Theories of Productivity for Writers

There are so many suggestions for practices and products to make you more productive, just searching for them can become a procrastination artform. By attempting many, many different organisational or productivity ideas, there is a basic truth I've learned: Everyone has their own natural rhythm in life, and as such, different methods work for each of us. 

For example, I find most productive techniques work well for me... for a very limited time. While it's new and shiny, my brain is in awe enough to follow instructions. But once I get used to the routine, my brain gets time to manufacture sneaky ways to lure me away from my good intentions. 

Here's a few theories of productivity and suggested methodologies. Try a few and choose what works for you.

30 days to become a habit.

Now, I've seen suggestions that it takes 21 days to form a habit, and my meditation tape recommends listening for 24 days in a row to achieve the 'habit' of creative meditation. I figured I'd play it safe and suggest 30 days. Habits formed can be active or resistant, i.e. you can 'do' something for 30 days, or you can abstain from something for 30 days. This trick worked well for my kids last year when I banned fast food. It's now been 17 months since their last trip to MacDonalds. The first few weeks were hard, but it did indeed become a habit. The ban is lifted, but my kids tastes have changed (they're 11 and 15) and now they don't want to eat that food. This month we've taken the step of banning Coke-a-Cola. I'll let you know how that goes!

So what are the rules? Basically, you must complete 30 consecutive days to form the habit. If your habit is to write a page a day, and you miss 1 day, your 30 days start again. Be clear with your goal and it's a good idea not to try and achieve too many at once. I'd start with just one for your first month. Want a free 30 day calendar? Andrew Dubber created one for his blog. You can download it by clicking on the image (or visit http://andrewdubber.com/2013/03/resurrecting-the-30-day-calendar/)

Challenges

There are always plenty of blog challenges to join, whether you want to write one short story a month and submit that story (write one, sub one), get 50,000 words in one month (Nanowrimo), or read an instructional text on the craft of writing each month (The Progressive Book Club), you'll find a blog challenge to meet your goals.

This method employs the tactic of accountability. If you announce your intentions to enough people, you'll feel obligated to see this through. Beware, there is a conflicting theory that if you announce your goals to people, and get patted on the back for your intentions, your brain can get tricked into believing it has already made an achievement and you'll be less likely to see the project through.

Triangle theory

A friend told me about this theory, and I embraced it because it's a very forgiving theory. Through our lives we pick up various responsibilities and projects. We'd probably be amazed at the number of things we've attempted. But at any one time, our life can only support three main focuses. We might change those three from time to time, but only three will fit comfortably within the pyramid that represents our life (pyramids are very popular with theorists).

Last year my pyramid consisted of Family, Writing and Fitness. This year I took up tutoring for work, so that has replaced Fitness. I've found this to be an honest approach. As much as I wanted to keep up my runs and workouts, I really don't. I can for a short time swap an item to get fitness back in, but I have to be honest and admit that something else would have to go. You might swap your focus daily, depending on your weekly schedule. And although there can be three things we can be productive in at any one times, only one will sit at the top of the pyramid.

Lists

Us writers love these, but they can actually increase your procrastination if you don't use them right. Many experts suggest the way our brain is wired means if we put more than five items on our to-do list, we are less likely to complete any tasks, but if you stick to five or less (3 key things you want to achieve today, is a good start), then you're more likely to achieve them all! Less is more. I do cheat a little here. I write a master list, with about 50 to do items, and each day I take the three main things I want to achieve from that.

Time chunks
Regular breaks are an important ingredient for any productive workplace. For health reasons you should look away from your monitor and off into the distance every 15- 20 minutes (http://www.spreeder.com/blog/avoiding-eye-strain/), you should also stand and stretch your shoulders and back regularly. Besides tired eyes and sore muscles, our brain gets bored stuck on one thing too long. By breaking tasks down into 20 minute segments, you'll be much more productive. Take a short break between tasks or switch to a different task. Keep your mind interested to work more productively.

