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Is it just me, or does time seem to be at a premium these days?

Even though we have exactly the same amount of time as Einstein, Aristotle, and Marie Curie, we just don’t seem to be as productive.

In a perverse twist of fate, even though we have more technology serving us and taking away some of our more tedious tasks, we still don’t have time to get everything on our to-do list accomplished. We work more and seem to be less productive.

It’s time to get organized. It’s time to create a writing schedule.

Make an Editorial Calendar

Pull out one of those giant calendars from Office Depot (or use a Google Calendar to sync with your smartphone). Start putting your deadlines in red on the calendar and then place the calendar somewhere next to your writing zone. Consider these deadlines sacred; the world will stop if you don’t make them.

If you don’t have a deadline, get one. Writers wither without deadlines. –> Click to tweet

Once all the deadlines are on the calendar page, see if there are any recurring themes within the articles. If there are, consider making that your theme for the month. This will not work in every scenario, but if a theme appears, take advantage of it. Think of it as the foundation of the platform you are developing that month.

Creating an editorial calendar may take a few hours, but it will save you time in the end.

Tweetables:

  • If you don’t have a deadline, get one. Writers wither without deadlines. – Click to tweet.
  • When is your brain most alive? Write then. – Click to tweet.
  • How to create a writing schedule that works…for you! – Click to tweet.
  • When you are writing similar articles, write them around the same time on your writing schedule. – Click to tweet.
  • Be intentional about making time because there is no perfect time to write. – Click to tweet.
  • Everyone has a magic formula that they swear by. That’s great if it works for them. – Click to tweet.

Block Time

When is your brain the most alive? Is it early in the morning? Late at night? Carve out time to devote to your craft.

Your writing schedule needs to be planned out in advanced. Be intentional about making time because there is no perfect time to write. If you wait for the magic moment, you will die without having finished a manuscript. You will always have to fight for your writing time. A professional writer is the one who knows the worth of their writing and lets it take priority over distractions.

If you need more encouragement as a writer, start reading Jeff Goins. His blog posts will energize you (and your writing!).

Cluster Posts

If you find that you are writing similar articles, write them around the same time on your writing schedule.

Instead of having to fully develop multiple ideas, you can dig deeply into one and let it take multiple directions. This will allow your thoughts to be well-formed, leading to better articles and a shorter writing time. We all want that.

If you are writing a novel based in a certain historical period (and you are already doing the research), why not take that knowledge and blitz write some posts and articles? Once you have them written, you can schedule them to be published in the future.

The bottom line is to find a writing schedule that works for you.

Everyone has a magic formula that they swear by. That’s great if it works for them. For Jim Woods, that means getting up at 5 AM. For other writers, it means staying up until the wee hours of the morning.

What does it mean for you? You are the only one who can answer that question. If you have tips, leave them in the comments!

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