Category: Writing practice

Tips for Creating a Flexible Writing Routine

~ The Regal Writer ~ Leave a comment
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We’ve all heard that well-worn piece of advice to write every day.  This is certainly ideal if you’re starting a writing practice. It doesn’t take into account work schedules, domestic responsibilities and health.

The reality is, sometimes health issues like ADHD, autism, auto-immune disease, even cancer, can wreak havoc on our energy levels, which can affect our productivity. In those situations, it may not be possible to write every day, like the experts suggest. It might feel like you’ll never finish your manuscript.  That you will always have to choose between your personal life and your writing life.

Believe it or not, it doesn’t have to be that way. Yes, you can be a writer, and you don’t have to force yourself to write every single day to get there. The key is creating a routine that fits your needs and obligations. You create a process that is flexible so you don’t have to feel guilty if something comes up and you have to skip a day or two of writing.

During a writing summit recently, Amy James, author of A Five-Letter Word for Love, suggested that before starting a writing practice, writers should ask themselves a series of questions about their writing needs. This initial assessment can help you determine how you handle disruptions, noise, social media, and technology. This is especially critical if you have ADHD or other health issues that can interfere with your energy levels and productivity. Once you understand your preferences, you can create a process that is flexible and more in tuned to your personal needs.

Self-assessment questions:

1. When do you feel most productive and creative? Many writers I know love writing first thing in the morning. Others feel more productive in the evening before bedtime. Is there a time when creative inspiration strikes more easily than others?

2. Do you need the Internet shut off in order to write? Are you too tempted by the internet that it interferes with your ability to write? It may be helpful to turn off access to all online platforms while you write. Even better, try handwriting your story in long hand. I use that approach often for my fiction writing, and it helps me to stay focused on the project in front of me.

3. Do you need to avoid social media before you write?  Social media can be emotionally draining and can easily upset our creative process. It might be wise to avoid browsing your social media until after you’ve finished your writing.

4. Do you need to keep your phone in another room or turn it off? Our phones can be useful when we need them. But do you really need it when you write? If you feel it’s too much of a distraction—or worse, a temptation—try turning it off or leave it in another room with the door closed. Trust me, your messages will still be there when you finish you’re working on your creative project.

5. Do you prefer working in a quiet setting, or can you work with some noise or music in the background? Many writers I know need it completely quiet so they can hear themselves think. I’m amazed at the people who can sit and write in a coffee shop with so much activity and conversations nearby. How do they concentrate? I need quiet so I can hear the dialogue of my characters. If you’re having difficulty concentrating, try working in a quiet setting and see if that makes you feel calmer and gives you a clearer head.

6. Are you a discovery writer or do you need to know how the ending will be? Some writers can’t begin to write until they’ve plotted out every scene and chapter through to the end. Others can sketch the first few scenes before digging in to their story. Knowing what kind of writer you are can determine what kind of process you’ll need.  

7. Do you need a writing goal to get you motivated? It could be a word count of, say 500 words per session. It could be a time limit, like a half hour. It can also be an internal goal too, such as that moment when you simply run out of energy.

8. Do you need a break from writing? Perhaps it’s been difficult to return to a routine because you’re overworked already and need a break. Sometimes we stop being in love with our story because we’ve been working on it for too long. Stepping away from it for a few days or weeks can help restore your mental and physical energy and give you a fresh perspective. When you’re ready to get back to work, start slow. Start by rereading what you’ve written and do some light editing to restore your motivation.

9. Can you be patient with yourself during the writing process? And can you be patient with the process itself? Writing a novel or memoir is like running a marathon. It takes time to train yourself and get yourself in proper physical and mental shape. Then it takes time to run the race. Our growth as writers doesn’t happen overnight. If you can be patient with yourself, then you know you can count on yourself to be consistent with your writing practice, even if you’re not writing every day.  

10. Do you need to change your writing process depending on the type of story you’re writing? Only you can answer that since you know your story best. The beauty of having a flexible writing practice is that you’re not locked into it. You can change it as your needs change—and as your story changes.

Writing every day isn’t going to work for everyone. Creating a flexible routine can help you take advantage of those times when you have the most energy and focus, so you feel more productive.

How to Keep a Writing Routine During Your Holiday Travels

~ The Regal Writer ~ Leave a comment
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With the holidays come opportunities to travel. Whether traveling for business to other parts of the world or to a neighboring state in your own country to get together with family and friends, new and unexpected adventures await.

But when will you find time to write? Your travels can demand a lot of your time and attention. There are parties to attend, gifts to wrap and cookies to bake. You can get so caught up in exploring the city or enjoying holiday festivities that your regular writing practice might fall by the wayside. While you’re traveling, is it possible to still maintain a writing routine?

The answer, says seasoned travelers, is a resounding yes. But to make it work, it’s important to plan ahead and schedule writing time so you don’t get distracted.

Well-traveled writers at the Writers & Artists community provide practical tips to help you maintain your writing routine while on the road.

1. Set realistic goals. Review your agenda if you have one, then schedule writing time around your schedule. Set goals that are realistic for that schedule, whether it’s the amount of time spent writing or a specific word count. If you set a small goal each day, it’s easier to keep to your writing routine. 

