Setting up my writing process and why starting small and simple usually works best
Keep it simple, keep it fun (hearing Gandalf's voice in my head)
Hello there!
As far as I’m concerned, a creative process needs to be grown not created. So setting up an initial writing routine should be easy enough — a few ground rules and that’s it.
Get inspired but don’t copy
There are tons of videos on YouTube by writers trying out the writing routines of famous authors. And they are truly amazing! I’m doing my best to romanticize my whole writing journey so copying the writing routine of, say, Jane Austen is very tempting.
But I’m not a 18th century old maid, I’m a 21st century one. And I also happen to live in an ancient town in Southeast of Europe, not in the English country side. So my life is quite different from Miss Austen’s and from the lives of all these wonderful writers who came before me.
My writing process must be to.
So yes, I read about how Stephen King, Hemingway, Brandon Sanderson and a bunch of other awesome people got their writing done and I decided to keep their advice in mind but not copy anyone’s writing routine for now.
Know yourself
In his lectures Brandon Sanderson mentions that he got a night job so he can write during work hours. He also said that he still writes during the night. This is something I could never do. I’m an early bird through and through and my brain switches off after 10 pm.
Different lives will require different processes. So knowing my habits, inclinations, and how I function as a human will give me the clues I need to set up a few initial ground rules.
Here are some things that came to mind when I sat down to think about what I want:
I am an early bird but I don’t want to get up at 5 am.
I don’t want to write during working hours. I like my job and I’ll keep doing my best there.
I don’t want to have a daily word count right now. A lot of the initial writing work is about planning, structuring and outlining. I’ll set one later this year, when I have outlined at least one story.
I have a lot of family and social engagements, so writing every day might not be possible. Yet, I’d like to spent some time with a story every day.
I want to romanticize my writing life, make it magical, and just have fun.
Grow it slowly
So after pondering what I want from this experience, the one question that kept coming to mind was:
“What would make me feel alive?”
Sharing the stories I’ve been keeping to myself for all those years is the obvious answer. However, how does this translate to a day-to-day routine?
Spending an hour every day with one of the stories I am working on.
And there we have it. The seed of my writing routine. This is all I’m setting up for now - an hour a day to work on a story. I’m also giving myself some wiggle room — it doesn’t have to be an exact hour — it can be less and it can be more — as long as I do my best every day, have fun, and channel the sparkly magic into the stories I’m writing, all is well.
Thank you for reading and have a wonderful week!
💛 Lina
