Before embarking on the experiment, I’d barely begun a project that I thought could one day become a fully fleshed novel. I was only a few chapters in and had written 9,219 words (about 34 pages). I was excited about the prospect of completing the project, but I didn’t quite know where to start. I wasn’t finding myself motivated to sit down and write each day, and I was worried if I forced myself to commit to a routine as I had with my previous attempt at writing a novel, I would become burnt out and fall out of love with the premise and characters. Thus, the writing routine experiment was born, and, over the course of nine weeks of experiments, I sat down four days a week and made an effort to add to the project, following the advice of many of my favorite authors. The experiment completely reinvigorated my love for writing, and in just nine weeks, I wrote 28,204 words, which is just over 100 pages (about 103). I also reached the end of my first draft of my novel, which now is almost 140 pages long. It’s messy, and obviously needs to be a lot more fleshed out since I’d like it to be between 250 and 300 pages once it’s complete, but the beginning, middle, and end of the story have been carved out, and I’m very excited to have it all on paper so I can start to make edits.
So, you may be wondering how I was able to write so much in so little time without becoming burnt out like I did in the past. I think the secret ingredient that allowed me to stay committed to the writing, even when life got in the way of my writing or a particular experiment didn’t work for me, was the experiment itself. I was in search of the perfect writing routine that would work for me, so even when I felt discouraged about my writing, I persevered because I was in search of a way to limit that feeling in the future.
Each experiment taught me something new about writing. In the very first week, Lily King taught me that having a designated space to jot down ideas that come up during the writing process that I don’t want to forget is deeply beneficial to allowing the work to have an overarching throughline. She also taught me the value that comes from slowing your brain down and writing by hand, as opposed to typing onto a screen.
E.B. White reminded me that waiting for the perfect conditions every time you write will make it so you’ll never actually write anything down. He also showed me that I’m able to focus and get productive writing done while things are bustling around me.
Kate Elizabeth Russell reinvigorated my love for writing at coffee shops. Along with the joy that comes from writing with a delicious coffee drink in hand, getting out of the house and working in the presence of others can give you the boost of pressure needed to be genuinely productive on days that aren’t as easy.
John Steinbeck showed me that taking the process in baby steps and focusing on writing one small unit a day can allow a large project to seem a lot more manageable. Correcting or rewriting aren’t necessary when writing the first draft, because all that matters is getting everything down on paper. As he says, taking it day by day allows you to always be surprised when the project is complete, just as I was when I reached the end of the story I’d been working on throughout this process.
Carmen Maria Machado taught me the importance of making small changes so that you feel ready to approach the work. Focusing on small details, like getting out of your pajamas or making sure that your desk is clean before writing, can be the secret to achieving productivity on lazy days.
Alice Walker used a metaphor in her discussions on writing that I now think about every day as I sit down and write. She said that you must write like having someone come over for tea. You have to be there and meet your guest when you say you’re going to be there, and if you don’t always do that, your guest will not show up. Thus, you must treat your writing time like an appointment that you’ve committed to and don’t want to leave hanging, otherwise your writing will suffer.
Jean Kyoung Frazier eased my worries about not being able to write seven days each week. She reminded me that sometimes it just isn’t feasible to write every single day. However, opening up your work and residing in the world you are crafting each day is necessary and still a deeply valuable way to contribute to your project.
Lastly, Taylor Jenkins Reid taught me that setting a daily word count goal, when it is attainable and doesn’t inhibit your ability to fulfill your other daily commitments, can be a productive way to make your project progress quickly. This lesson was particularly important to learn because having a daily writing goal was what caused me to become burnt out last time I tried to write a novel, so Reid reminded me that there is a way to do so positively.
In the end, I developed a writing routine that blended together a lot of the aspects of the authors’ routines. To start, I allowed myself to write at either the beginning of every day or midday. Creating this flexibility for myself allowed me to not become overwhelmed or feel forced to write at a time when I wasn’t inspired. Because I am a full-time student, I was often dealing with completing work for other classes and attending those classes while also trying to work in time to write, so some days, writing before doing anything else made the most sense to me, but other days were the opposite. Over the course of the experiment, I realized that on days when I wrote first thing in the morning, it was most beneficial for me to write at my desk in my bedroom. However, when writing midday, if I tried to come home and work at my desk, I felt tempted to retreat to my bed or abandon the writing altogether. So, for my routine, I decided that on days where I wrote right away, I would do so at my desk, and on days where I wrote after participating in my other commitments, I would complete my work at a public place – usually a coffee shop, but sometimes a library or study spot on campus.
I began each day by rereading the last page or so of my writing from the previous day. This allowed me to dive back into the work and remind myself exactly where I left off. I wrote by hand, in the same notebook each day. This helped me to slow my brain down and focus on each word as opposed to rushing through sentences and paragraphs. Writing in the same physical notebook also helped me to connect my daily writing and make it seem less fragmented, which I felt at times when I was switching between writing by hand and typing.
The last part of my daily routine involved putting my phone on Do Not Disturb as soon as I began my daily writing. This allowed me to block out anything going on outside of the writing itself and stay as focused as possible. I also decided to wear my over-the-ear headphones as I wrote, though I didn’t turn them on or play any music. Having them on, I’ve realized, allows me to feel physically separated from what’s going on around me without having to actually play music to block out noise. It allows me to feel more focused and gives me a physical ritual to cue that it’s time to start writing.
This experiment has taught me a lot of things, but the most important thing I’m taking away from these nine weeks is that it is possible to find a way of writing regularly and routinely that will not lead to burn out and dissatisfaction with the writing process. I’m excited to embark on new writing projects, as well as to begin the process of editing my first draft into something more substantial and put-together. Using this project to focus on an aspect of the writing process that I’ve never been fully satisfied with has allowed me to learn what works for me, and it has equipped me with tools that I will continue to use for the rest of my life.
Here is a link to all of the data I collected throughout this experiment, if you are curious to know more details about how each routine worked for me/how much I was able to write each week.