2. Always take notes. Keep a small notebook handy in your purse or pocket. When inspiration strikes or you see something that sparks your imagination, write it down. If you don’t take time to jot it down, no matter how briefly, you’ll lose the image. By the end of your traveling, you could have an entire mini-notebook filled with ideas and images from your trip.

3. Take photos. Sometimes words aren’t enough to capture the feeling and visuals of a setting. Photography is a writer’s best friend. Bring along a camera or use your mobile phone to capture visual details that you can recall later.

4. Aim for consistency. Schedule time every day to write, even if it’s only for a few minutes. Writing a few sentences or paragraphs is better than not writing at all.

5. Take advantage of technology. Your mobile phone has numerous features to aid in your writing. Try the voice-to-text feature, for example, to dictate a scene that suddenly pops into your head. The Notes app is helpful to jot down lists or story ideas. Remember to carry a portable charger so you can keep your devices powered up.

6. Make the best use of downtime. Whether you’re at the airport waiting for a delayed flight or you’re riding on a tour bus, use that downtime to take notes, do research, or read up on the writing craft.

While these tips answer the question of how to fit in writing while traveling, you might wonder, “How can I best use my travels for my writing?”

Writer Saanvi Thapar at The Writing Cooperative (on Medium) shares her three-step approach:

Write what you see. Traveling can sometimes disrupt the flow of words and ideas prompting a form of writer’s block, Thapar writes. Go easy on yourself and focus on writing what you see. Many tourist spots offer opportunities to focus on the details of what’s in front of you, whether that’s a stunning sunset over the ocean or the gleam of ice and snow on a mountain. This exercise hones your description writing skills.

Write what people say. If you’re visiting a foreign country, go where the locals go. Grab a table at a café or public park, then listen in on people’s conversations. Note not only the expression in their voices, but listen to how they tell their stories. Immerse yourself in their culture, and write about their history, folklore, and traditions. By listening and learning about others’ stories, you learn to write about them with empathy and understanding, says Thapar.

Write what you feel. Writing is as much an emotional experience as it is a mental and creative exercise. When you travel and experience unique sights and experiences, it’s bound to affect us on some deeper level. Keep those memories alive by recording them in a journal or using the notes app on your phone. Don’t just write about what you see and hear, but explore how those events affected you.

Make the most of your travels by writing about them. With a regular routine, the right note-taking tools, and a desire to share your adventures with others, you can bring your travels to life for readers. 

Conquering the Scariest Fears about Writing

~ The Regal Writer ~ Leave a comment
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Happy Halloween! In honor of this occasion, I’m reposting this story from a few years ago. It’s my treat to you.

If you’re like most people, you’ve probably made a myriad of excuses for not getting any writing done – lack of time, fear of failure, too busy, no privacy, nothing to write about, etc.

Below are the seven most common excuses I’ve heard from people (and sometimes I’ve used them myself) for not writing. I call them the Seven Deadly Excuses because they can kill a person’s writing practice before it has a chance to blossom. Many of these excuses are influenced by negative messages and assumptions you’ve heard since childhood. By reframing these messages and taking positive action, those fears could diminish over time.

Excuse 1: “I don’t have time to write.”
A lack of time is the most common excuse people make about not writing. If this is your biggest fear, chances are your writing practice has never gotten off the ground, or you write in fits and starts. You always talk about wanting to write, but you never do anything about it.

The problem isn’t that you don’t have time to write, but the expectation of how much time is needed for writing. If you expect a writing practice to take up two, three or four hours every day, that is unrealistic. No one has that kind of time, unless you are a professional full-time writer. With outside jobs, clients to manage, families to care for,  and other important responsibilities, there’s little time left over for writing.

The truth is, you don’t need hours at a time to write. When you’re just starting a writing practice, only ten or fifteen minutes a day will suffice. For example, while working as an attorney, A Time to Kill author John Grisham set a goal of writing one page per day, roughly 200 words. Grisham shows it is possible to fit writing into your schedule.

Excuse #2: “I’m too busy.” 
When people say they’re too busy to write, what they might actually mean is that writing isn’t a top priority compared to other responsibilities. Work, school, taking care of family and a household take up more of your time. Why begin a writing practice when these other priorities compete for your attention?

Perhaps you learned in childhood that school work and household chores came first before you could entertain yourself by reading and writing stories. Naturally, that attitude and habit carried over into adulthood. It’s no wonder writing hasn’t become priority.  

When you make writing a priority, you’ll find it’s easier to begin a regular writing practice. Remember, you only need 15 minutes! If you can make room for 15 minutes in your schedule for writing, that’s time well spent, no matter how busy you are.

Excuse 3: “My writing isn’t good enough.”
From the first moment you put pen to paper, your writing probably won’t be very good.
That’s normal for most beginning writers. But it’s true for experienced ones too. Kristin Hannah, author of The Nightingale, writes as many as 10 drafts of each novel because she knows the first draft isn’t her best or final work. It’s simply the starting point that she can build on.

If you continually tell yourself that your writing is not good enough, ask yourself why you feel that way. What is your writing not good enough for? Publication? For other people to see?

