The blog

First though, a quick look at the blog itself. Let’s say that number again – 51 blog entries! That’s one a week since we started (well, almost – I had a week off last week. Okay, I’m sorry. I’m a bad person). Now I know that in the grand scheme of blogs, that’s no great achievement, but it was for me! Of course I had some help, and you can see my thankyous in my Christmas message (I feel like the Queen), but I’m genuinely proud of that achievement. And it does seem to have been helping. I have at least done some writing this year, and the posts I write have at times been a great tool for reviewing what I have learnt.

It has not been as successful as I would have liked however. Of course, that is my fault. I know the days of, “build it and they will come”, have long since passed, but in truth I have hardly done anything to promote this site. Again, that is largely to do with time (isn’t everything?) but I will just have to build it into my routine. So, that will form the basis for my goals on the blog.

The writing

Way back in May, I wrote about measuring improvement in writing. I have been gathering these stats ever since, so I now have a good half a year of figures to pour over.

Looking at it overall, I can see that I hit my productivity peak during September. This was when I was approaching the end of a story I was working on. However, after that it drops right down. I started a new piece of work then, and I must confess, I have been rather timid with it. This is of course, not the way to behave when approaching a new piece of work. The best way will always be to take the bull by the horns and go for it! Whatever it is I’m afraid of can be fixed later!

I have been rather down on myself about how much writing I have done this year. I have always had the impression that I was not trying hard enough, and not knuckling down. I was right – there is a huge difference between my best week and my average week. This shows the difference between the potential of my current routine, and the reality of not sticking to it. Still, it is encouraging to know how much writing can be done, even in short bursts. When I total up each month, then the year, it is shocking how much can be achieved. I said that I wanted to see how small improvements can accumulate into big gains when I set up this method of measuring, and I can certainly see that!

I wasn’t writing in 2008, that’s the thing. So, as much as I rightly berate myself for not doing more, I am doing a hell of a lot more than nothing! This in itself is an achievement, but before I pat myself on the back too much (let’s not get carried away now), I have also taken a look at how my best week would look over a whole year. What a difference! I took my best week, multiplied that by 52, and was amazed. I knew that my best week was over double my average (meaning I’m not even reaching half the potential that my routine offers me), bit it is still an eye-opener to see the full number there.

Once again, I must recommend keeping some kind of stats on your writing. If you are doing everything electronically anyway, getting a word count is normally a snap, and it only takes a couple of minutes to add that to a spreadsheet. Seeing the effect of small changes to my habits over time is a real inspiration. And being able to extrapolate from that gives further motivation. If you’re not trying it already, I urge you to give it a go.

I would very much like to hear from anyone who has been measuring their writing over the past year and what hey think of the results. Or if this is part of your new year resolution, please let me know, too. And I would really really like to know if you visited getmewriting last year and found it helpful. All feedback in the coments section below, please.

• How it’s going to be distributed?
• How you’re going to get the word out?
• Where the story fits in with your other work?

The reason this is on my mind is of course that I have recently finished a story. I’ve been dwelling on the whole process of getting the story out between writing stints and the picture of what I wanted to do grew gradually.

I’ll put the plan out there as an example. The story is about 9,500 words at the moment. This puts it in a kind of long-short story category I suppose (you know what I mean). I decided a while ago that I would write a series of science fiction stories around a quite specific theme and so decided that this one would work as an opener.

It is also my “practice” story; the first thing I’ve written from beginning to end since starting this website (how did it take so long?) and the launch of my newfound dedication to writing. By practice I just mean that my primary goal with this story was to get into a routine (to just write, dammit). I chose it because it was something I’d had in my head for a while, and was pretty well mapped out. I thought it would be an easy one to start with (I was wrong).

So, that’s where it fits. The immediate plan is to put it to one side for a couple of months and work on something brand new. Then I’ll come back to it and edit away from a fresher perspective. Then comes the point where I have to show it to people. I’ve got a small selection of friends and relatives I’ll share it with (I’m basically following Stephen King’s door shut/door open recommendations for these stages). In addition I may also bandy it around some writing community sites as well.

Then, after another round of editing I’ll show it to everyone! It will be a free download on this very site, so people get to see it and see what my writing’s like.

As far as the bigger picture goes, I will carry on with the other stories, and when they’re pretty much all ready to go, I’ll offer another free one out of the collection (again, getting the word out- everyone loves a free sample).

By that time I should have enough material and enough impetus to be able to sell the collection. Fingers crossed.

I’m under no delusions about how long this will take (at least I don’t think I am, but then if I was deluded, how would I know?). I intend to write other things as well, plus I’m writing at a snail’s pace at the moment! I’ll have to step it up a gear and still don’t expect this scheme to come to fruition for about three years(!)

Still, I always said I was playing a long game.