Another time-related trick for productivity is to schedule your distractions. Set time-limits for social media, otherwise your triangle of productivity becomes more like this:

Want more? Here's some popular posts on productivity:

8 Ways to Prioritise Writing

Best Free Apps for Productive Writing

Organisation and the Writer - the Kanban method

KINDLE FIRE GIVEAWAY

To celebrate the release of my new mystery novel for girls, I'm giving away a Kindle Fire and a $25 Amazon gift voucher!

Simply download Dognapped? A Dog Show Detective Mystery or blog about the book to enter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Why I won't do A-Z, but you probably should.

I'm not actually a participant this year, but I couldn't find an A-Z silent-supporter badge.

A-Z is a popular blogfest held every year in April. It started out as writers joining together to support and follow each other in 2010, but has now expanded to include bloggers of many topics. The idea: You are challenged to blog 26 times in one month, starting with an A theme for your post and moving though until you hit Z. Here's some good reasons to sign up:

• This gives a sense of deadline, you be amazed at how productive you can be with your blogposts when you know you have to get one up almost every day.
• For new bloggers, you'll gain a LOT of new followers. Back in 2010 I gained at least 100 new followers in the month of April. This was a big deal for me, I think I only had about 60 followers at the time.
• You'll discover new blogs that you'll want to come back and visit again and again.
• You'll improve your writing skills from all that practice.
• It's a great sense of community.

Now you're probably thinking, if it's so good, why don't I join up this year? Fair question. I thought it over and here are my reasons for not participating in the A-Z for 2013:

• Rules and me don't mix. I'm a bit of a hippie and want to feel free to post on Sunday and miss Tuesday, I might also mix up the letters. This seems to irritate others.
• I don't sign up for bloghops that stick to one time zone. I live in Australia and post my Monday post when it's Monday here. I can't be bothered checking the time difference and adjusting. And I don't like to schedule posts. I like to write them and click send.
• While I LOVE getting new followers, I don't want people to feel obligated to follow because I stopped by their blog. Also, last year I found myself following a lot of blogs that were not on topics I'm interested just because it seemed the right thing to do.
• But mostly - I have a lot of writing to do. I'm rewriting two novels, working on short stories for submission, and participating in an anthology. I'm also putting together all my activities for the children's writing workshops I run. In the past I've found I get no writing done while I try to keep up with all the posts. It's not just writing the posts, but visiting the hundreds and hundreds of blogs.

So there's my wrap-up. I'll just blog once a week as normal during April, but I will cheer you all on from the sidelines and get to as many blogs as I can. Good luck! To sign up for A-Z, click the link below:

http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/p/2012-to-z-challenge-sign-up-list.html

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Writers have a lot of balls

Wait, what did you think I meant?

With the popularity of authors breaking out on their own and publishing their own works, the role of author is expanding. I know many authors who are also their own publishers, editors, marketers, promotors, sales coordinator and graphic artist. Phew! It's a lot of work, for sometimes very little return. 

Through my small press publishing house, Hot Doggy Digital Press, I produce my own books and ebooks, but I definitely am not a one-woman show. I rely on lots of beta-readers (including avid readers, writers and my target market which is usually kids), employ professional editors, work with graphic artists and book designers and enlist various marketing programs. This costs money, but produces much more professional results than I could ever achieve alone.

Right now I'm sending out the final draft of Dognapped? A Dog Show Detective Novel to beta-readers. I'm also playing with cover designs. I like to do mock-ups, so when I talk to my book designer I have a clear idea of what I'm after. While this is going on I'm beginning edits on Undead Kev, writing short stories for submission, designing writing workshops for kids, attending my writer's group and undertaking masterclasses for editing. Soon I'll be designing and ordering promotional material for Dognapped (bookmarks, postcards, magnets, etc) and planning a book launch.

It's not easy juggling all those writer's balls (you thought I was going in a different direction with that post title, didn't you?). To be honest I find it easier to label all my balls, but only toss one in the air at a time. How are you going with time-managment and multi-tasking? Got a lot of balls?

Here's some of the very rough drafts of cover ideas for Dognapped? Feel free to be opinionated!

 

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Insecure Writers - Time Management

Every 1st Wednesday of the month is a time for insecure writers to group together. This month, my mind is obsessed with time. 

