How to build a Writing habit

Are you a writer or an aspiring writer struggling to build a writing routine? Don't worry, you're not alone. Every writer goes through this phase. Everyone feels mentally blocked from time to time about writing, and it's frustrating. Sometimes, we know what to write but have no idea how to execute it, and many times, we know everything, from the topic to what and how to write it, yet we're stuck to take action. Prolonged procrastination kills the energy of writing or even thinking straight. So, if all these situations are familiar to you, again, you're not alone.

Before speaking about habit-building for writing, I would like to discuss myself briefly. I'm an engineer turned writer who's still figuring out her ways to shine in content writing and editing. I started part-time freelance writing three years back, along with my full-time job. And last December, I felt it right to pursue it fully and left my regular job. And, since then, it was anything but easy. I'm sailing through from Lead generation to conversion to struggling to meet the deadline and keeping up with my mental health with this new-found uncertainty of earnings. This newsletter would be more of a documentation of my journey and the knowledge-sharing platform. I'm no expert and am still learning and growing daily; I will share my knowledge and experience in this weekly newsletter and would love to know your thoughts, too.

So keep reading.

Where was I? Right. I was talking about building a writing habit. It sounds professional or the right thing to do, but I found it quite challenging.

First of all, let me tell you what not to expect when you're in the process of building a writing habit:

1. It's not an overnight thing. It takes time, at times weeks or months, to build a writing habit.
2. Don't expect good consistency in the beginning. It's natural to fall out of the routine or find yourself to procrastinate again. With time, you'll get better.
3. Don't expect to write 'good' every time you're writing. Avoid bothering much about writing the 'perfect piece' when you start with something. You can take care of this while editing later on.

Now, how to build a writing habit:

Start Small:

• Don't make a huge to-do list or stress upon writing too many things in one go or day.
• In the beginning, start small.
• Let's start with 100 words, and it'll automatically increase.

Decide What to Write:

This might be the biggest challenge. If you're a professional writer and have clients for whom you need to maintain strict deadlines, it's okay. But when you don't have those or don't feel like working on them, a better way to start writing is to start writing about anything. And when I say 'anything,' I mean 'Anything'. Write about your feelings on that particular moment, and start writing about the first few lines of the story or poem you were thinking about; if you're into social media, write a caption or copy, or write constructive comments on any post you loved or found insightful. So, start writing whatever comes to your mind.

Be Focused when Writing:

Focusing is another challenge nowadays with many distractions. Try the Pomodoro model to write. There are many Pomodoro timers on the internet. Start them when you start writing.

Remove Distraction:

• Switch off your phone.
• Lock the distracting websites from your laptop (there are site blocker applications like Cold Turkey where you can voluntarily lock websites you want for a specific time).
• Work from a clean desk to focus better.

Start Small, but write every day:

Make up your mind that you will write every day, even if it means for half an hour. If writing half an hour at a stretch seems like a struggle, start with fifteen minutes first, and it'll eventually turn into thirty minutes.

Most importantly, be patient with yourself:

Building any habit is challenging initially, and here we're talking about a particular creative practice. So, be patient with yourself. Be gentle with the quality or elements of writing in the first draft. Keep those aside for the later drafts and edit minutely. Start writing for a short duration; eventually, it'll increase every day or every time you start writing.

"Creativity is the brain's invisible muscle -- that when used and exercised routinely -- becomes better and stronger." - Ashley Ormon.

Becoming a good writer or content writer is a process. Even if you're incredibly talented and fabulous with your skills and vocabulary, without regular execution, it becomes all rusty. So, building a writing habit is the first stepping stone to becoming a master in this craft. I'm practicing it, and at times, I still struggle with it. It would help if you come to peace that procrastination is a part of a writer's journey, but you can overcome that by starting small every day.

Happy Writing :)