
Set the mood with scents and sounds. Find a candle that makes you happy and buy five of them. I mean, just one works too. I just bought this pretty thing and it’s kind of like having unlimited candles in whatever scent you want. Vanilla really inspires me, but it has to be vanilla-some-kind-of-cake, not just vanilla. If I’m going for a relaxed environment, I mix vanilla and lavender. And in the fall, I can crank out some serious pages to the smell of pumpkins and cinnamon.
As far as sounds go, you just have to figure out what works for you. A lot of people can write along to music; I cannot. The words just distract me too much. If you’re like me in that sense, here are some resources you may like:
Ommwriter. This pretty much blocks off your entire computer and allows you to write without distraction. They have a selection of neutral + inspiring backgrounds and noises you can choose to write along to.
Coffitivity. If writing in a crowded coffee shop inspires you, you can bring some of the ambience home with you. There are a few apps and websites for this, but this one is my favorite. The conversation is muffled and they also included realistic sounds, like clattering spoons and clanking mugs.
Noisy Typer. You can make your keyboard sound like a typewriter. And that’s just fantastic.
While this is by no means a magic formula, I’ve found that if my process is the same when I’m inspired as it is when I’m uninspired, the inspired days seem to come along more often.
How do you make the most of your writing process?
Leave a Reply
Feeling Uninspired?
Sign up with your email for a weekly pep talk, just for you. Delivered to your inbox Sunday night to combat the Sunday scaries!
oh i hear you on not being able to write w/ music. so distracting! total silence for me. also setting the mood when the feeling/inspiration is there is key. some days just won't happen and that's a-ok. xo
cheshirekatblog.com
I'm all about lyricless tunes for writing. (I love to write to Apocalyptica. Metallica by cello, there is no bad there.) And a bevvie, yes! Usually tea or coffee, but I have been known to rock out a scene with wine, gin or non-adult iced tea.
I love this list. Nicely done. 🙂
I like to go somewhere else (aside from home) because I get too distracted when I'm at home.
I set goals. I literally put it on my to-do list. "Finish chapter" "type up yesterday's writing". I find that by writing everything with pen and ink first, and then typing it up later… that I get the first revisions sort of "done", and then it enables me to write my book anywhere. So I am not distracted by housework or animals or anything.. I can go somewhere quiet and write and then worry about typing it later.
Ahhh! I'm loving the coffitivity app!! 🙂
xo,
Christen
ChristenKrumm.com
I used not be able to write at home at all. I had to go somewhere/anywhere but towards the end of finishing my novel I was able to do it at home and get a lot of work done. It's so up and down!! Like you sometimes it flows and other times I can't think of a single word. I have found that reading definitely inspires me too. Good tips!
I find that writing my ideas down as they come into a little notebook helps, as does making the time to write every day. However, I need that non distraction thing…social media just gets in the way all the time!
I love to write with crappy tv on in the background, something I don't really focus on but keeps my brain abuzz 🙂
My writing comes in waves as well!! Good tips for inspiration! I must now go to the noisy Typer because I learned to type on one and I actually miss it!!!
Love these tips! I get writer's block all the time even just writing blog posts. Having a nice atmosphere (especially with a hot drink) really helps. 🙂
Having a fun drink always helps me! I love sitting down with a nice cup of coffee or tea to write 🙂 I absolutely LOVE that you told me about Coffitivity and Noisy Typer! I love having a little noise going on, but I can find having certain things like a tv show on low or music distracting at times. I am totally trying both of those out! Once I clicked on Coffitivity, I started smiling 😉 So much fun! Thanks for the tips!
<3 Holly
findingmyeverydayhappy.blogspot.com
I love the idea of noisy typewriter. That sounds amazing. For me, I just need to be shut out when I'm really writing. I can't stand any distractions.
love your tips! and i've been getting lavendar scented everything lately and i love it so much!
Oh my gosh thank you for sharing these wonderful tips! I love the coffee shop app/the typewriter app! I need coffee to feel inspired which seems like a bad addiction but a lot of writers needed a lot stronger forms of poison so I think I'm doing okay.
Love this! & I'm one of those weird people that has to have music playing and five million tabs open to concentrate.
great tips! i'm not a writer or anything, but i love that there is a coffee shop app thingy.
I'm with you on setting your writing scene, candles and white noise always make for great writing.
I'm the same with getting distracted by music when I write. I need silence. I like to go to the park sometimes to write. 🙂 I like the setting the mood with scents tip!
Love this, Chels! I always need to have music playing (and a little snack) when I write 🙂
This is so, so helpful to me. You mentioned a few new ones that I want to try! As for music, I usually listen to it before I write but then have to turn it off when I start writing (it does inspire though!) I'm so excited to check out Noisy Typer!
Just checked out Ommwriter – Oh my gosh!!! I'm inspired just watching the intro video!!
Great tips! A hot beverage always helps me too.
When I need to sit down and write a blog post, I light my peppermint candle. The scent is just so strong and invigorating that my mind gets straight to work!
Great tips! I also like vanilla candles and they actually help me to stay put and write on. As for music, it depends on what I am writing. If it's blog post or sth for school (days long gone) I like to have some music on. But if it's sth longer or more personal I rather do it in silence to focus better.