Our awesome 2021 authors got their "butts in chairs and fingers to the keys" to get their books DONE! Publishing requires actual writing (😲🤯 IKR), so this year I asked these new authors:
What does your basic writing schedule look like, and how often do you write?
I WISH I could write everyday. But I have a toddler AND a newborn at home, so now I squeeze in writing for about an hour or two on the days my mom is able to come over to babysit. I usually prefer to write in the morning before my brain has to switch gears to my full-time job, but now I just adapt to when ever I can get it done!
- Pamela Harris
My writing schedule depends on what I’m working on. I do something related to writing and/or publishing every day. I email my writing partner every weekday and we set daily goals that we hold each other accountable to. When I’m in a generative drafting mode, I set word count goals that I strive to achieve. When I’m revising, sometimes I set page count goals. Other times I set a goal related to how much time I’m going to spend working on something. Small, measurable goals are hugely helpful to me.
- Megan E. Freeman
Whenever I have time and the logistics allow it. On the road, it is difficult to stick to a schedule as life’s distractions, problems, and chores come first. Today, for example, I planned to work on this interview in the morning. But we ran out of propane. So, in order to keep cooking meals and taking hot showers, we had to drop everything, pack up the van, and drive to the closest town 40 minutes away to take care of our needs.
My perfect work environment is a free, level campsite in nature, where we can spend a few days in a row, where the dog can be walked, where the solar panels soak up plentiful sunshine to provide electricity, and where my husband can be outside, so I can use our table/desk and don’t feel too cramped in our 80 square foot living quarters. 😊
- Liesbet Collaert
I don’t necessarily write every day, but when I do I like having a solid chunk of time set aside. I don’t do particularly well when I can only steal ten or so minutes at a time. Rather I like being able to settle down for a long stretch and really dive into it.
- Emily Victoria
My writing schedule varies. In my perfect world, I will do one hour of writing in the morning before work, and at least 30 minutes of additional writing in the evening.
Unfortunately, I am not a morning person so I sometimes struggle with this habit. When I do miss a morning session, I try to make it up by doing additional time in the evenings or over the weekends. I don't fret if I don't write every day, but I do track hours spent writing on a calendar so I can make sure I'm consistently putting in effort. As somebody once advised me, create input goals, not output goals, and you will eventually reach the end of the book. The calendar helps remind me of this progress.
- Jimmy Matejek-Morris
Been part of the #5amwritersclub for almost three years now! It’s hard to get much done while my kiddos are awake, so I have to get up before them to get some words in. I’ll also write in the afternoon while they’re both napping. I try to write at least a little every day.
- Sam Taylor
My writing schedule is best described as whenever time allows. I would love to write for hours during the day when the hubby is at work and my son at school, but I can never find the uninterrupted time. I do try to write every day, but it is usually when I can find time. So, a little in the morning, afternoon, and evening.
- Halli Gomez
When I’m drafting, I write 5 days a week and aim for at least 500 words a session. I prefer to hit 1000 words a session. I write in the evenings after work and after dinner. When I’m revising, I have a harder time structuring my time but I try to hit a chapter in one session.
- Maria Ingrande Mora
I try to get to writing first thing when I wake up (whenever that may be – pandemic schedules have been variable!) because it feels easiest to get right down to it before my attention is drawn in other directions. I try to set very manageable goals for myself every day, especially if I’m on a deadline, so that I can be on track to finish in plenty of time, but also am not working so much that I’m completely overwhelmed.
Usually I write every day, but I try to take little vacations every now and then! I decided to take it easy this month to recover from a slew of February deadlines, and that’s been good for me.
- Rebecca Mahoney (former OA team member)
I always have a project that needs my attention, whether it’s for my coaching clients, my caregiver clients, or my blog. I write nearly every day and I write best very early in the morning at the kitchen counter with a cup of coffee at my elbow and the dog at my feet, when my husband, John, is still sleeping. I tend to be a “maximizer,” so I go through several drafts before I’m satisfied. Over the years, I’ve gotten better at writing cleaner first drafts and letting go of them when I’m on deadline. But if I have the luxury of time, I will polish and polish and polish.
- Karen Warner Schueler
This has been different for every book I have written. For my current project, I have written 3 chapters over the space of three months, but I hope to speed up now that the semester has ended.
- Heather Truett
I work from home as a part time freelance writer, so I typically focus on my freelance work in the mornings and my fiction writing in the afternoons. When my kids were in school (pre-Covid), that was much easier.
- Casie Bazay
Although I don’t have a strict schedule my mornings are my creative time. I ideate in the morning and execute those ideas later in the day after they have percolated a bit. I write when I get excited or intrigued about an idea or when I have a deadline!
- Sherra Aguirre
What is a writing schedule? I’m not familiar with this term. More seriously, I try to write every day, more or less, except Saturdays which are my day off. I often fit in a short writing session around homework, internships, lectures, and my job, but I do best when I have a long chunk of time free so I can “get in the flow” for several hours.
