How to Write When Schedules Change by Rochelle Melander

School’s out for summer, and my routines have fallen apart. We don’t have to set alarms or hurry to beat the tardy bell. Instead, the kids have three months of haphazard activities—weeklong camps and time to hang out. We have our annual family vacation. Here’s the rub: the writing deadlines don’t go away. We still have to work, finish those articles and books, and take care of the chores. I’m trying to figure out how to work it all in and still have fun.

Whether you’re a parent or not, most life and seasonal changes will affect your writing habits. My friends who are not parents struggle to write when they could be sitting at a sidewalk café, biking, or soaking up rays on the beach. We all develop writing habits that are strongly rooted to our daily schedules. When those schedules change, we need to adapt. Here’s how to rescue your writing habits for the summer.

1. Find a new cue. According to the book, The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg, every habit is really a loop of three things: Cue, Routine, Reward. When our cues change, it’s hard to stick to the routine. Review your summer schedule and look for activities you do every single day that could serve as cues to write. Do you get up early to read or take an afternoon coffee break? Once you choose a new cue, slot in daily writing time after it. When you’ve honored the cue for a few weeks, it will feel more like a habit.

2. Get prepared. Author and consultant Shawn Achor teaches about the 20-second rule: when people are able to shave 20-seconds off the start of the task, they are more likely to follow through. For example, we’re more likely to eat a salad for lunch when we can grab a premade one from the fridge rather than spending a few minutes making one. As writers, we can increase our chances of success by preparing our writing environment ahead of time. I’m an early morning writer so before I leave my writing space at the end of the day, I shut down all social media and email, open my writing document, and jot down a few notes about what I want to work on. When I get to the computer to work the next day, I don’t have to wade through anything before I write. I just write. How can you shave 20-seconds off of the beginning of your writing routine?

3. Get portable. Let’s face it, in the summer most of life happens outside. There’s no reason to lock yourself in the house to finish that article when you can write just about anywhere. Create a writing kit that you can take with you anywhere you go. Move your writing to the porch, coffee shop, beach, or park. It’s so much easier to write when you are not wishing you were somewhere else!

4. Simplify. Much of my writing angst comes from juggling too many projects at once. Often, this means I jump from one project to the next and don’t complete any of them—except the ones with due dates. Simplify your goals. Choose one project to start and finish this summer. Set up a schedule with deadlines. Find a partner to provide accountability for you. Then write!

5. Let go. Sometimes we need to let go of the constant demand to produce new work. Life’s seasons are meant to be different from one another. As the biblical writer of Ecclesiastes said, “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven” (Ecclesiastes 3:1). Writers must experience life to write about it. Dig into your own life this summer. Collect experiences to write about during the winter when the days are shorter. For now, go out and play in the sun.

Your turn: How do you write when your schedule changes? Leave your ideas in the comment section below.

Rochelle Melander is a certified professional coach and the author of 10 books, including a new book to help fiction and nonfiction writers write fast: Write-A-Thon: Write Your Book in 26 Days (And Live to Tell About It) (October 2011). Melander teaches professionals how to get published, establish credibility, and navigate the new world of social media. In 2006, Rochelle founded Dream Keepers Writing Group, a program that teaches writing to at-risk tweens and teens. Visit her online at www.writenowcoach.com.