I have a bad habit of taking on more projects each day than can possibly be tackled in a 24hr period. My to-do lists grow into epic quests. Some of the projects I'm trying to juggle now are:

• Organise a launch, distribution and sales points for My Zombie Dog.
• Finish writing first draft to Undead Kev, sequel to My Zombie Dog.
• Edit/rewrite DOGNAPPED? My tween girl mystery.
• Find time to write my love project Warracknabeal Kids, a mystery set in 1939 outback Australia.
• Edit and submit short stories into competitions.
• Set myself up to run workshops at schools/libraries for creative writing.
• Together with my team, organise an Indie Expo for Australia's music, film, art and writing industry.

Each of these projects have many tasks to complete, and I want them all done NOW! I start to feel panicky, like I'm running late (I CAN'T run late EVER). Of course I also need to fit life in around these tasks. 

I am taking steps to manage all these projects:

• Downloaded Pomodorable from the Mac App store. This uses the method of set time limits per task. You work on one task for twenty minutes, then take a ten minute break (stretch, move about).
• Morning pages - I write three pages longhand when I wake up. It's not always useful words, but it does push me to keep going.
• I'll (try to) limit my task numbers on my to-do list. Do you know if you have more than five tasks on your list you're less productive on each one? A to-do list needs to be achievable, otherwise it just becomes a reminder of failure and a form of punishment. I need that reward of ticking boxes.

So what do you do to manage time wisely? If it's time to write you need, you can check out this post:

10 Ways to find Time to Write

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6 Reasons to Try Writing Exercises

When you have a manuscript you're working on, it can be easy to assume writing exercises will just take away valuable time from that WIP. Why waste a thousand words on random things when you really need to get that scene down with the alligator and the microwave?

There's lots of reasons to try writing exercises:

1. Perfect one aspect of your writing. Especially when you are starting out, you can separate each learning tool and perfect it until you move on. This mastering method works well with school children and can be good for us too. For example, dialogue was something I struggled with at first and so I didn't have a lot in my work. I've done so many workshops on it now that I feel a lot more confident (but still find new ways to tighten it!).
2. Free your mind up to explore new ideas for your WIP. Writers are usually not short of ideas, because we a strong on the imagination side, but sometimes weak on the structure jobs. Ideas are great but they can be a big jumbled mess. By trying different exercises you can clarify those ideas and develop a complete plot (or maybe come up with a great sub-plot for your WIP). Free writing is  a good one for this, or clustering.
3. Find out the true motivation of your characters (they're sneaky, sometimes they lie to you at first). We have our story idea, we know what happens, but sometimes there are parts where our characters perform a necessary act for the story, but lack an appropriate motivation. By trying exercises and using your character in them, you can get a feel for why they do the things they do, and again might come up with more material for your WIP.
4. Give yourself a break from your WIP. It can get draining working on the same thing, especially if your piece is something that requires a lot of research or hits an emotional nerve. If you're writing about a tragedy, you might just need to try a short comic piece to pull you through the slump.
5. Push yourself out of your comfort zone. Try a different genre or writing style. I've taken courses on genres I don't write. I even signed up for a class to write sizzling sex scenes - and I never use those. It doesn't matter, it helps me see things from a different angle (which could be quite disturbing in a sex scene). I freely admit I suck at romance. So what if I never write a romance novel? Some of my characters are teens and romance is still an important element. I intend to try and learn more about that genre to help me in my genre.
6. Connect with other writers. Blog challenges are a great way to try something new and see how different writers approach the same prompt. Why not sign up to try a Haiku or flash fiction? There's always plenty of exercises online to try.

So wether you sign up for a class, try a blog challenge, read a book on writing exercises or just sit down to write in your journal, it all helps, nothing is wasted. Today, I'm having a go at romance! Want to have a go? Go sign up at Romantic Friday Writers here's the prompt:

And here is my piece:

The Tune of Love

Country ballads? He shrugs. What about Kenny Rogers? He picks biscuit crumbs from his polo shirt.

  Sinatra, or Elvis, older Elvis? His only reaction a cringe.

  Meatloaf then? Demis bloody Roussos? His figure leans forward, but only to reach the remote. 

