The Method to My Madness: How I get all that writing done

Total Read Time: 4 minutes

["the maze 2" by gerard79]

When people find out I’m a writer, one of the first questions I get asked is: “How many books have you written?”  Then when I tell them that I’ve completed 6 novels and 2 short stories (as well as having 4 other works in progress kicking around), they ask me: “How do you get all that writing done?”  At this point, I usually get flustered and mutter some vague response before changing the subject.

See, I never really know how to answer this question because I have two very different approaches that I alternately use to get my work done.  And I guess that’s another issue right there that most writers grapple with at one time or another.  Is writing work or a creative pastime?

For me, I really started getting shit done when I finally made the switch that writing = job.  It’s not something I only do when the stars align and sparkly rainbows shoot out of my fingertips as they dance across the keyboard, trying to keep pace with my free-flowing, creative genius.  (Yeah, ‘cause that’s how it always happens.)

The only way to get better at writing is to write, so that means you will often need to push yourself when the creative juices aren’t flowing.  It doesn’t have to be perfect.  Just get something on paper so you can move on to the next scene.  You can always go back and polish it later.  That’s what revisions and rewrites are for.

…Anyway, back to my two different methods: 

Method #1: Consistent Persistence 

This one is probably the most practical for most people and many writers seem to use some variation of this method.   

I get up an extra half-hour early before work (which usually ends up being something gross, like 5:30am) and set that time aside for writing.  No phone, no internet, no distractions.  Just writing.

I loathe getting up any time earlier than 6am (it’s some sort of mental barrier for me), but I know if I don’t write before I go to work, I’ll never get it done after I come home.  I have 0% motivation to do anything at the end of the day, so I make sure I work for myself first, before my job/life gobbles up everything else. 

Some people might be the opposite and prefer writing at night.  That’s OK.  You just need to figure out what works for you so you can set yourself up to win.  Half an hour might not seem like much, but I can usually get 2-3 pages done a day that way.  Don’t shun small progress if that’s all you have time for.  If you keep plugging away, one day you will have a complete novel. 

Method #2: The Writing Mini-Retirement 

So I’ve used this other method off and on over the years, always feeling somewhat guilty about it until I read The 4-Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss (which is a fantastic book for changing the way you think about work).   

Whenever I’m working for someone else, I never plan on working for them forever, so I always try to build up some savings.  When I eventually feel it’s time to part ways and I have a decent savings pool, I leave my job to write full-time for a while.  When the money starts to run out, I start looking for another job.

I get some weird looks when I try to explain this most of the time.  I’m not crazy, I promise.  (Famous last words…)

I see these mini-retirements as opportunities to really invest in myself as a writer, like when post-secondary students invest in themselves by going to school.  It allows me to fast-track my progress.

This kind of plunge takes more than just savings.  You need to be really good at planning and budgeting, as well as at cutting living costs.  Look at every expense you have.  Can you get the service/product elsewhere for less?  Do you really need it at all?  Things like cable, cell phones, and cars are not always the necessities we make them out to be.

I guess it’s all about what writing full-time would be worth to you.   

And of course, one of the most important things you need is a cheerleader/patron.  This is the person who supports you through thick and thin, believing in your dream.  (Sometimes this might mean supporting you financially, but hopefully you’ve planned and budgeted well enough to pull your own weight.)

I would never have been able to write full-time without the support of my husband.  And we both know that when he decides to take the plunge to follow his dream, it will be my turn to support him.

So that’s how I get it done.  Pick your poison.  Either way, it all comes down to deciding to make it happen.

What kind of writing method do you use?