I had begun to get used to my routine. What i try to do is write on the train on my way home, just as in the grand plan I had when I  started this blog. My other writing time would be early Saturday morning.

Although I managed to get up regularly every Saturday and sit in front of my computer, the writing part would often come slow or not at all. As I have mentioned before, I would often end up fiddling with the website, or checking my emails and Twitter. Although that was my greatest opportunity of the week for getting my writing done, it was actually my train writing that was becoming most productive. I suspect  it was because this was a more regular event anyway, and I was much more inclined to work on my writing when I was fully awake! But whatever the reason, I was finding it easier and easier to slip into a writing frame of mind every work day. I had got to the stage when 80% of the time I could simply find a seat (and not be too picky about it either), open my laptop, and just go at it. No pondering. No time wasting.

The Problem

Then something happened. I had a week off work. Great, you may think, that’s more opportunity for writing, you can get more done! Well, yes it is. But no I didn’t. My routine was centered around my journey home from work. Without that time to myself and the “mental hook” I’d programmed my brain to hang it’s writing hat on, I was doomed.

What’s worse, since I’ve been back at work I seem to have taken several steps back in terms of the effectiveness of my routine. Now I’m back to pondering, putting off, or just not doing. I have to start all over again!

Lessons

I’m sure there are lessons to be had here. Here are what I think are correct assumptions to be made:

1. Routines do work – I was getting better at writing in my allotted time.
2. Don’t break them unless you really have to. Taking a holiday from work should not have meant taking a holiday from writing!
3. It’s good to have a bit of variety in your routine as long as you’re disciplined. I’ll use an example to explain. Part of my writing routine is supposed to include writing on a Saturday morning. At home, for two hours, rather than on the train for one hour or less. If I stuck to that i would have got more writing done during my holiday (or when trains are cancelled and I have to write at home). But I have not been disciplined enough with that part of my routine, so that particular bit of brain programming was not available to me.

These are the rules as they appear to me, but some people will disagree with some if them. For example, a lot of people advocate having one place, and one place only, where they write. That’s too difficult for me though I’m afraid. I’m out if the house from 8 until 8 most days, so the train is appropriate (though hardly ideal), but not enough.

Still others might take that rule further and abolish a set routine altogether. The idea here is that if you learn to write whenever the opportunity arises rather than boxing yourself into a set routine, you are in a better position to keep on writing when the unexpected happens. I don’t really buy that either. I see the reasoning but I’m sure that would lead to no writing at all for Matt. Plus I think that habit can be a very powerful tool when used for good! And I need all the help I can get!

And right now I need your opinions! What do you think about keeping a writing routine? Is it a help or hindrance? Do you have one that works for you, and what is it? What’s the weirdest writing routine you’ve heard of?

Such adjustments are a natural consequence of discovering how much you can do each month, and maybe trying to improve on that as well. But it could pay to take a closer look, and examine why exactly things went awry, or  why they went particularly well. As an example, I’ve just been planning my March tasks. I’m a little behind, which is disappointing considering how conservative I’d been with my goals, but I definitely feel like I can improve. The general feeling I’ve had is one of a lack of focus, and there will be small things I can do about it. I set out my tasks under several headings – write novel, write blog entries, write short story, yadda yadda, and so on. So, I’m on the train home, I take out the laptop, I look at my task list. I tended to pick the tasks I felt like doing at the time, regardless of what heading they were under.

As well as showing a distinct lack of priority for my most valued tasks, this leads to a bit of um-ing and ah-ing before I actually get started. But perhaps the worst effect is a lack of focus over the week. There’s is more of an effort made in getting into it (whatever ‘it’ I have chosen) each time. All of these things waste time, and likely produce poorer results. Time, as I may have mentioned, is precious for me, and I simply cannot afford to waste it on procrastination and a woolly-headed approach.

So, Each week, I pick one of my headed projects, and will concentrate on those tasks for the whole week. This should ensure I can get straight on with it, and that I am more likely to be in the right ‘headspace’. Simple? Yes. Am I stupid for not realising this sooner? Probably. Should I be embarrassed at my idiot mistake? I refuse! That won’t do anyone any good! No one should be afraid of admitting to even the slightest of mistakes and learning from them.

And with that in mind, I’d like to open up the floor to anyone else who has learnt something from having a plan and looking at how they have worked towards it. From reviewing, in other words.

In the early stages of a project it feels really creative to get some ideas down and start shaping the thing that’s lurking in your mind. And it’s most joyous when it is as instant as possible. It allows me space to think, generate more ideas and importantly, not forget any! (How many times have you been writing a paragraph where an idea to include in the next paragraph comes to you, only for you to forget it by the time you’re ready to write it?)