  His CD collection gives her no clue. An almost random compilation of artists, common only by the fact that they are all gifts. Each one revealing something about the giver but not the receiver.  She remembers crying and yearning to so many different ballads over the years. Has he never felt that passion?

  She accuses him of not liking love songs. He answers that he doesn't not like them. She thinks he never really wanted to get married, he just didn't not want to. Maybe he just doesn't not love her. She puts this to him, but he doesn't react. She suddenly realises, after all these years, she can't remember seeing him cry or yell or belt out a really hearty laugh. 

  She asks if he likes any songs from The Carpenters. This is a trick. He says he doesn't know. She reminds him that he sang Close to You on their first date. It was as a joke, but it should still matter. He is quiet and she thinks he won't remember ever loving her. She gasps when he jumps out of his chair and yells, "Yes!"

  He dances her around the living room, lifting her feet from the ground and kisses her forehead many times. She smiles. She is loved. Elation as she leaves the room, he is hers. Close to You will be their song.

  He sits back down deep into the sofa, still grinning as he watches the horse he backed in a trifecta being led to the winner's circle.

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Are you blogging too much?

Is blogging and visiting blogs taking up all your time?

When I started blogging I was hooked straight away. There are so many awesome blogs on writing, I'm sure I gained more information and help from the online world than I did from my studies at school. I was starting at scratch learning the art of writing and I wanted to share that with other peeps. I guess the focus of my blog is - if I can fumble through this, think how easy it will be for you.

I blogged my butt off. Some weeks I'd blog up to four times. My opinion now is that's just not necessary. I know you can reach out to other writers and build a platform for your writing. That's the marketing side, you'll also make great blogging friends, I know I have. BUT. Now I blog about once a week, twice if something special comes up. This gives me more time to visit other blogs, improve my writing skills and work on my books. Less blogging means each post is live longer and has more chance to actually be viewed by readers.

So rather than update you every time my dog does something cute or I have a weird dream, I think about what will be helpful to my reader. The tip I'm suggesting today? Social media is a tool, a great tool, but if your goal is to publish a novel or write flash fiction or poetry, then make your craft your priority. Spend time on your art and balance that time wisely with your platform building. Let social media feed and propel your productivity, not steal from it.

Are you making time for your writing?

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12 Key Rules for Writing

Found this re-shared so much on Facebook, I have no idea of it's origin.

Check out rule 1. I've learned something about the writing process recently. I know we've all heard the saying, 'writers write' and we're told to just keep the hand moving across the page. But this is more. My writing workshops often sing the praises of free writing. 15 minutes every day. But what do I write about? And I'm told not to think, just write. 

What a waste of time, I have a novel to write, I can't be dithering away notes about my dreams and what I need to pick up for dinner. Honestly, for about the first week, that's what I came up with. Random nonsensical stuff that did not contribute to my fiction at all. But then I started noticing changes. Now when I free write (every day, like a good little author) I find new plot ideas for my story emerge, or a deeper understanding of a character's motivation. 

Practice writing and you'll become better at practicing.

Of course you need to actually work on your novel too, otherwise you'll only become better at practicing.

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The Art of Not Getting Stuff Done

We all have a lot to do. There's stuff you have to get done for work, family, the dogs, the house, your blog, your health and somewhere way down on the list is the stuff you have to do for your writing. Sometimes it can't be helped, we have to prioritise and we can't always ignore work deadlines, or leave the kids to starve, but if you want to get that manuscript written, it might be time to move it to the top of your list.

I blog a lot about lists, I've always created them and love ticking items off. There's different ways to manage your tasks, lately I have a tick-box list on my calendar on the computer. iCal has become increasingly more important as I've been going to more and more writers events and courses. If you're a visual person, you might like The Writer's Kanban. I used to use a day-to-a-page diary to write my lists, and I expected to finish every item before the next day.

This month I'm including at least one meditation session each day, which would seem impossible when I think about how quickly my day fills up. But this has been great because it's helped me to shift my priorities. I've still got a big list of things to do, lessons to prepare for my workshops, homework for my writing courses, signing up, visiting blogs, blogging, tweeting, reading and writing. Difference is, I don't need to tick everything off. I'm taking a mellow 'don't get stuff done' approach and it's working well for me.

