How to Be a Writer - Part V (Making Routines and Setting Goals)

One of the most common things I hear from people who glamorize the writing lifestyle (oh, yes... It's sooooooooooo glamorous) is "I just don't have time to write" followed by "Where do you come up with all those ideas?" The second one is a whole barrel of monkeys that I'll dive into on another day. But the first one, I have lots of advice for. And, should you find yourself pondering the jet-setting lifestyle of a writer (smell the sarcasm), you might find this blog entry useful.

Pictured: The glamorous writing life...

The best way I've found to manage the whole writer-with-a-day-job thing, as well as just the "writer" thing, is to set routines and goals. Routines are important for many things like muscle memory and mindset. Ever notice how there's a particular room in your house that, whenever you go in there, you feel relaxed? Or there's a particular place at your work that, when you go there, you feel anything but relaxed? How about this... Think about your morning routine.

If you're like me, your morning routine is a thing crafted over years of hard work and efficiency. Actually, it's more like "this is what I do" and I fall into a habit. The habit goes something like this: Wake up. Take care of bathroom necessities (no details here), pour myself a cup of coffee, let my dogs out, and sit on the back porch and drink coffee. I'll do a word puzzle while my dogs do their dog-stuff, then we go in. I fix the dogs their breakfast, then cook my breakfast, wash up, kiss my wife good bye, then go to work. I've been following that same routine every day for more time than I care to recount. It makes it efficient, makes it to where I don't have to think too hard about it, and it just gets done.

So why should your writing be any different?

On weekends, my routine is similar... I get up, drink coffee, let the dogs out, etc, but then I go sit at my computer for a couple of hours and work. That's my routine. It's why I look forward to weekends. So look at your schedule and see where you usually have time. That's your writing time. And don't just make it a "I'm not busy, so I guess I'll write" thing. Make this a "6pm to 8pm MTWThF is Writing Time, dammit!" Like I said, a routine helps put you in the right mindspace. If butt is in chair, fingers are on the keyboard and mind is in writer-land. Obviously, times don't matter. Just when you have a reasonable reliability that this time is your time. Trust me on this one.

Okay, so you've got your routine. So now what?

Goals.

Pictured: My goals...

Setting goals is one of the easiest and best ways to make sure you, as a writer, are productive. The key is to set realistic goals, and then to stick with them, of course. What do I mean by realistic? Well, one goal I have is to write the great American novel, have it made into a movie, make forty-seven billion dollars off it, and retire to some place where the temperature never gets above 80 degrees. Is that particularly realistic? Not really. I mean, I'm sure stranger things have happened, and I suppose it's technically possible, but it's also highly unlikely. So what you need to do is set realistic, reachable goals. Consider the following:

• Daily Word Count - When I'm working on a project, I set a word-count goal of 1000 words a day. That's roughly between four and five pages. Some writers (Stephen King) set a word-count goal much higher, but then, he's got all day to fill it. Since a lot of us (me) only have the time after work and weekends, 1000 words seems about right. 
• Writing Time Goal - If the word-count thing doesn't work for you, maybe try setting a goal of total time spent with butt in chair before the keyboard. 
• Milestone Goals - Give yourself a week to get a chapter done. Give yourself a specific amount of time to get plotting done, get characters fleshed out, etc. 
• Deadlines - Get yourself a calendar and mark specific dates at which point you need to have specific things "turned in." 

Now, goals only work if you take them seriously, so make sure you inform those who live with you about what has to be done, and by when. And work your hardest to hit those goals. But then, if you occasionally miss one, go easy on yourself. Also, remember that they are goals, which, by definition, are things that you have to work up to. If you can't hit 1000 words in a day, don't sweat it too hard. Just reset the goal to 500. Once you hit that one, move it up to 750. In no time, you'll be at that 1000 word goal and wonder why you ever thought it was hard. 

That's it for this edition. Next time, we'll talk about something we all have to deal with: Rejection.

Until then, write on!

SAJ

The Two Things a Writer Must Do

We hear all the time about things a writer must do to be considered, well, a writer. Primary research, grammar, punctuation, spelling, sentence structure, plot, characterization, and a partridge in a pear tree. All are great things.  And all of them are tools that should be in your tool box.  But, if I'm being honest, there are only really two things that a person must do to be a writer.  Careful, now, because I'm about to dispel a lifetime of myths and magick about my chosen craft, and in so doing I could bring the literary world down about my ears.

Pictured... A world of my making.

The first thing a person, any person, has to do to be a writer is to simply read. You thought I was going to say something really hard, right?  Nope.  Reading.  If you want to write, you have to read.

Remember these things?