Instead of berating yourself for not writing well, make a plan to keep improving. Read authors whose work you admire, so you can learn from them. When you write something, ask for feedback. Constructive criticism can help you spot recurring errors. Most important, write, write, write. That’s really the best way to improve your craft.

Excuse 4: “I don’t know what to write about!”
Do you suffer from blank page syndrome – the act of staring at a blank page or computer screen with no idea what to write about?  Or when you do come up with a story ideas, do you dismiss them as uninteresting?

When faced with a blank page, you may be overlooking the best source of story ideas: personal experience. You have plenty of life experience to draw from, so explore those events from your past and turn them into stories, either as narrative non-fiction or as fiction.

One way to access this reservoir of life experience is with writing prompts. You can find hundreds of prompts on sites such as Writer’s Digest.

Excuse 5: “I don’t have a private space to write.”
If you share a home with a spouse, three children, a dog and two cats, it may be difficult to find a quiet, private space to write. Others believe that without ideal circumstances, such as a desk and comfortable chair, their favorite coffee mug and favorite pen, they’re just not able to write.

You need to ask yourself if the problem is an actual lack of space, or the expectation that you need a lot of space to write. I’ve drafted blog posts on breaks at work, on buses and trains or while waiting for doctor appointments. If you wish you had ideal surroundings and your current environment is far from ideal, you may be waiting forever to start writing. The truth is, your environment does not need to be perfect to begin writing. Look around you. I bet you can find a space to call your own that is perfect for creating stories.

Excuse 6:  “I might fail.”
Another common excuse writers make is “What if I fail?“  The answer depends on how you define failure. What does failure look like to you? Not getting published? Not finishing your current work-in-progress? Not having anyone read your work? Not having anyone take your writing as seriously as you do? Everybody has their own definition of failure, but in reality, there is only one true failure: not writing at all.

To remove that fear of failure, it might be helpful to start small and work your way toward bigger projects. Start with 100 words, then increase it to 200 words, and so on. Every week or so, add to your daily word count. When you reach these smaller goals, you gain confidence in yourself and you achieve small successes that you can build on.

Excuse 7: “What if I’m successful?”
While fear of failure is common among writers, others suffer from a different malaise:  fear of success. “How can anyone be afraid to succeed?” you ask. You’d be surprised at how many people fear success, myself included.

Fear of success might manifest as an unfinished project – or two, or three or ten. You have several projects in various stages of completion but never seem to finish any of them. In your mind, finishing one of them means you’ve achieved success. Then you worry about what happens when you finish that project. Perhaps you edit your piece over and over again, never fully satisfied with what you’ve written – a useful delay tactic preventing you from finishing your work.

If you fear success, then you may need to rethink what success means to you. What does it look like? It may look and feel differently to you than to your spouse or your best friend. Are you defining success on your terms or someone else’s?

For some people, success means getting published, while for others, it simply means sitting down for a half hour every day to create stories with no thought of publication. There is no right or wrong answer. Write according to your definition of success, whatever that means to you.

When you manage your expectations to conquer your fears, the writing life won’t seem so scary.


Lost Your Creative Flow? Here’s How to Find It Again–and Keep It Going

~ The Regal Writer ~ Leave a comment

Photo credit: The Regal Writer

Be sure to visit my website for the latest writing prompt.

We’ve all been there before. Staring at a blank page in a freeze, unsure where or how to start writing. Or you’ve taken a break from your writing and lost momentum in your work-in-progress. Even just starting a routine writing session can feel like a sludge through mud.

In those moments, you realize you’ve lost your creative flow and you wonder if you can ever get it back.

Call it a creative mojo or being in the zone or having a zen moment, creative flow occurs when you enter a state of total immersion, when all outside stimuli fade into the background, and all that’s left is you and your creative work. It’s that moment when you feel most productive and innovative. It’s when you become most in tune with your essence and where you feel most alive.

Like all good things, creative flow can come to a crashing halt. When that happens, you can feel lost, unsure how to get it back.  

When you lose your creative flow, think about why it’s happening. Maybe you’re feeling stressed about the project you’re working on, which can make you feel blocked and unproductive. Do you have too many distractions and interruptions in your daily routine? Then it’s time to do something about them to limit their impact on your creativity.

Whenever I lose that flowing feeling, I try one of the following techniques to find it again. While they may not work for everyone, they’re worth a try.

1. Turn off your electronic devices. Shut off the TV or radio. Close out any apps you use, and put your phone away. Just sit alone with your story idea and let your imagination work with it. Then when you’re ready, begin to write. I prefer writing longhand with a pen and paper because the ideas seem to flow more easily from my brain to my hand and onto the page.

2. Do a brief warm-up exercise. Just like singers warm up their vocal chords before a live performance or an athlete runs sprints or rides a stationary bicycle to loosen their muscles before a game, writers need to warm up their writing muscles too. Writing is a different kind of performance. The page or screen is our stage. Working with a prompt, freewriting one whole page, or writing in your journal are ways to warm up your creative muscles. Once you’re warmed up, you might find your creative energy flowing.

3. Seek a quiet, secluded place to write. To be at my best, I need a quiet place to work, to think and to create. I try to limit distractions as much as possible, though I will answer only the most urgent emails, phone calls or texts. Similarly, I remove any clutter from my desk because I believe a messy desk clutters my creative thinking. If you’re used to working in a busy coffee shop (good for you), but you’re not finding your flow, try writing in a quieter environment and limiting distractions.

