Habits for Effective Writing

Everyone is jumping on the social media bandwagon, but one thing most people don’t realize is that social media equals coming up with lots of content – which means writing. Content is king on the Internet and without it, being on any social media platform won’t help you or your business. So how do you develop some writing habits that fit within your chaotic world of coworkers, children, work and life in general? Here are a few tips on how to stay productive and writing.

Set Aside Time to Write Everyday
A key to staying productive and writing is to make it a habit. It is a good idea to set aside a specific time every day and write. This will help your brain adjust to a certain time and it will be ready to write when you are. Making writing a routine will also help push away any distractions like a friend who wants to do lunch during your writing time.

Read & Read Well
Sometimes the best thing to do when you’re having trouble writing is to read. Some people enjoy reading the news to get inspiration, others read novels and some read biographies. These can all help you to figure out what you want to write about. However, many experts believe you should stay away from pleasure reading such as sports, gossip or rag magazines. They feel those subjects take away from your craft while reading a classic novel will help you to think better about how you should write. But the truth is, what’s best is whatever gets you thinking and writing. So try a couple of different types of blogs, books, magazines or newspapers to see what gets your juices flowing.

Get Out Of Your Own Head
Writing is a solitary journey, but just because you write by yourself doesn’t mean your work in progress should remain under lock and key. Sometimes the best way to get inspired is to get help from a friend or mentor. It’s also the best way to improve your writing. By sharing your work with others and having them critique it you can discover what works and what doesn’t.

Take Notes
The best thoughts often happen at the most inopportune times, so try and carry a note pad with you wherever you go. The worst feeling in the world as a writer is to sit down ready to write and not have one clue of where to start. Having that note pad with you to write ideas down can help you later on. If a note pad isn’t your style try keeping notes on your smart phone or tablet.

Prepare Your Desk for Productivity
Whether it’s gathering your research, pouring over the facts or “incubating” your ideas before you get started, having some kind of workspace to do all that in is essential. Make sure you have an area where you can go to do your writing. Some people write best at coffee shops, others in the great outdoors, and most do their work at home in their jammies. Wherever you decide to type things out, make sure it’s your space.

Do What Works for You
Finally, writing is a unique experience and everyone gets in the mood differently. So just because the books say you have to find a quiet spot to write doesn’t mean that a quiet spot will work for you. I’ve noticed that when I write I need some commotion, whether it is loud music, the TV going or a busy café. Without some noise around me, my mind goes blank and I can’t focus. Now that’s not the case for everyone, but I know it is for me. Knowing that fact helps me to prep for my writing sessions.

We here at Three Girls Media would love to know what tips and writing tricks work for you. Will you share them in the comments below?

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