Time to Write

Selling your writing one bite at a time

Simon & Schuster is going to sell individual chapters of medical books. People can search for an answer to their questions on the Ask Dr Oz site, and then purchase a related chapter—and go on to buy the entire book if they like.

 S & S’s chief digital officer said, “We plan to expand both the chapter selling model and use of our e-commerce widget in other content categories.”

 This could be a way to go a step beyond the “look inside” feature at sites like Amazon: let the potential buyer purchase a chapter for a low price, on the basis that if they like what they get they are pretty likely to buy the rest as well.

 If you’re writing non-fiction you could aggregate enough single-chapter purchases to make some money even when the sampling doesn’t result in the person buying the whole book.

 If you write fiction, maybe you’d offer the first chapter for a low price and end with a strong cliff hanger or tease. Of course you could also offer it free (which many authors already are doing) but if you can coax even a dollar out of the potential buyer, persuasion psychology tells us that having made that commitment makes them more likely to go on to buy the rest.

(for more innovative ideas on how to write and sell what you write, get my book, "Your Writing Coach," published by Nicholas Brealey; and to ramp up your creativity, get my book, "Creativity Now!" published by Pearson--both available from your favorite online retailer.)

Here's some good news: You don't HAVE to do anything!

OK, we’ll leave aside breathing, eating and a few other functions, but here’s a liberating fact: as an adult, you don’t HAVE to do anything!

 I am a fan of the philosophy of the late Albert Ellis, who came up with Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy. One of the foundations of that approach is getting rid of the “shoulds” in your life.

 Let’s look at some common examples:

“ I should lose some weight.” No, you CAN lose some weight. If the benefits of losing weight are important to you, then that will be the right choice for you.

 “I really should clean up my office.” Again, you CAN clean up your office. And if you frequently are frustrated by not being able to find files or supplies, or you regularly stub your toe on the boxes piled up everywhere then that choice will be rewarding.

 Of course this applies to “should nots” as well. “I shouldn’t spend so much time watching TV.” Are there other things you’d enjoy more or that would benefit you more? Then you can choose to do them.

 The key question when you find yourself facing a “should” or “shouldn’t” is “Who says?” If it’s a genuine desire on your part, go ahead and choose that course. If it’s somebody else’s idea of what’s right for you, just get in touch with your inner brat and say (if only in your mind) “I don’t want to, and you can’t make me!”

 If you stop doing the things that don’t really matter to you, suddenly you’ll find you have a lot more time to spend on things like writing. Not that I’m saying you should.

 (for more tips and techniques on how to be more creative and productive—if you want to—sign up for my free monthly Brainstorm e-bulletin. Just send an email request to BstormUK@aol.com)

Setting your writing goals: rule number one

Recently I had the pleasure of meeting a writers group in Rancho Mirage and listening to some of their work—which was of excellent quality (this was a relief, as I tend to be truthful in my reactions and that can be uncomfortable when it’s not up to snuff, even when you’re being constructive). Anyway, we also had an informal Q &A session, and they asked me what was the number one thing I’d learned about how to be disciplined in my use of writing time. I realized that it was actually something very simple:

 Set word or page goals, not time goals.

 In other words, on days you intend to write, don’t say, “I’ll write for two hours today.” It’s too easy to fritter that time away doing research that’s not really necessary, or deciding to do one more outline, or re-reading what you’ve done already. All of those may be necessary at times, but they’re not writing.

 When you say, “I will write 1000 words today,” that’s unambiguous. When the day is over, either you wrote 1000 words or you didn’t.

 Keep the goal realistic, give yourself time off when you need it, and don’t beat yourself up if you miss the target sometimes. But do set the target and get as close as you can to meeting it every writing session. Soon those thousand words per day will add up to a story, article, book or a screenplay. 

(If procrastination is something you'd like to overcome, sign up for my free eight-part mini-course at www.tameyourinnercritic.com.)