4. Write in short bursts. Any people seem to believe that you need several hours to get into your creative flow. But sometimes less is more. When you know you’ve only got 20 free minutes, sometimes you can get more done in that short time than if you had an entire morning. With a longer session of two or three hours, there’s a tendency to stare at the page, take more breaks, answer messages or do research. Sometimes it can seem that you get less done in longer writing sessions because of the constant switching up of tasks. It’s easy to get restless and bored too. Start with a 20-minute session, then if you’re flowing well you can always extend your writing time.

5.  Seek support from fellow writers. Every creative person loses their flow at some point. Just ask any writer, artist or musician. They’ve all figured out how to get it back too. So ask friends and fellow writers how to get back into the creative flow. We can all learn from each other.

6. Read what you’ve written before. The writing could be from your previous session to get you caught up to date, or it could be something you published previously. Reading your work can put you in a success mindset and inspire you to keep writing. Sure, you might be tempted to make some edits in your work-in-progress, but that’s a sign that your brain is kicking into high gear. It’s revving the creative engine. When that happens, you’ll be ready to start writing.

7. Use pen and paper. I’ve mentioned this technique in Tip #1. I find writing longhand with pen and paper to be the fastest, easiest route to connecting with your creative self. When I write on a screen, I’m more tempted to stop to read what I’ve written, to make corrections or to look up some important detail on the internet—all deterrents to creative flow.

Here are a few tips from other writers:

8. From Copy Posse, identify your most creative time of day. When do you feel most productive? Is it early morning? Late afternoon? Before bedtime? We all sense when we feel our best, physically and mentally. If it’s possible for your schedule, block out that creative time of day and put it in your calendar. Then make time during those periods to take advantage of your natural creative flow.

9. From The Young Writer blog, practice self-care. That means getting enough exercise, eating right and getting proper sleep. When you feel well physically, you’re able to tap into your creative flow more quickly because it flows more naturally. You won’t have to work as hard to get it back, and you’re less likely to lose it at all.

10. Also from The Young Writer and perhaps most important of all, have fun. Avoid overthinking your writing. Simply relax and enjoy the process of creating. When it stops being fun, then you need to consider whether it’s time to stop writing (but hopefully, you won’t).

Remember creative flow is an ideal experience that we’d all like to achieve the moment we sit down to write. But truthfully, it’s not realistic to expect it to happen at a moment’s notice. Sometimes you have to work at it, and hopefully, these tips will help you.

Creative flow occurs in fits and starts; that’s the nature of it. When it comes, savor the feeling it gives you and use its energy to your advantage.

Career Planning Tips for Aspiring Authors

~ The Regal Writer ~ Leave a comment
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I jumped into my fiction writing journey with hope in my heart and my fingers crossed. I didn’t have a clear idea where I wanted to go once I started writing though. But even if I did know, I didn’t have a map or a compass that told me how to get there. I simply jumped into the deep end of the pool and hoped something would come of it.

When I started writing in earnest, I didn’t know whether it was a new career path or a hobby to keep me entertained while I looked for work. It’s one thing to say “I’ve always wanted to be a writer.” It’s quite another to actually formulate a plan for getting there.

Some writers do plan their writing careers. Others, like me, slip into it gradually, more as an experiment rather than a conscious career choice.

Most professional writers will tell you that it’s a good idea to have a plan, something concrete to guide you along your writing journey. A plan helps you visualize your writing goals so you have a picture in your mind of what you want to accomplish. Without it, you might as well spin your wheels.

So that begs the question. Should aspiring authors have a career plan? If so, what does that plan include? How do you know what you want to accomplish, and how long you expect it to take? These are all questions you need to ask yourself before embarking on your writing journey.

Do you have a plan for your writing career? Have you mapped out what you want to accomplish and how to get there? Would you do anything differently?

If you think a career plan is right for you, here’s what you might include.

A vision of success. Take a few moments to visualize what you want your writing career to look like. What do you want to accomplish? What does success look like to you? What does it mean to be a successful author? Try to be as detailed as possible. You have to know what the end game looks like in order to get there.

Your goals. If your vision is the end game, your goals are the wheels to help you get there. Be specific. For example, don’t just say you’ll write every day. Instead, say that you’ll write 1000 words a day six days a week, which is more specific and more achievable. Focus on things you can control, such as your output and time spent on writing activities.

Your timeline. Some career experts suggest having a five-year plan, no matter what career you choose. Then working backward from your end goal (or vision) at the five-year mark, set goals at intermediate points, such as annual or every six months. Put goals in the order of how you want to achieve them. For example, completing a fiction writing course might occur earlier in your timeline than publishing a short story.Having a timeline can help you determine if you’re on track to meet those goals, or if you have to reset the timeline.

The road map. How do you plan to achieve your goals? What steps do you need to take to move forward? For example, do you need to brush up on your writing skills? Do you need to build a network of fellow writers? Do you need to find out how to craft a work of fiction?

Fantasy author Holly Lisle suggests finding a model author to follow. Read every one of their books, and study them for how their writing progressed over time. Learn all about their work methods. See if any of them will work for you. 

