Some of my favourite notepads on one of my portable writing desks.
Like most novelists, I fit writing in around everyday life: work, family, pets, life admin and chores. I also find ways to write through chronic fatigue – more on that in a future blog post.
It’s not possible to get my laptop out and write every day, but I do try to keep momentum going by writing most days, especially when working on a first draft. It’s very easy to lose track of story threads if I leave a book for more than a couple of days, and then I end up having to read it from the start to refresh my memory. Any errors can be fixed across multiple edits, but more creep in if it’s been days since I last wrote.
A writing routine, for me, isn’t about writing on set days at scheduled times (though other writers find that helpful). It’s more about the little things I do before sitting down to write, a mini ritual that only takes a few minutes and tells my brain it’s time to write:
1. Set up my writing desk. I do have a large desk that doesn’t need setting up but rarely write at that anymore. Due to my chronic fatigue I usually write sat on my bed or on the sofa. I have a height adjustable fold up mini desk that tilts and a laptop stand, so I can arrange everything for maximum comfort.
2. Get out my laptop. I only use my laptop for writing, or for writing-related tasks like website updates and formatting my book – once completed – in Atticus. For everything else I use my iPad. This trains my mind to know that when the laptop comes out, it’s writing time and there’s no temptation to procrastinate by going on the internet.
I keep a notepad and pen beside me to jot down random distracting thoughts like ‘I must go research this on the internet RIGHT NOW’ and all the other things that pop up in my head. This way I’m only distracted for the few seconds it takes to write them down – I do have to make notes because of my brain fog issues and fear of forgetting whatever idea or ‘to do list’ thing my mind has come up with.
3. Open the book I’m working on.
4. Listen to a couple of songs, either from the playlist I’ve created for the book, or a specific song that evokes the emotions or vibe of the scene I’m about to write. The lyrics of the song don’t have to match the scene, though sometimes there’s a phrase that does echo what I’m writing about. Due to my concentration problems, I can’t write whilst listening to music, but I can use songs to inspire emotion before I start writing.
For WITCHLAND, I was listening to ‘Treacherous’ by Taylor Swift because, for Eliza, the idea of falling in love and being vulnerable feels treacherous; this song beautifully evokes the tension between fear that love will be your undoing and the longing that draws you in anyway. It was perfect for Eliza. Later into the book, when she’s falling in love (no spoilers there because it’s a Romance!) I added ‘Moonlight’ by Ariana Grande to my pre-writing listening, because I love the lyric about the loved one being her ‘moonlight’ – Will has white blond hair that makes Eliza think of moonlight.
Movie and TV soundtracks are also brilliant for stirring up emotion before I start writing.
5. Finally, I switch off my iPad, unless there’s a photo or research notes that I need on it, and put it away so I’m not tempted to go online. Usually my phone is off too.
And that’s my pre-writing routine. It takes a maximum of 10 minutes, but it makes a huge difference to me.