Less sleep = less creative (Time to write)

Some people advise you to find time to write by getting up an hour earlier or staying up an hour later, but this isn't a good idea if it leaves you short of sleep. In fact, it could actually make you less creative. As discussed in an article by Leslie Berlin in the New York Times, "Sleep enhances performance, learning, and memory. Most unappreciated of all, sleep improves creative ability to generate aha! moments and uncover novel connections among seemingly unrelated ideas." 

Harvard Medical School researcher Dr. Jeffrey Ellenbogen has quantified it: you're 33% more likely to infer connections among distantly related ideas if an incubation period includes sleep. But when you have your aha! moment you won't necessarily know that sleep helped. 

The moral of the story: instead of sleeping less, find something else you can do less (watching TV?) to make time to write.

(For more tips on how to be more creative, subscribe to my free monthly Brainstorm e-bulletin--it doesn't take long to read each issue! Just send an email request now to BstormUK@aol.com)

How to Find More Time to Write

At the About.com freelance writing blog, Allena Tapia suggested some ways to find more time to write. Here are a few:

* Combine things: scribble notes while doing the laundry.

* Give up obligations: take another look at all the obligations you’ve taken on and see which ones you can ditch—even if only temporarily.

* Get away: consider making your own writer’s retreat. This could mean renting a hotel room for the weekend, or house-sitting for friends when they are away.

My additional suggestions:

* Get value for those expensive cups of Starbucks coffee: use a coffee shop as your place to grab a half hour of writing before work, after work, or during your lunch hour, or to get away from the family chaos on the weekend.

* Take the rest of the family to the movies, but spend that 90 minutes to two hours writing at a nearby café. They can tell you all about the film when you’re going home.

* Carry with you a few index cards with notes about whatever you’re writing, plus a few blank ones. This is a great way to think about writing and make some notes while waiting in line at the bank or supermarket.

(For more tips on how to be more productive, sign up for my free monthly Brainstorm e-bulletin. Just send an email request now to BstormUK@aol.com)

Time to Write: the temptations of the to-do list

Knowing What to Write--and When

In an article at innovationtools.com, Kevin Eikenberry wrote about six "gets" that help us be more productive: get aligned, get clarified, get organized, get help, get focused and:

"Get Over Them. You may have an idea (or many) that you love. Remember that there is a big difference between a good idea and the right idea. You may have many good ideas on your list. For some of them the time isn’t right. Some of them aren’t important enough. Some won’t be completely aligned with your goals and objectives. That is ok. In order to implement our best ideas sometimes we must be willing to let go of, or at least defer some others. When you are willing to do this you improve your chances of implementing the others you have chosen."

I always have to laugh when people ask, "Where do you get all your ideas?" I've never yet met a writer who has trouble getting enough ideas. I've met plenty, however, who have too many ideas to handle and who try to achieve too many of them at the same time (I plead guilty to this, maybe you do, too?). I'm a fan of the "defer" option: agree not to work on some of the ideas at this point, but keep a record of them and revisit them later to see which ones still are exciting and deserve to be put on the action list.

Time to Write

“I have trouble finding time to write” is one of the most common refrains I hear from aspiring writers. I’m a big believer in the power of language and I think maybe part of the problem is in the phrasing of that statement.

In fact, time to write is not playing peek-a-boo with you; a more accurate statement would be, “I am not choosing to take any time for writing.”

Harsh, but not untrue!

Here are three suggestions:

1) Into your TV guide put a sticky note that reads, “7.30-8.30pm The Writing Hour, starring myself.” Then replace an hour, or half-hour, of TV watching with a writing session. A year from now, what would you regret more: not having seen a season of America’s Got Talent or not having written the first draft of your novel?

2) On your shopping list, add “20 Minutes of Writing.” When you go out to shop, take twenty minutes before or afterward to go to a nearby coffee shop and work on your writing project.

3) The next time your kids or partner want you to go to a movie that you’re not really keen to see, go to the theatre with them, let them go in, and go to a nearby coffee shop and write until it’s time for them to come out, then take them for an ice cream and let them tell you all about the film.

Want more? Go to www.timetowrite.com where you can buy my downloadable book on time management for writers and other creative people.