Find a support network. Writers might work alone, but they need the support of family, friends and colleagues too. Make sure that your spouse, kids, roommates are on board with your new career plan. Make sure they give you the space and time you need to do your writing.

Starting a writing practice isn’t always easy, especially over the long haul. Here are some additional tips for planning your writing career. .

* Pace yourself. Burnout is very real, writes Heather Webb at Writer Unboxed blog. Meeting deadlines, especially those enforced from outside yourself, like an agent, editor or client, can zap you of your energy. “When writing begins to feel like a chore, it’s time for a time out to regroup. Writing will come back. Your love of storytelling won’t go anywhere,” says Webb.

* Be flexible. Real life can get in the way of your writing. Webb advises writers to be flexible in all aspects of the writing business—your schedule, with story ideas and with your career path. Don’t be afraid to pivot when you need to. If one genre doesn’t seem to be working for you, switch to another.

* Define what success means to you. If you were a successful author today, what would it feel like? How would you behave? Dress? Treat others? Treat your work? Success won’t look or feel the same way to everyone. Define success on your terms.

* Don’t let your negative inner voice or ego become the loudest voice. Drown it out with your own positive energy. Similarly, avoid author envy. It’s tempting to compare yourself with other writers, especially those whose work you admire, but that serves no useful purpose. Focus on becoming the writer you are meant to be.

* Most important, be sure to write as often as possible. You learn most about the craft by actually sitting down and writing. Once you start, you won’t want to stop.

Having a career plan isn’t mandatory for success. But it can help you clarify your goals and map out a path for achieving what you want. It’s one more tool to add to your writer’s toolkit.

Measuring Your Progress as a Writer

~ The Regal Writer ~ Leave a comment
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A writer-friend recently asked “How do you know you’re making progress as a writer?”

I’m somewhat baffled by this question because I’ve never stopped to ask myself that same question. I’ve never thought about my own “progress.” I simply assumed that writing is about continuous improvement, that the more you write the better you’ll get.

But I don’t think there’s a clear cut answer to my friend’s question. It’s difficult to answer.  After all, what does progress really mean?

Progress can mean different things to different people. For some, progress means how their writing is improving. Writing progress is subjective, which makes it harder to measure. What is good writing for one person may not be that way for someone else.

For others, progress means how close they are to reaching some end goal, like finishing a manuscript. That’s easier to measure because it’s an actual, tangible result.

Here are a few questions to ask yourself regarding your writing progress:

* Am I writing every day, or at least on a regular basis?
* Do I have a clear idea of my end goal for my work-in-progress? Can I visualize what it will look like?
* How does your current writing compare to earlier efforts?
* Are you satisfied with the results so far? What would you like to do differently?

With these responses in mind, If you’re as baffled as I am by this question, here are a few suggestions for gauging your progress as a writer.

  1. Define what you mean by progress. What does it look like to you? Are you trying to reach a certain goal with your writing, such as a work count per day or complete an essay within a week? Or are you trying to measure the improved quality of your writing?
  2. Visualize the end result. What does your end goal look like? Visualize what you want to achieve. If you want, create a visual to inspire you. Sketch a picture or make a collage. Then put those pictures on a bulletin board or somewhere where you can see it every day. Let the picture inspire you to keep working toward your goal.
  3. Create a timeline. On that timeline, mark the starting date of your writing, whether that’s for a particular project or your overall practice. Also mark the ending date of that project. In between, mark periodic points which can designate review point. For example, you might have a timeline from January to December with each month marked off in between. Each month, you can compare where you are currently on your project with where you were the previous month.
  4. Mark the milestones. Celebrate every small victory. Whether that’s completing a chapter in your latest work-in-progress, finishing a writing course, or meeting your daily writing goals for an entire month, do something to commemorate the occasion.

For example, if you’re trying to monitor how often you write, use a calendar and put a star on each day that you complete a writing session. By the end of one month, see how many stars you’ve earned. If there are stars on only half of those days, then you know you have work to do.

When you take the time to assess where you are now and how far you’ve come, you’ll know what steps to take next.

Measuring the quality of your writing is a different animal. Quality is more subjective. What reads well for one person may not work for another. Likewise, writers are a notorious difficult bunch, often judging their work too harshly. However, if you’re truly concerned about the quality of your work and whether you’re getting better at expressing your ideas, there are several things you can do to gauge your progress.

1. Compare current and previous drafts. If you’re working on a piece with several drafts, you can read the current version and compare it to the first and rough draft of it. That will tell you if the story is developing the way you envisioned. Or read a recent work and compare it to something you wrote when you first began writing, say five or eight years ago. See how it has changed over time. Is it more descriptive? Does it have the right amount of narrative and dialogue? Is there too much emotion, or not enough?

2. Read your work out loud. By reading it out loud, you’ll notice words or phrases that don’t seem to fit or you’ll stumble over long sentences and tricky phrases. The mistakes will become more obvious. Then go back and revise.

3. Get feedback from an objective party. Hire a professional editor, recruit beta readers or work with a writing coach who can provide insights about the quality of your writing and provide suggestions for improving it.

