A Writer’s Guide to Finding Time to Write

Camp NaNoWriMo is right around the corner! Today we have Wrimo Haley Papa here with us to share her advice on how we can set aside time to write amid our already busy schedules:

One of the biggest struggles for a writer is, perhaps, writing itself. In my experience, finding time to write within your current schedule ranges from sitting in front of a computer in the middle of the night when you can’t write anytime else, or sitting far too long in front of said computer and being unable to write more than a sentence. It’s a lot of pressure to actually find the time to write your soon-to-be-a novel. 

With Camp NaNoWriMo arriving soon and writing on the brain, I’ve put together some advice below for tips and tricks to carve out time—even if it’s for twenty minutes—to write each day. This is by no means an exhaustive list. After all, what works for me may not work for you. However, this should hopefully give you more options when you’ve exhausted your go-to methods.

1. Create goals.

Before even touching your novel for the day, create a simple list of goals for writing for the day. It can be a paragraph, a single sentence, or ten bullet points, whatever is easiest for you to remember and refer back to. What scene(s) do you want to get through today? Which sentences do you want to go back and edit? What word count do you want to hit? Be realistic about challenging yourself—don’t attempt to finish a twenty-page chapter in one day if you know you don’t have the energy to write more than two-pages. If a project isn’t capturing your attention for the day, set a goal to write anything you like, whether it be for another project or a burst of inspiration that might be deleted by the end of the evening. If you need to write a schedule around work to find time to write down to every last hour and that helps, go ahead!

2. Collaborate with others.

This doesn’t mean you need to jump into writing a full-blown novel with someone else. But if support or someone to brainstorm with is what you need, you could try seeking other writers to read or give advice for sections you’re stuck on. Self-isolation in recent times can be a lonesome and difficult time to hold yourself accountable for your goals, so finding at least one other writer to chat with when you’re in a rut (whether online or in person, since NaNoWriMo has lovely forums for collaboration and advice) is for the best.

3. Take a break.

Believe it or not, but the most productive I find myself being is after returning from a self-mandated break to write, even if it involves ten minutes of watching an episode on Netflix. Straining yourself and pushing to write when you’ve got nothing left to give is the opposite of what you want. If you can’t put more than three words on the Google doc, that’s okay! The best part of NaNoWriMo is that you have a whole month to write. Don’t pressure yourself if you can’t write for a couple hours or days. Adjust your goals and take time to get yourself back in the mood to write.

4. Have fun!

Writing isn’t meant to be a chore. At the end of the day, you should be striving for productivity, yes, but make sure you’re enjoying writing as well. You can’t rush creativity; your readers will still be here tomorrow, be patient. Take your time.

Haley Papa is a Creative Writing major at Eckerd College, working toward her Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts and double-minoring in Literature and Sociology. She has written for various playwriting and fiction contests, including Florida state theater festivals, earning “superior” ranking for her work over the years, as well as writing and editing original prose. Her work has also appeared in journals such as The Eckerd Review and Bending Genres. She is currently working toward completing a short story collection as well as a novel.

Top photo by Jaelynn Castillo on Unsplash