And, to be honest, it doesn't really matter what.  I've heard people reflect with genre-snobbishness about how they only read their own genre.  I only read horror, they say, because how else could they maintain their fingers on the bloody pulse of what is truly frightening.  Fair enough.  Wrong, but fair thinking.  See, the more you read, the more you can identify what works and what doesn't.  The best teachers of the craft are, often, not found in the classroom, but on the shelves.  Read the masters of your craft, not just in your chosen genre, but in all genres.  For example:  I write horror.  

Yes, really. Ass.

And, to me, the Gods of Horror are a very short list:  Richard Matheson, Steven King, Clive Barker, H.P. Lovecraft, E.A. Poe, Algernon Blackwood, and Gary Braunbeck.  But if I only read those authors (and there is enough from them to fill a lifetime, I assure you), I would become a very one-dimensional writer.  In case you were wondering, I also read the works of Douglass Adams, Dashiell Hammett, J.R.R. Tolkien, Frank Herbert, William Gibson, and a few that I won't name because they might tarnish my already crumbling reputation as a scary guy.

No.

I also read procedurals, books on psychology, on magick and lore, books on other cultures and ghost stories.  I read books about cooking, motorcycle repair, biographies (anything on Harpo Marx, Charlie Chaplain, or Boris Karloff earns a place on my shelf) and autobiographies (particularly of pro wrestlers, for some reason... Don't judge me, you bastards).  And numerous other things that give me insight into how to tell a story, how to form a linear progression, how to give the reader the experience I want.  These are my teachers.  These are the masters.  I fall at their feet and soak up everything I can, and in the process, I hope to become a better writer.  

Pictured:  A Master.

So that's it.  Thing one that every writer must do is read.  Simple really, yet I often am surprised at how many wannabe writers casually quip "Oh, I don't read.  I don't want to sully my creative process with other people's stuff."  Seriously, I've heard that.  And I laugh at it.  On this point, I am inflexible.  If you want to be a writer, you need to read.  You either believe that, or you're wrong.  

Only two types of people...

Which brings me to thing number two that all people must do to become professional writers. It's a little tricky, maybe a little outside-of-the-box, so follow me on this one.  Place butt in chair and fingers to keyboard.  It's a two parter, so let's break that down.  First, butt in chair:

You know who you are.

One of the hardest things to get a writer to do is to actually sit down and write.  We'll go out of our way to do things that we thing we should be doing.  Dishes, laundry, cleaning out the garage, making warm boxes for neighborhood strays... But the truth is, if you want to be a writer, you have to treat your writing like something other than just a whimsical hobby.  It isn't.  It's a job.  And a damned hard one at that.  Think about how long it takes to churn out a serviceable manuscript.  Months!  Even if you're an obnoxiously prolific writer, it still takes time out of your schedule to tell your story, doesn't it?  And, yes, all those other things have to be done as well, but this is your job!  This is your passion!  This is your craft!  SO PUT YOUR ASS IN YOUR CHAIR. Create a schedule and post it in the main room of your living area.  On that schedule, block out a section of time that says "Between the hours of -insert your hours here-, under pain of death and flogging with a wiffleball bat, none may disturb THE AUTHOR as he/she is working!"  Then stick to it.  Let nothing distract you from your vocation.  

No, not even him.

Your chair is your throne, your office equipment, your business, and your sole property.  Don't let people stack the mail there.  Don't let anyone just sit behind your desk for a moment.  It's your vocation they're screwing with.  Take it seriously.  You have to.  Get yourself a chair upon which you can sit comfortably, and claim it as your own. 

Awww yis!

Which brings me to the other part:  Put fingers to keyboard.  

Like this.

Okay, so some of you still write longhand, so put a pen/pencil in your hand and get to work, but you get what I'm saying here.  Once your butt is firmly planted in your chair, it's work time.  Not hey-I'll-just-check-my-email time.  Not I-wonder-what's-happening-on-social-media time.  It isn't time for your to browse Reddit, or Facebook, or Youtube.  It isn't even time to just check the hockey scores for a few minutes (GO PENGUINS).  It's time to work.  It's time to, you know, WRITE.  How will you ever be considered a writer if you don't, y'know, actually write something? 

The other things mentioned at the top of this picture-laden blog entry will make you a good writer.  But before you can become a good writer, you must first become a writer.  No one is born good.  No one is born with a backlist.  Ray Bradbury said once that your imagination is just like any other muscle in your body, and you must treat it as such. If you exercise it daily, it will grow in strength.  If you don't, it will atrophy and die.  Truer words were never spoken.  There's another saying among painters (I think) that my wife is fond of quoting.  To say it in my own words (because I never get the phrasing exactly right), inspiration is for amateurs.  Professionals show up and get to work. What that means, to me, is that, if you wait for inspiration to strike (or for the muse to leave little idea-turd on your shoulder), you're unlikely to get a story finished, much less make a career out of this.  If you carve out a time for yourself and treat this like a profession, you will at least have a fighting chance. 