4. Take a writing class. With an instructor to guide you and classmates to read your work, you’ll get plenty of feedback that can help you refine your writing.

5. Read widely. That means reading a variety of genres and authors which will expose you to different writing styles. You learn to write by reading as much as you can.

If you’re focused on improving the quality of your writing, progress will be difficult to measure. Each project is different, and you may tackle it at different points of your life and bring to it different experiences. So you may write beautifully one day while you might lost your creative mojo the next.

Whether you want to improve the quality of your writing or you want to create a tangible product, one thing remains true: progress occurs when you write as often and as consistently as possible.

So to truly make progress as a writer, keep writing!

How Rituals Can Inspire Your Best Writing  

~ The Regal Writer ~ Leave a comment
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Sitting down to write may be the hardest thing to do when you don’t have a clear idea what you plan to write. Or perhaps you have the writing blahs where writing process doesn’t excite you. In those times, it might be helpful to develop a writing ritual.

 Writing rituals are a set sequence of actions that put you in the proper frame of mind for your writing session. They usually involve words, gestures and revered objects or symbols similar to what you might see for a religious or community ceremony, such as a child’s baptism. Simple actions like lighting a candle, listening to a particular piece of music, burning incense or doing a brief meditation can all be part of a ritual.

Most important, rituals set the tone, opening up mental and emotional space so you can write. They’re intended to create mindfulness and spark creativity.

I must confess I do not have a writing ritual. I usually don’t have a problem getting into the proper mindset for writing. But I can see how they can help other writers who may be stuck staring at a blank page.

Who needs writing rituals?
 * People who are stuck in a current work in progress
* People who want to begin a writing practice but don’t know what to write about and fear the blank page in front of them
* People who want to keep creative ideas flowing

Rituals shouldn’t be confused with routines, which are a set of actions designed to move toward a particular goal, such as finishing a chapter or producing a certain number of words on the page. They can involve a set of steps to get your writing session started or setting up your physical surroundings, such as making a cup of coffee or tea, clearing your desk, getting your notes together, and using a particular pen to write, writing at the same time and in the same place every day, etc. Routines deal with the physical surroundings and logistics of your writing sessions and are usually done every day. 

What routines lack, however, is mindfulness. Their focus is on the mundane tasks that make your writing session possible. But rituals bring intention and awareness to the activity, inviting imagination to open up for you.

Rituals are transformational, explains Mason Currey, author of Daily Rituals: How Artists Work (which admittedly I have not read) as interviewed by Vox. “Rituals create and mark a transition towards a different kind of mental and emotional state.” They create a state of awareness that you can’t get from routines.

When I think of rituals, I think of a ceremony. Rituals are often connected to faith or community, like attending church or practicing yoga once a week. While routines are performed every day, I don’t think rituals can or should be done every day, but perhaps once a week or once a month to reclaim your focus. Rituals are separate from your writing routine and should be treated differently.

“Writing rituals help us nurture habits that are essential to our creativity,” writes Nicole Bianchi at The Writing Cooperative. She shares the rituals of some famous authors, including Jack Kerouac and Neil Gaiaman, although by their descriptions they sound more like routines rather than rituals.

When designing your own writing ritual, consider what types of actions will put you in the proper frame of mind to write. What can you do to create the mental and emotional space to write?

Examples of writing rituals:
* You might play a certain piece of music that inspires you and puts you in the mood to write.
* You might enjoy a cup of coffee while staring out the window for 10 minutes, allowing your mind to flow freely.
* You might do some freewriting or journaling if you mind is troubled and prevents you from thinking and writing clearly.
* You might light a candle and sit still in meditation.
* You might do a 10-minute yoga session which can help bring mindfulness into your activities. Yoga can help unlock whatever is stuck within you.

Whether you follow one of these examples or you create one of your own, writing rituals can signal the transition into a more mindful state that prepares you to be your creative best.   Do you agree or disagree? Do have a special writing ritual? How has it helped you with your writing?

Tips for Re-Setting a Writing Practice

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It always happens. When the Christmas holidays roll around or client assignments drop in my lap, my writing practice suffers. I haven’t looked at any of my personal writing projects in nearly six weeks, haven’t picked up a pen to draft any new stories or blog content. It frustrates me that I can’t be more productive. But that’s what happens when you’re trying to do too many things at once.

Now that it’s January, it’s time to “get back in the saddle,” as they say. With the decorations put away and assignments completed, I need to get back to work. My work. My writing practice. So how do I reset my routine?

Fortunately, Reedsy offered a timely webinar about productivity, and their experts provides exercises and pro tips that may be helpful in jumpstarting my routine.

Tip 1: Set a year-end goal. Close your eyes and imagine that it’s next Christmas, you’re with your family and friends celebrating some milestone with your writing. Perhaps you finished a draft of a new novel. Or you finally signed on with an agent. How do you feel about what you accomplished? What does the end result look like and feel like? Where do you want to be with your writing? If you can imagine it, you can accomplish it.

Tip 2. Begin with small steps. With the larger year-end goal in mind, think about how to get there. What small step can you take within the next week or month to reach that goal? What small step can you take in February, March, and so on? That small goal might be something like writing for 30 minutes each day, or a word count goal, like 500 words or one page a day. When you put one foot in front of the other, you eventually reach your destination.  

