When I started my writing journey, I was obsessed with understanding what made writers like Tim Denning and Tom Kuegler unique writers.
I studied their articles, saw how they interacted with their readers and how they cleverly added some call to actions in between their piece for maximum impact.
After I got sucked into that never-ending wormhole of checking writer’s routines and seeing what was the “best way to set up your desk to be your most creative self,” yeah… that exists. I understood that each writer has their way to tap into that state of flow.
This means you might do exactly what Stephen King does right before writing and still have no idea of what the hell you should be writing about.
Each person has their way of writing and editing their articles too.
Some people prefer to vomit out the words on their first draft and then organize their ideas when editing, others like to create a solid first draft so that the editing process is less daunting, and a few people just don’t care and do a bit of both.
But how do you know which one you are?
You try everything yourself and start adding what works for you.
There’s no end all be all routine when it comes to writing because nobody gets inspired by the same things.
You might be the type of person who makes their best articles while drinking coffee in a noisy cafe, or you might find your best state of flow when listening to music in your room.
I’m the type of person who enjoys writing in different places, so on Monday I’ll be writing in my room, on Tuesday I’ll be in the living room, and so on.
Oh, so you thought I was going to go out of my house while we’re still in quarantine? I think not!
Now, what do you do to find that routine you’re seeking out so much?
Look for your favorite writers, see if they have an article talking about their writing process (most do) and try it out.
Then, check the little things that work for you and start implementing them to your routine.
For example, Tim Denning swears by taking a hot shower right before writing so you can have some alone time with your ideas and see if you can use them as content for your next article.
I didn’t find it helpful since I use the time in the shower to cool off from the day, but he also loves drinking coffee when writing, and I’m a sucker for coffee!
I love having a drink while writing since it makes the process that much more enjoyable for me.
So, look for your top 10 writers that you see as idols; it doesn’t matter if they’re from Medium or if they are classic writers.
Study their routines before writing, while writing, and after writing and apply them to your day to day life.
Then make it a habit to take notes and see what you liked about those routines and what didn’t feel right with you.
After a month or two, you’ll have a solid routine tailored to you instead of you having to adapt to a routine tailored to others.
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Previously Published on Medium
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