Luckily for me, I have a pretty solid writing routine -- that is, I have a methodology for decluttering my brain before I start writing. Unfortunately, it's mostly about clearing out my inbox and social media notifications, but those things settle me. I prefer to write at night, after dark, and I go with streaming some music and the occasional thunderstorm from YouTube to set the mood -- my Bose headphones to drown out all other distractions as I write in the dark. Once I get all that set, who knows what can happen? 3000k words in a night? A critical chapter finished? An idea I've been stirring around in my head gets on paper?
The other thing I do now is I use a little notepad on my desk to track my author to-do list. Social media ideas, things to get on my websites, WIPs that need attention. That helps me stay on track. I'm a scatterbrain, so every little bit helps.
I haven't tried any of the tools that help cut down on distractions -- for no reason; just haven't tried them. I wonder how that works for people.
Luckily for me, I have a pretty solid writing routine -- that is, I have a methodology for decluttering my brain before I start writing. Unfortunately, it's mostly about clearing out my inbox and social media notifications, but those things settle me. I prefer to write at night, after dark, and I go with streaming some music and the occasional thunderstorm from YouTube to set the mood -- my Bose headphones to drown out all other distractions as I write in the dark. Once I get all that set, who knows what can happen? 3000k words in a night? A critical chapter finished? An idea I've been stirring around in my head gets on paper?
The other thing I do now is I use a little notepad on my desk to track my author to-do list. Social media ideas, things to get on my websites, WIPs that need attention. That helps me stay on track. I'm a scatterbrain, so every little bit helps.
I haven't tried any of the tools that help cut down on distractions -- for no reason; just haven't tried them. I wonder how that works for people.