Tip 3: Be consistent with your practice. Make time to write, and write every day if you can. Writing every day sets up a new habit. When I got a batch of assignments in November and December, I neglected that daily habit, and lost momentum. Now it’s a struggle to get back to where I was before the holidays. Don’t let that happen to you. In hindsight, I should have simply scaled back on my writing routine rather than give it up altogether.

Tip 4: Create a ritual before beginning each writing session. The ritual will get you in the proper mindset. It could be something as simple as closing your eyes to imagine the words on the page, saying a short prayer to your creative muse or lighting a candle. However, don’t check emails or the internet before your session, or you will get lost in the mundane details of work and quickly lose your focus.

Tip 5: Be aware of the obstacles and distractions around you. Some obstacles are external and can be easily addressed. Maybe there’s a stack of dishes in the sink or an important phone call you need to make. Reedsy suggests taking 10 minutes to tidy up the kitchen and make that important phone call, otherwise it will bother you enough to prevent you from writing. If the dog needs to go for a walk, maybe have another family member or a neighbor take them out. There are internal distractions too, such as negative self-talk. In those instances, it might be helpful to talk to a friend or write in a journal. Find a way to release those negative thoughts before they poison your writing practice.

Tip 6: Deal with procrastination. This is my own bugaboo problem. Procrastination can kill any brilliant story idea you might have. What is procrastination really but an avoidance tactic? So ask yourself–what are you trying to avoid? Why are you trying to avoid it? Is it the fear that what you write will be horrible (bad news: the first draft usually is). Is it because you have no idea what to write about and you don’t like staring at a blank page? The easy fix for that is writing prompts which can jumpstart your imagination and get ideas flowing again.

I’ve been procrastinating on a novel I’ve been editing/rewriting for the fourth time. It’s been a long slog, and I’m tired of looking at the story. So I’ve been avoiding it because I hate the editing process—of cutting copy and moving scenes around. I’d much rather be writing something fresh and new. My point is procrastination happens to every writer, and it’s usually a sign that you’re avoiding something in your practice that you’d rather not do. Figure out a way to work through what you need to do, then do it.

Tip 7: Change the narrative of your writing life. So what that you may never have been published before. You can be published this year if you work toward that goal. Don’t let past disappointments and failures define who you are as a writer. Focus on your successes and build on them. Focus on the things you can do rather than what you can’t. For example, if all you can do is write 100 words a day, then write 100 words a day. Don’t berate yourself for not writing 1000 words like most other people you might know. You know your circumstances best, so work within those parameters. As Tim Gunn always says, “Make it work!”

Hope these suggestions help you re-set your writing practice. Here’s to a productive and successful 2024. Happy writing!

10 Gifts for Writers and Creatives

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Dear Readers,

Merry Christmas! Thank you for reading The Regal Writer this past year. Hope you found inspiration and encouragement from my stories.

If you’re as busy as I’ve been these past few weeks, you probably have found it difficult to find quiet time for your writing practice. But even 15 minutes a day is better than nothing. So even amidst the holiday celebrations and work obligations, hope you can squeeze in some writing time and keep those creative juices flowing.

I’m taking a short break from The Regal Writer for the next month or so to work on several client assignments and enjoy the holidays. Look for fresh content on this blog in early 2024 as well as a new slate of writing prompts.

As a send-off, I’d like to leave you with the following gifts that can help you make the most of your writing practice, both now and well into the New Year.  My gifts to you include:

The gift of time – In our hectic lives, may you always find a few minutes each day to write.

The gift of place – May you always have a quiet place to think, plan, dream and fantasize about your next story.

The gift of abundance – May your mind teem with so many creative ideas that you don’t know where to begin writing them.

The gift of imagination — May every story idea that comes from your imagination reflect a new and interesting way of looking at the world.

The gift of productivity – May you acquire the right tools when you need them to help you stay productive and consistent with your writing practice.

The gift of education – May you find the right books, courses, webinars and conferences to build your knowledge and skills about writing.

The gift of good health — Your health is important. Without good health, you cannot accomplish what you set out to do.

The gift of self-confidence – May you share your writing with calm self-assurance that this is your best effort, and may self-doubt stay away from your door.

The gift of inspiration – May your writing inspire others and bring joy and light to readers. Furthermore, may you feel inspired by your own writing so that you will want to continue with your practice.

The gift of love and friendship – May you be surrounded by people who support you and your writing, and who share your love of the written word.

Remember, writing is a gift too. The more you share that gift with others, the more joy it will bring to them and to yourself.  

Be well, be kind. See you in 2024!

The Seven Scariest Excuses People Make to Avoid Writing

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This is a repost from several years ago. The information is just as helpful and pertinent today as it was then. As always, thanks for reading, and keep writing.

If you’re like most people, you’ve probably made a myriad of excuses for not getting any writing done – lack of time, fear of failure, too busy, no privacy, nothing to write about, etc.

Below are the seven most common excuses I’ve heard people use to explain why they aren’t writing. I call them the Seven Deadly Excuses because I believe they can kill a person’s writing practice before it has a chance to flourish. Many of these excuses are influenced by negative messages and assumptions you might have heard since childhood. By reframing these messages and taking positive action, those fears can diminish over time.

