On daily writing routines: or, What to switch on and what to switch off
There is a place I used to go in California that always
seemed to be full of writers – students, professors,
novelists, writers of screenplays and children's books and humanitarian
reports. It was a popular spot and the coffee was good. Over a few months I myself drafted
two whole books at that cafe (it must have been the quality of the coffee); though I
discarded both books after I'd finished them (it must have been the
quantity of the coffee.)
In that particular establishment, I took great interest in studying the routines of the writers who came through the door. Ninety percent of them followed exactly the same pattern, which I will now describe for you as carefully as I can:
In that particular establishment, I took great interest in studying the routines of the writers who came through the door. Ninety percent of them followed exactly the same pattern, which I will now describe for you as carefully as I can:
- Writer orders coffee.
- Writer finds a suitable table in the cafe. Some deliberations regarding lighting, position of chair (facing towards or away from window), distance from other tables, power socket requirements, etc.
- Writer opens laptop or Moleskine notebook.
- Writer checks phone.
- Sends message or email or performs facebook thingy on phone.
- Repeats steps 4 and 5 for the next 90 minutes.
- Sheepishly places phone in pocket: closes laptop or Moleskine notebook: shuffles out the door: very dejected: will probably drink alone tonight.
After making a careful study of this pattern, I discovered that there is a certain mysterious correlation between internet access and a writer's happiness. The more you have of one, the less you have of the other. The less you have of one, the more you have of the other.
I don't use cafes much anymore. But I'm working on a writing project at the moment, using the following daily routine. Feel free to borrow any of these steps if you find them helpful:
I don't use cafes much anymore. But I'm working on a writing project at the moment, using the following daily routine. Feel free to borrow any of these steps if you find them helpful:
- Get up at the same time every day a couple of hours before dawn. (In my case the timing is critical because of The Children.)
- Switch on lights in kitchen.
- Switch on coffee machine.
- Switch off wireless router.
- Switch off phone.
- Sit down at kitchen table. Drink coffee. Write 770 words. (Or whatever your daily limit is: I find I can manage 770 words without too much fear or exhaustion. 800 would be impossible.)
- Once I've reached my word length I reward myself with a small tick in my diary. If I miss a day, a condemnatory cross is placed in the diary. (The ticks make you Happy. A whole row of ticks at the end of the week makes you Very Happy.)
- When you are finished, reverse steps 2 through 5, switching off what you had switched on and switching on what you had switched off. And do it all to the glory of God.
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