So that's it.  That's all you have to do.  Read.  Read everything. Read until there's nothing left to read (which will never happen).  Then write.  Pour your soul on the page.  That's what we do, after all.  When it's all said and done, the only thing we writers really have to do is open a vein and bleed all over the page.   I stole the last graphic in this post from another blog (http://www.thebeginningwriter.com/) because it perfectly illustrates the point I'm trying to make, and I've pinned it to my Pinterest board.  Yes, I have a Pinterest board.  No excuses.  You either want to be a writer, or you don't.  If you want to, but can't be bothered to read, can't be troubled to put your ass in your chair and your fingers to the keyboard daily, then you really can't want it badly, can you?  

Now get to work. 

Getting Back on Schedule

Every writer in the world has moments of doubt, moments of "but I don't wanna," moments where life interferes.  It's often very easy to slip back into the lethargic comfort of the couch-and-television world and bury the head in a never-ending deluge of Chuck Lorre and laugh tracks.  The trouble is, once  you do it, it gets harder and harder to detach the butt from the couch and return it to where it belongs:  The writing chair.

Believe me, I know.  It's been almost two years since I've written a word.  Imagine that for a moment.  From someone who had thirteen books published in ten years to not a single word written in almost two.  You can imagine the hell of trying to get back on track.

If you don't know, 2012 and 2013 were the worst years of my life.  In 2012, my wife was diagnosed with cancer, and I just quit writing because I couldn't concentrate.  I was so concerned with caring for her that the creative muse just wouldn't come.  Actually, my wife was my muse, so there's that.  Then in 2013, my wife's father died, then my uncle dropped dead of a heart attack, then my wife passed.  Less than four months later, my mother passed unexpectedly.  You could say I took a beating.  But that's not the point of this post.  

A wise man said:  "A writer who waits for ideal conditions under which to work will die without putting a word on paper." (E.B. White)

To me, writing is an exercise of the soul, a big part of the definition of who I am.  To deny that is to deny myself.  So it's time to get back to work. Which brings me to the point of this post:

You need a routine.  You need to set a goal.  You need to reach that goal, come Hell or high water.  If this is a real passion for you, and not just some hobby, you need to make this a priority.  Here's what my schedule is:  When I'm working on a project, I write 1000 words a day.  When I'm not working on a project, I dedicate at least an hour a day to coming up with ideas and writing them down.  The key there is that I'm writing them down.  Anyone can sit in front of a television (hereafter called the "Great Enemy") or the X-Box (hereafter called the "Great Time-Suck") and claim to be coming up with ideas. But the act of writing them down is important.  Putting fingers to keys, putting butts in writing chairs, gluing eyes to the page, these are things that every writer must do daily.  

Think of it in terms of an athlete.  To do the things they do, athletes must train.  They must give their muscle memory.  They must stretch and build and develop a routine to make them stronger, faster, and tougher.  Repetitive strikes.  Repetitive running.  Work a technique until it becomes second nature.  In MMA, we drill ground defenses until they become instinct.  We drill combinations until they become reflex.  If you slack off in your training, your muscles atrophy.  Your abilities slow. 

In terms of writing, your imagination, your typing skills, are just like any other muscle.  You must use it, feed it, exercise it every day or it will atrophy.  At my peak, I could type 92 words a minute.  Now, I'm down to about 75.  Why?  Because I let two years go by.  Do I regret them?  No.  I spent the time doing exactly what I needed to do.  But now it's time to get back in the gym and pound my mind back into shape. 

But, I can hear you say, fighters and athletes take breaks, right?

Sure they do.  After the big fight or post season, they're entitled to take a break.  MMA fighter Chris Leiben trained for six months for a fight, watched his diet, won his fight, and then ordered a large pizza and binge-watched his favorite shows that he missed.  There's nothing wrong with that.  For you, the writer, the time to take that post-season break is after the novel is done.  After it's been proofed.  After it's been shipped off to the agent.  After it is out of your hands.  And, believe me, you'll need a break.  But don't let yourself go for more than a month before sitting down at your writing desk and starting again.  Ask anyone who has let themselves get out of shape.  Getting back into shape is hell. 

So that's it.   Set a goal.  Build a routine.  Flex the mental muscles.  I've told you mine.  

What's yours?