I have a confession. I’ve been in a bit of a writing rut.

Let me explain. My writing cycle follows three distinct phases: WRITE. PUBLISH. PROMOTE. I write a manuscript, publish it as a book and then promote it. Writing usually takes 5-9 months, publishing 6-8 weeks and then, I promote it until I die. It’s the last step that holds me up. Because I’ll never be done promoting a book. I could (and will) forever be in promotion mode. It is the fact that this job never ends that makes it so hard for me to move back to the beginning of the cycle again. Which is sooooo strange, but because as soon as I start writing again I say, “Ohh, yeeahhh, THIS is why I do this. THIS is what makes it all so fun.”

For me, the initial idea dumping on paper is my favorite part. So, why-oh-why, do I take so long to get back to it!?!?! Likely it is because there are just so many tasks involved in the job of being an authorpreneur and it is very easy to think that those tasks, NEED to be done and are MORE important than writing. But those are just lies we let ourselves believe.

Hear me when I tell you, WRITING IS THE IMPORTANT PART.

I needed this reminder, BIG TIME. There are a dozen different excuses I could give… but the honest truth is that up until two weeks ago, I hadn’t written anything (fictional) since I published Close Quarters: A Pivotal Pause - IN NOVEMBER! I went 4 months… a quarter of a year… without starting a new manuscript. But two months ago, I decided enough was enough. Here are 5 strategies I have employed to pull myself out of a writing rut and get back in the saddle again.

1. Find an accountability friend

The first step I made in geting out of my writing rut was to confess my writing sins (or lack of writing) to a friend. Good friend that she is, she said, “I expect an outline on my desk in three days.” It wasn’t exacty 3 days and it wasn’t a full outline, but dang it if I didn’t text her a picture of crudely listed plot elements within a week. Praise Jesus for good writing friends. I don’t know where I’d be without them. If you don’t have a writing friend, find one! Look for local writing organizations, join writing groups on Facebook, do an all call on Instagram. Often times writers are quiet about their pursuits, but if you shout out you desire to connect with another word nerd soul, I think you’ll be surprised at the number of people in your life who’ll come out of the woodwork and identify themselves as writers!

2. Writing Sprints

The only way I make real progress on a manuscript in the word count department is by giving myself TIME to do it. I know this sounds obvious, but the act of finding (and then productively using) a block of time is a real skill and takes discipline. I am most successful when I set a timer (usually 30-60 minutes), turn off the volume on my phone (and flip it over so I can’t see the notifications popping up!), and write. It’s amazing the amount of words you can commit to the page when you commit to the goal. I wrote all about writing sprints in this post, so if you’d like to learn more about this strategy, check it out!

3. Instrumental Playlists

Another trick that increases my productivity when doing a writing sprint is to listen to instrumental music. This is especially effective when I choose music that matches the mood of the writing I’m trying to produce. I’m in the process of making several of these playlists, so save yourself some searching and head on over to my YouTube channel and give one a try.

4. Word Count Calendar

I’m a pretty disciplined human. I give full credit to my parents for instilling great habits and mindsets in this department, not to mention incredible list making skills. If I have a writing goal, creating a simple checkmark calendar (think potty training sticker chart!) I increase my success big time. For more details on this strategy, check out this prior post.

5. Try a non-writing strategy

Sometimes I’ve tried a non-writing strategy like creating a character mood board. This activity allows me to flex my creativity muscles on a project and gets my mind really thinking about what I am going to write. You can learn more about this strategy here.

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6. A Pre-Writing Workbook

Another similar strategy I’ve employed is doing some deep thinking about my story, it’s world and my character’s motive through direct questioning. My favorite pre-writing workbook the Pre-Write Project created by Kristen Kieffer. One year I spent an entire October working through it before I dove into NaNoWriMo. It totally prepared me to pound out the words without having to pause and figure things out along the way… because I already knew it all!

Which of these strategies do you think will work best for you?

Don’t be afraid to try a combination of a couple. If one of them doesn’t work well for you, don’t feel bad. Dismiss it and try another. We all write differently… you need to find what works for you and it is okay if that takes time. It is my hope that one of these strategies works for you… but if not, don’t give up. Experiment until you find your perfect writing process.

I am happy to say that as of this week, I have two very solid chapters to my newest manuscript (Champion Chocolatier #4) and am making progress on the third. I feel confident that I’ll be able to get this book done by this fall and maybe even by this summer if I get my butt in gear. (See, there’s that accountability creeping back in. Promise you’ll hold me to this deadline?!?!?!) What are you working on? What is a struggle you are currently facing in your writing life? Shout them out in the comments below and I’ll offer up a piece of writing wisdom or advice to help you through it.

Until next week word nerd, Happy Writing!

~ Amanda

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