So before we get started on the main topic, I wanted to address the title of this series: Writing Tips For Beginners. I read a couple articles the other day about bad tips for teen writers and it got me to thinking, what constitutes a beginner? Who is a Beginning Writer? Well, dear reader, you are.
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"But Kricket," you're saying, "I've been writing for X years. I have X books/articles/whatever published. I make enough money off of writing to pay the bills. I'm not a beginner!"
"Well good for you Neil Gaiman (and thanks for dropping by ;) )" says I. But if you're here, then you're looking for something to help you with your writing and I'm here to tell you that we are all beginners no matter how much experience we have. Because sometimes we find ourselves going back to the basics, starting from square one and reevaluating everything we do.
So, whether you just woke up this morning and said, "I want to be a writer!" or you've been doing this for 50+ years, all are welcome here and, hopefully, we can all learn something new.
And now, on to Your Routine!
Humans are creatures of habit. No matter what you do in your life, everyone has some kind of daily routine. Wake up, get dressed, eat food, go do whatever you do most of the day, eat some more, other tasks to further your existence, and then back to sleep. I'm here to tell you that, yes, you can fit writing in there. I don't care how busy you are, you can find time in your day to write.
Wake up an hour early, stay up late at night, sacrifice some of that time you spend watching TV or playing video games and learn to ninja write. We all have 24 hours in a day and we all have things that we want to do that require us to have 48 hours in a day. So the key here is prioritizing. To make writing a part of your daily life, you have to make it a top priority.
Your routine will be just for you. Just like your writing mojo is unlike any others, so is your routine. In fact, to start your routine, go back to your mojo and look at those last three questions, where, when and how. You probably already have an idea of when and where you can fit writing into your daily routine.
But, if you're still not sure how to start with this whole routine business, there are a lot of great books and resources out there that can help you prioritize and organize your time, and if you need one, go find one, they help. But here's some basic tips about starting a routine.
- Start by writing down your current routine. See where you currently stand.
- Then see if you have any spare time in there. Either totally empty minutes or if there are some activities (like browsing the internet) that you can trade for writing time.
- Be flexible. Give yourself time to adjust to your new habit and don't feel like a failure just because you don't write for a day or two.
And finally, always look for opportunities to ninja write. Ninja writing is writing done on the fly, anytime, anywhere, even while you're at work (if you can pull it off). Being able to take advantage of every available minute in your day is a skill and it can be very helpful to learn.
And there you have it! Now go and figure out how you're going to make writing an everyday part of your life. And if you need some motivation, maybe this will help. ;)
Thanks so much for reading! If you like this, please share it and/or leave a comment.
Also, next week's update will happen on Thursday (the day after Christmas), so until then, have a Wonderful Wednesday and a Merry Christmas!
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