- Anya Leigh Josephs
I work full-time, and during the bulk of 2021 I’ve been involved in publicity for my published memoir, so I don’t write every day. I usually do creative writing on the weekends for a few hours a day.
- Melanie Gibson
My writing schedule isn’t scheduled at all. I am the writer who goes all in and then will pause if need be. A break isn’t necessarily caused by writer's block, it’s just a respite from going hard in the paint.
- Krista Nerestants
My basic writing schedule is to write whenever I have 'free' time. I work full-time (currently from home) so I try to get writing done once I come in from running with my dogs and before I start my job. Also, I get as much writing done as possible on the weekends.
- Susan Dalessandro
When I am on a deadline, I write every day for a few hours in the morning. Going on hikes helps me organize my thoughts. This summer I have not been writing much because I’m focusing on my book launch. I’m looking forward to getting back to writing this fall!
- Jessica Speer
I don't really have a set schedule. I have a day job and a family that take most of my time, but I try to write in the afternoons or evenings. To be honest, I tend to work best during days off and vacations where I can block off bigger chunks of time, especially if I can write my my kids are sleeping in.
- Laura Rueckert
With two kids and two adults working and schooling from home this last year a half, my schedule fell out the window. In general, as a mom, I write when I can. That’s my big advice to beginning writers: Don’t get too precious about routines and time. Have 10 minutes? Sweet! Write something. A lot of little somethings can add up to a book.
- Emma Kress
I try to write a couple of times a week, usually first thing in the morning before work! And then a couple of hours on Sundays.
- Honni van Rijswijk
Since I have a full-time job, I can only write on the weekends and after work.
- Jessica Lewis
Ha. Schedule? Right now since my kids are back in-school for the first time in over a year and I’m working more (I’m a part-time bookseller at a local indie), my schedule is all kinds of cattywampus as I try to find a new routine. I’m hoping to get back in the habit of writing every morning as that’s when my brain works best.
- Candice Marley Conner
It varies from time to time. If I have a pending deadline, I write more. If my kids are in school, I like to write at that time, but sometimes I don’t have a choice but to write during their piano lessons or soccer practice.
- Alda P. Dobbs
I write at least four hours a week, usually in the afternoon after my domestic tasks are complete; rarely four hours a day. I don’t usually write on the weekends unless the muse visits me. When I was really into one of my books, I wrote more like 10-20 hours a week. During some of that time I was working full time, and I do have a physical disability, so I let myself write when I feel up to it, not out of obligation.
- Francine Falk-Allen
When I’m drafting, I write until I reach my word count goal for the day. When I’m revising, it depends on whether I have a deadline or not. If something’s due to my editor, I might be writing at all hours! But if there’s no deadline, I’m a horrible procrastinator. It’s very easy to get distracted by the other things involved in promoting the books already out or in the pipeline instead of working toward the new one.
- Michelle I. Mason
I wish I wrote sometimes. Occasionally, I can write during my daughter’s nap. I think a lot of pandemic parents are in the same boat.
- Alex Perry
It really varies depending on deadlines and what else is going on work-wise for me. I freelance and teach yoga and run the Writers Happiness Movement in addition to writing, and so none of my days ever look the same. I've gone for huge stretches where there's no time for my own writing, to writing every day, all day for months to meet my deadline.
- Lori Snyder
Typically, I rise early—around 5:30 to 6am and write for a few hours, then break for a little fresh air before returning to the computer to write marketing content for my roster of clients.
- Paulette Stout
I write most every day of the week when I’m on deadline, and five days a week when I’m drafting something new. I sit down at my desk anywhere between 8:30am and 9 and will work until lunch, or until the dogs demand I take them for a walk. I try to take a break somewhere in the afternoon for a run or errands, or, if I’m lucky lunch with a friend. But I might often be back at it again after dinner if I’m chasing a deadline.
- Alysa Wishingrad
When I am working on a project I try to write 1,000 words each day. Because writing is not my full-time job, I need to organize it into my schedule, or else it will be put on the backburner.
- Olivia Swindler
My preference is to write every morning, Mon-Fri and sometimes Sat. The very best recent interruptions are my new grandchildren. I am trying to spend one day/week with them to also help their precious Mama and Daddy.
- Sherri L. Rose
I’m constantly thinking or writing content. In my plotter phase of writing, I start by thinking what’s the title and vision of my book. Once that is locked in, I then use my phone to jot down chapters, content, and important messages for the book.
- Tarick Walton
I have two hours (3-4pm and 11pm-midnight) blocked out on my calendar every day. I don’t ALWAYS make both sessions, more often it’s one or the other, but it’s rare for me to miss a day.
- Amanda Pavlov
See you in 2022!
