Photo Credit: marcoverch Flickr via Compfight cc

I created a writing schedule recently. I have found that I literally have to block out time for writing. If my plans for writing are more nebulous, something else will come along to steal that time.

Writing is not my priority. No wonder I’m not a very prolific writer! I just cannot put it at the top of the list for various reasons. I blocked out writing time after I had already blocked out time for:

* Office hours

* Class

* Yoga classes (both ones I take and ones I teach)

* Workouts

I only blocked out time during regular working hours. I like to keep my evenings and weekends free for family and friends (and work seeps in there, too). But if I find myself with some spare time at night or on the weekend, I will write. I wanted some flexibility with my schedule because I get anxious if every moment is planned.

I actually carved out 2+ hours for writing during the work week. It surprised me in that it wasn’t terribly difficult to find that time. Most days I can do 30 minutes. I’m excited, because I think even those short chunks of time will add up. I prefer to look at it in terms of writing time per week, versus writing time per day. Two-plus hours sounds better than 30 minutes.

Do you put writing time on your calendar? Or do you prefer to “wing it”? What works best for you?

I will provide a progress update soon. I actually created that calendar at the beginning of January and so far, I think I’m hanging in there.