One fantastic piece of software I use for this is Freemind. It is a mind mapping tool, and although it is not hugely sophisticated or feature rich, it is incredibly easy to use and quite flexible with the kinds of things you can include on your mind map. The software is designed around generating flow between your brain and the ‘page’. So everything is quick and easy to do and you almost never have to use the mouse – everything can be done through the keyboard. A lot of people may not like this concept, but you have to write if you’re taking notes, and constantly swapping between mouse and keyboard wastes time.

As well as adding long bits of text as nodes, you can add notes (if you want to write a couple of paragraphs for example), links to pages on the web, images, and links to other nodes (drawn as arrows on the page). You can also add little pictures to nodes to indicate what they are for, or format the text.

Another great thing about it is that it is written in Java, which means it can work on any operating system. And best of all – it is FREE!

Download it here, familiarise yourself with the keyboard shortcuts, and have a go. Let me know what you think in the comments section, and if you know of any other great software for writers, let everyone know!

I have a full-time job, and commute to work, which means that I am usually home around eight in the evening, and very brain-tired by that time (I couldn’t profess to being physically tired as I sit at a desk all day). I have a wife who likes to see as much of me as possible (and who could blame her?), so getting to close the door for a time and write can be problematic.

Last year we moved house, to a bigger place, so the next thing will be kids (as everyone keeps reminding me). So I have decided it is more important than ever to get into a routine now. Okay, there’s not much chance that I can carry that routine through when the inevitable happens, but at least I will have proved to my self that I have the discipline to do something.

So, here is the plan for getting in to regular writing:

1. Write on the train. I commute by train, and although I start work (as in my day job) on the train there, on the way back I tend to do my own thing. I’m using this for more light-weight writing, as I have about half an hour to forty five minutes to work. So this will be for notes, blog-writing, a bit of light internet research, and the collaboration I am doing with a couple of friends at the moment (as it is in smaller chunks).

2. Get up early at the weekend. I sleep in too much at the weekend anyway, then I get all groggy and want to spend the rest of the day sleeping too! So, I’ve decided to make something of that time I’d be wasting. On Saturdays I now get up early, leave my other half in bed, and sneak over to the office to do some writing.

So far so good. At least the routine has got this blog up and running, even if I don’t always stick to it. I also now have a plan for the year and a few notes to work with.

I’m sure that there are many of us in the same situation. If you have any stories or tips for finding the time to write, please share! Please!

Right!

And what does a plan need? Goals. It’s often said that people grossly under estimate what they can achieve in five years, but grossly over estimate what they can achieve in, say, a week. So let’s pick something simple – a year. It’s the beginning of the year still (well, just), so what would you like to achieve by the end of 2009 (I don’t know when you’re reading this, obviously, but if you’re half-way through a year, or even three quarters or whatever, don’t let that put you off. Still put some goals down for the end of the year).

If you’re struggling, you might like to work backwards from a longer time-frame. What would you like to have achieved after five years have passed? What would you have had to have done in the next three years to achieve that? Two years? One year? There’s your goals.

Now, let’s do a quick check. Are your goals:
1) specific enough. If you want to be well on the way to completing your novel, what does ‘well on the way’ mean? A certain percentage? 20 chapters?
2) realistic and achievable in that timeframe? Be honest. If in the back of your mind you know you can’t possibly come from nothing to be a worldwide bestselling novelist in a year, don’t write it down! Don’t give yourself the excuse you need to quit before you’ve even started!

Now, break it down (MC Hammer style). You know how many months you have to get this done. So what will you have to achieve each month to meet each goal? Do whatever is easiest in order to break the year down. Maybe you don’t know what you would have to do each month, but looking at any goal for the year, you should be able to decide where you want to be half way through the year. Then break it down further from there.

Got it? Good. So you’ve got goals, and you know whereabouts you should be at the end of each month on each of those goals. So let’s focus on the remaining weeks of the month. What are you going to do each week to make sure that you achieve your goals for this month? Can you see a pattern?

Now don’t worry if your first set of tasks looks a little flimsy – better that than they are simply unachievable, and you can reasonably expect that the first month might be filled with preparation for the months to follow (planning, sketching out ideas, research).

Of course, this might seem a bit OTT for some people. I’ve met a few people this comes naturally to, and they can even do it in their heads. Coupled with an ambitious drive, these are the people who seem well ahead of the rest of us, and get further, quicker. I am not one of those people – I have to write things down. This does several things for me:
- forces me to think about my goals in a logical matter of fact manner
- gets stuff out of my head that would otherwise be cluttering it up
- gives me a much needed framework.

I find that by the time I’ve finished writing something down, it already feels much more real to me – like it could actually happen.

This is not the whole story of course, but it is a start. And if you’ve never done it before, you may find this simple act to be more progress than you made last year!

Has this helped you? Do you plan already, and if so, do you have a different way of doing it? Let everyone know below.