It's All About Balance - Tips for Authors
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I was involved in some group anthology projects before I started writing novels. For one series, we did almost one hundred in-person and virtual events in about a year and a half to promote the books. It was fun. I enjoyed meeting people and talking about mysteries. But I soon realized a writing life needs balance. With so much travel, there was hardly enough time to write my novel.
Writers have lots of tasks from research and writing to revising and book promotion, and that’s on top of your regular life and responsibilities.
Here are some tips that work for me. There’s no single, magic solution.
I still have a day gig, so I have to schedule my time. I keep a calendar of key writing events and due dates. I have to stay organized, or the chaos takes over. (I write from 5:00 - 7:30 every morning and then on my lunch hour. If I hit my word goal, then I’m done for the day.)
Try to write (or revise your work) every day. If you leave your project for a few days, it takes time to get back to the place where you left off.
To finish a first draft in a reasonable amount of time, I need a daily writing goal. I try my best to hit it. I know if I stick to my schedule, I can have a completed first draft in about two and a half months. I keep a running tally on a sticky note to keep me motivated and to see my progress.
When you are writing your first draft, just write it. Don’t stop to revise chapters or paragraphs. Make notes and keep going. If you fall into the rewriting trap, it’ll take you forever to finish.
You can’t just focus on one thing. There are so many tasks for promotion, research, writing, and revising. It’s a lot of work, but you also need to take time for yourself to reenergize. Figure out what works for you. Make sure you exercise and go outside once in a while.
When I have a new book release, I create a spreadsheet (three months before and three months after). I track all of my online and in-person events, and I make sure I have plenty of time to complete guest blog posts and interviews. Make sure you track all your due dates.
I hate spending time searching for something I know I have, so for things I want to remember, I make spreadsheets. One has all the blogs, podcasters, book reviewers, and other contacts that I like to follow. I add to this throughout the year, and it helps when I start planning my promotions.
I also have a spreadsheet of ideas. I used to keep file folders of newspaper and magazine clippings. Now, I keep cool names, interesting locations, weird true crime stories, and names of resources in one document. It makes it so much easier when I’m looking for story ideas.
Make sure that you’re also reading. It’s important to keep up with what’s popular in your genre. Writers should be avid readers.
What works with your writing style? Let me know what you’d add to my list.
