Time Management Improvement

I had a rough March this year. Nothing bad happened, except that my writing was heavily pushed to the wayside. Along with other important things. I overbooked and overextended myself throughout the month. April arrived on a bad note and I was exhausted.

I remember thinking about Anxiety Ink and the newly launched E.V. Writes during the last week of March. Throughout that month I had to sit in front of my computer on Thursday nights, dead tired, and try to write a coherent post to share Friday mornings on Anxiety. I had to spend late Sunday afternoons, tapping into the miniscule amounts of energy I had left, and write for E.V. Writes. I did it, but I hated creating my posts like that. They lacked thought and depth when I rushed them.

So I came up with a plan. On the first weekend of the month, I would devote myself entirely to my blogs. No other commitments were permitted to intrude. On the first Saturday and Sunday I would sit at my computer until I had enough posts to schedule for the month.

I learned a few lessons April 4th and 5th. The first was not having topics to write about ahead of time made the endeavor difficult. It’s one thing to spew forth ideas you’ve been sitting on; it’s another to come up with ideas and then get them on the page all at the same time. Ultimately it’s creatively exhausting. I managed, but only just.

Now I have my blog notebook on my desk 24/7 and make it a priority to think about topics to explore before the blog weekend arrives.

The second lesson was not switching between blogs while I drafted. Each blog is devoted to different aspects of my head space. It’s difficult enough getting into those spaces and staying there. Moving between them is a nightmare.

April was still a success in my eyes and I was excited to try again in May. Since then the first weekends of June and July have gone by and I’m still keeping strong with this plan. Because it’s working.

There are always hiccups in the road -for instance this weekend I have an appointment Saturday and I haven’t drafted up ideas for posts, luckily it’s a long weekend and I can recover- but I find I revel working like this. My writing style involves initial flares of ideas that I like to let simmer before I put pen to paper. Giving myself extra time to do that throughout the month, and then letting myself filter those paper notes through my keyboard gives me the time I need to implement my ideal three step creative system. The fact that I can even get distance from my piece before editing and updating the night before I schedule is an added bonus.

I like being prepared ahead of time, it takes off a lot of pressure and reduces my anxiety –two things that stifle creativity. Plus, legitimately improving my time management skills is bolstering my writing ego.

I’ve had to decline invitations to go socialize on these designated weekends but it doesn’t feel like making excuses. I actually love telling people that I have writing engagements so I can’t go out. It makes me feel professional and devoted.

This is a big step towards producing quality writing that I can’t wait to apply to my fiction.

My writing calendar.

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