Excuse 1: “I don’t have time to write.”
A lack of time is the most common excuse people make about not writing. If this is your biggest fear, chances are your writing practice has never gotten off the ground, or you write in fits and starts. You always talk about wanting to write, but you never do anything about it.

The problem isn’t that you don’t have time to write, but the expectation of how much time is needed for writing. If you expect a writing practice to take up two, three or four hours every day, that is unrealistic. No one has that kind of time. With full-time jobs, clients to take care of, families to raise and other important responsibilities, there’s little time left over for writing.

The truth is, you don’t need hours at a time to begin writing. When you’re just starting out, only 10 or 15 minutes a day will suffice. For example, while working as an attorney, A Time to Kill author John Grisham set a goal of writing one page per day, roughly 200 words, and he got up a half hour early each day to achieve that. Grisham shows it is possible to fit writing into your schedule.

Excuse #2: “I’m too busy.” 
When you say that you’re too busy to write, what you may actually be saying is that writing is a low priority compared to other responsibilities, such as a work, school, taking care of kids or aging parents, etc. Who has time to begin a writing practice when all these other priorities compete for your attention?

Perhaps you learned in childhood that school work and household chores came first before you could do anything else, whether that was watching TV or playing with your friends. Writing became a low priority.

But maybe it’s time to rethink those priorities. Maybe it’s time to make writing a higher priority than before. When you make writing a priority, you’ll find it’s easier to begin a regular writing practice. If all you need is 15 minutes a day, that’s time well spent, no matter how busy you are.

Excuse 3: “My writing isn’t good enough.”
From the moment you put pen to paper, your writing probably won’t be very good. First drafts never are good. That’s true for most writers, including successfully published ones. Kristin Hannah, author of The Nightingale, writes as many as 10 drafts of each novel, according to her website. Experienced writers understand that the first draft is simply the starting point that you can build on.

If you continually tell yourself that your writing isn’t good enough, ask yourself why you feel that way. Is it not good enough for publication? For other people to see? Once you understand why you feel you’re writing isn’t good enough, you can take steps to rethink your approach to writing.

Instead of berating yourself for not writing well, make a plan to keep improving. Read authors whose work you admire, so you can learn from them. When you write something, ask for feedback. Avoid squirming when you receive their feedback. Constructive criticism can help you spot recurring errors. Most important, write, write, write.

Excuse 4: “I don’t know what to write about!”
Do you suffer from blank page syndrome – the act of staring at a blank page or computer screen with no idea what to write about?  Or when you do come up with a story ideas, do you dismiss it as uninteresting?

When faced with a blank page, you may be overlooking the best source of story ideas: personal experience. You have plenty of life experience to draw from, so explore those events from your past to adapt to your stories. One way to access this reservoir of life experience is with writing prompts. You can find hundreds of prompts on sites such as  Writer’s Digest and DIYMFA.com.

Excuse 5: “I don’t have a private space to write.”
If you share a home with a spouse, three children, a dog and two cats, it may be difficult to find a quiet, private space to write. Others believe that without ideal circumstances, such as a desk and comfortable chair, their favorite coffee mug and favorite pen, they’re just not able to write.

You need to ask yourself if the problem is an actual lack of space, or the expectation that you need a lot of space to write. I’ve drafted blog posts on breaks at work, on buses and trains or while waiting for appointments. If you wish you had ideal surroundings and your current environment is far from ideal, you may be waiting forever to start writing. The truth is, your environment does not need to be perfect to begin writing.

Excuse 6:  “I’m afraid to fail.”
Another common excuse writers make is “What if I fail?“  The answer depends on how you define failure. What does failure look like to you? Not getting published? Not finishing your current work-in-progress? Not having anyone read your work? Not having anyone take your writing as seriously as you do? Everybody has their own definition of failure, but in reality, there is only one true failure: not writing at all.

To remove that fear of failure, it might be helpful to start small and work your way toward bigger projects. Start with stories of 100 words, then increase it to 200 words, and so on. Every week or so, add to your daily word count. When you reach these smaller goals, you gain confidence in yourself and you achieve small successes that you can build on.

Excuse 7: “What if I’m successful?”
While fear of failure is common among writers, others suffer from a different malaise:  fear of success. “How can anyone be afraid to succeed?” you ask. You’d be surprised at how many people fear success, myself included.

Fear of success might manifest as an unfinished project – or two, or three or ten. You have several projects in various stages of completion but never seem to finish any of them. In your mind, finishing one of them means you’ve achieved success. Then you worry about what happens when you finish that project. Perhaps you edit your piece over and over again, never fully satisfied with what you’ve written – a useful delay tactic preventing you from finishing your work.

If you fear success, then you may need to rethink what success means to you. What does it look like? It may look and feel differently to you than to your spouse or your best friend. Are you defining success on your terms or someone else’s?

When you define success on your terms, there should be no reason to fear it because you’ve defined it based on real, concrete and meaningful terms. It’s when you follow the path of success that others have defined for you that can strike fear in you. Write  according to your definition of success, not anyone else’s.

When you take steps to conquer your fears, the writing life won’t seem so scary.