Holidays Are For Writing

So you've got a writing deadline and you need to make some progress on it, but you're finding it difficult to carve out the necessary block of time to really get into it? Lucky for you, Wednesday is a holiday in most areas of Canada.

There's no question that you should take time to remember and to attend services in your community. But for the rest of the day, when classes are cancelled and many stores and offices are closed, you should write. (And if the stores aren't closed in your area, pretend they are!)

A holiday is a big gaping hole in your schedule. Your usual commitments aren't there. You can roll out of bed, stay in your PJs, make a cup of coffee, and get down to business. You can be wildly productive even if you dedicate only half of the day to your writing project (and the other half to a worthy endeavor, like watching a marathon of Suits).

So make the most of your holiday time -- remember and then write!

Writing Rituals

I have a confession to make. It is impossible for me to get any writing done in my office. There are distractions everywhere. Even with the door closed, I can see movement in the hallway. It breaks my concentration. I sit and stare more than I type. The phone rings. The temperature isn't right. Students want to chat. Colleagues pop by. Emails ping. Papers beg to be filed away. There can be no quick trips to the cafeteria to caffeinate because people I haven't seen in months seem to come out of the woodwork on writing days.

And so on writing days, I am most productive when I am home. I have a writing ritual. It developed during my PhD and has served me well. Sure, some say you should write everyday and perhaps that does work for some people. But for me, the blitz marathon writing session works. I'm in a hyper-focussed state. I'm productive. I get it done.

Writing for me is best done at a dining room table. I attribute this to the fact that as a kid, I sat at the dining room table with my sister and mother (a teacher) while we all did our "homework." At the same table, my father (an entrepreneur) balanced the books or prepared estimates related to his construction business. That's where I developed study habits and learned to focus on the task at hand. During my undergraduate degree, I installed myself at an aunt's dining room table when writing papers. She totally got it. And I admit to being a little lost in my master's degree when there was no dining room table at which to work (I lived in residence). Large tables in libraries served as substitutes.

The space is helpful. I spread out my materials around my laptop and still have room for a notepad to write ideas and reminders.

I also have a particular coffee that I drink when writing: Illy. It's delicious, but expensive. It's saved only for special occasions — like writing. I make a pot and a promise: I will begin writing before I start the second cup. It hasn't failed me yet.

And then I transform into a marathoner, writing for hours on end. I write from the outline in my head or notes scrawled on paper, and then revise and expand. I always print a copy when editing because I can more clearly see how to re-order arguments, sentences, paragraphs, and sections.

It's my writing process and it works for me. And so I feel very strongly that it's important to establish your own writing ritual -- something that works for you and makes the process more enjoyable.



* This blog was originally published on the Cape Breton University website in February 2014. 

Reward Yourself

A little reward can go a long way when you're trying to finish that thesis, major research paper, or dissertation. I believe very strongly that you should take the time to identify goals and milestones, as well as the rewards that go along with them. If you celebrate your accomplishments, you're more likely to have accomplishments.

The key to setting rewards is to be sure they match the task at hand. If you write one sentence, you probably haven't earned an Ice Road Truckers marathon. But if you've read a 20-page academic article filled with jargon, I'd say you deserve a coffee break with an episode of Scandal on Netflix.

For writing, I think it's useful to have rewards at several levels. For example, for every five pages written, you might enjoy a movie or a few chapters from a novel (or coffee or whatever else motivates you). For every chapter completed, you might treat yourself to lunch or supper at a favourite restaurant with a friend. And when you complete the draft, why not enjoy a spa day followed by dinner at your favourite Indian restaurant with a bottle of Wolf Blass Brown Label! (I know I certainly did when I submitted my dissertation for examination!)

These rewards can be used in the research or data collection stage as well. Set your tasks for the day, block the time to do them, and when you've completed them, enjoy the reward you've identified. Got a stack of articles to read for a literature review? Read an article, watch an episode of Community, read another article, watch an episode of Community, read yet another article...

You get the picture: reward yourself. But remember that you can't have the reward until you've reached the milestone!