Creating Proper Writing Conditions For Optimal Success
Irene S. Roth
For the Week of January 14th, 2019
Informational Article for Mentoring Group
It is crucially important for writers to create proper writing conditions for themselves. This can take some time to achieve. However, with practise and perspicacity, it is possible to accomplish this.
Over the next few weeks, I will outline ten ways to create the most conducive writing conditions for optimal success as a writer. So, stay tuned for that.
This week, I will outline the first condition of creating the proper writing conditions for writing so that you are most successful. I spend a lot of time on it because I believe it is the biggest barrier to our being the best writer that we can be.
Over my fifteen plus years of coaching writers, I have found that one of the hardest things to do is to tell your family about your writing times and sticking to them. however, without your family’s understanding and commitment to giving you the space and time that you need to write, you won’t be successful.
This is because when you are fighting for even a bit of time to write all the time, you won’t be able to write effectively, and you won’t be at your best when you finally sit down to write after either arguing with your spouse and experiencing toxic emotions. So, it is very important to set boundaries with your family early on.
Writers need peace of mind and heart before they can write effectively. They can’t be stressed out before they sit down to write. Writing is hard work and it takes a lot of energy and focus to write at our best. So, we don’t need any added burdens.
Here are a few tips to get your best writing done, even if your family is giving you a hard time when you sit down to write.
- If you struggle with your family all the time, perhaps it is best to write outside of the home at your local library or university library. These places are there for everyone, especially writers. That way, you don’t have to fight. You can just sit down and write.
- Have a room of your own to write. If you write in the living room while your husband and children are watching television and playing video games, you won’t have the kind of solitude that you need to be at your best.
- Tell your family ahead of time when you will be writing. Notice I said tell and not ask. If your spouse is not a writer, she/he won’t understand how important it is to have a consistent writing time, for instance. So, you must tell them that you need time to write and when you will be writing.
- Post your writing schedule on your fridge or somewhere in the kitchen where it is visible to your family. You can use an 8 ½ x 11 size piece of printer paper with markers and get a new one up each month, or you can just as easily use a calendar. Devote one calendar for this purpose. Tear one page off for the month that you are in at present and write in your writing times every day.
- When your time to write comes, you must go and write. Don’t put on a load of clothes, wash dishes after dinner or do some ironing. Instead, get into your writing space, center for a few minutes (if you need to), and write.
- Be consistent and persistent. Most times if you are consistent and write at similar times for a few weeks, your family will get used to the idea that you are writing. They may even look forward to having that time to themselves too. This will take some time though. You just must be consistent. I can’t underline that enough. Consistency is the key.
- Don’t write with anyone, not even pets. I know there are writers who write with a pet cat or dog. But they will eventually become a distraction as they meow or bark for attention. People are just as distracting. You may think that your daughter will sit and quietly read her book while you write. But she will only read for a while and then she will want to get your attention.
- By taking these steps, you will be taking concrete steps to write consistently. And that, my friends, is your ticket to success in writing.
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