My writing is prioritized and I just stop everything else sometimes to fill a page in my notebook, or take my laptop out on the deck to be alone and type. If you're feeling busy and overwhelmed, take some time each day to just do nothing. And if stuff doesn't get done? Eh.

Somebody who is very productive at the moment is my good friend Denise Covey, Denise and I are in a great writing group, but you might know her from .... Well, she's started another blog! Check it out:

FLASHQUAKE - Friday Flash

If you want to find ways to get more done in your day (not less, like me), or you want to prioritize your writing, you might like these posts:

8 Ways to Prioritise Your Writing

Best Free Apps for Productivity

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Writing Business - Step 1

MY ZOMBIE DOG is ready for production and I've been looking into the business of writing. There's so much involved in getting your manuscript from story to book (or ebook), so I started by making a list of everything I could possibly think of that would need to be covered. Now it's time to start tackling that list.

Making progress through lists is so satisfying, I think I could be a professional list-ticker. I've now accomplished the first step to becoming professional at this writing gig (other than actually writing something). I've set up my ABN (Australian Business Number), this registers myself as a business and can be done (in Australia) by contacting the ATO (be ready to be on hold for over half an hour) or going to their website:

http://www.abr.business.gov.au/

You can be a writer without an ABN, but this way I can set up my business of writing and keep it separate from all other expenses/incomes. It also allows me to set up a business name or trading name for digital publishing. Here's hoping I have lots of tax to pay next financial year due to the overwhelming success of my ebooks!

My next steps include sourcing an illustrator for the cover art and organising to have the manuscript file formatted into an ebook.

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No More Excuses

The last quarter of 2011 was a whirlwind for me, and I've allowed that to flow onto 2012. No more.

Time to get back to writing and blogging. It's hard to break a slump, here's some ways I find helpful.

• Write something small, maybe a diary entry.
• Browse and comment on writing blogs, they're very inspirational.
• Get up before the family and don't let yourself away from your writing until you have at least one page.
• Listen to a podcast on writing. I love Writing Excuses because the episodes are short but extremely helpful and they always end with a prompt.
• Join a writers group.
• Take a writing class.
• Find a writing exercise (in how-to books, podcasts, blogs or anywhere). Just try doing one writing exercise unrelated to your bigger work-in-progress.

I've chosen to start my writing off with a blog post, but I might work my way through the rest of the list.

My new writing spot in Auchenflower, Brisbane:

Our furniture hasn't arrived yet, so we are camping out - in:

How do you lure yourself back into writing after a break? Are you in the zone now, or in a writing slump?

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A Writer's Year

Been quite a gap since my last post (I'm giving you my sheepish look, it's really very adorable). Time melted away from me, but I did wind up my school year and managed to sell our Yass home.

With only a few days until I make my New Year To-Do List, I thought I'd reflect on the past year to see what achievements I've made with writing and how I may be able to improve my productivity over the next year. New Year's resolutions are common this time of year, we all think about how this will be the opportunity for us to pursue forgotten dreams, shed our bad habits and connect more with those we neglect. But it's also a good time for reflection. What were your resolutions, goals, ambitions at the beginning of 2011? Did you make any progress? What worked well, and what did you neglect to address?

I'm pretty happy with 2011, Not only did I finish MY ZOMBIE DOG, but I had an interview with an editor from a children's publishing house. Like most years, my productivity was condensed at the beginning of the year and tapered off the last two months to almost non-existence.

What was your best achievement this year? What do you need to work on? 

Now to celebrate my return to blogworld, I'm gonna go visiting my favourite blogs!

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What Blocks Your Writing?

I don't get writers block in the sense of not being able to think of anything to write, but I do manage to block myself from writing by convincing myself there are other tasks that MUST be completed first. My latest? I wanted a new screensaver and just couldn't find the 'right' picture. I've now been working on this for three days. In this time I've gotten NO writing done.

What silly things do you let interrupt your writing? 

Tomorrow WILL be productive. That is my vow. But for now, here's my laptop wallpaper:

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