Build a Sustainable Writing Routine

Routines are hard to establish, so creating a writing routine isn’t something you can decide to do one day and expect it to work instantly. Academic life is demanding and pulls you in different directions every day. Your writing routine needs to fit within that push-and-pull. For example, if today is Wednesday and you decide to start writing for 20 minutes before your day begins, starting on Monday, you have time to check your schedule and plan accordingly. However, life doesn’t just fall into place overnight. You may stick to your routine for a week or three, but eventually life will throw you a curveball. Start slowly, and then build up to those 20 minutes of daily writing.

To get started, think about these three anchors: time, tasks, and space. For time anchors, consider your preferred writing window and how it changes throughout the semester (and in the summer). I prefer to write in the afternoon, but working a full-time office job makes that harder unless I split my lunch into two parts—one for writing and one for eating. For tasks, each week or day, consider what is on your writing to-do list, and then match the day’s energy or mood to the task. Drafting, revising, and administrative writing each have different vibes. If you’re feeling inspired, start a draft or add new material to an existing project. Space also matters. You know how you feel in different environments: at the office, at home, or in a coffee shop. Your environment can affect how and what you write. Once, while on a work recruitment trip, my coworker needed to do homework, and I needed to write. We found a coffee shop near the college with great seating, and everyone was working on their laptops or notebooks. If that coffee shop were local, I would spend every weekend there writing.

Another point to consider is seasonal writing, which is different from simply thinking about your year in terms of semesters. While this idea was hard for me to get used to at first, I’ve found that greater awareness of seasons leads to greater productivity. So, what are your seasons? Conference season, grading season, and summer research season are common ones. Additionally, you might consider winter break a distinct season, as well as the start of each semester—those in-between times. For example, sometimes you think summer is over because it’s finally October, but the next day it’s 100 degrees (or swap for snow and cold, if needed). If you are writing and teaching, you may want to avoid drafting and editing during the first couple of weeks of a semester. In sum, aligning your writing habits with these seasonal shifts can help clarify when to focus your efforts.

How do you sustain your new routine? Schedule bi-weekly or monthly writing check-ins or set achievable goals. If rewards motivate you, offer yourself small incentives for meeting your goals. Include microtasks during low-energy periods, or give yourself a break. Persistent low energy or ongoing reluctance to write signals a different issue that calls for a revised routine. If this happens, evaluate what changes you might need (in your writing of life). Remind yourself it’s okay to say, “good enough for today,” “this is enough,” or “this counts.” These strategies, combined with your awareness of time, tasks, space, and seasonality, will help reinforce your writing.

I hope this helps you get started! This month, I created a writing to-do or goal list since I’m in a weird in-between season. Since May is always busy, instead of aiming for a daily writing quota, I set aside time and goals specifically for writing.