After watching the first round of the U.S. Open Golf Championship last year, a thought popped into my head. Scary, I know.
No matter how difficult or easy the shot, every golfer went through a pre-shot routine of lining up the ball, talking with their caddie, practicing a few swings, and lining up again. This got them ready mentally and physically. Only after all this prep did they stand over the ball and hit it. Then—like being struck upside the head with a 3-wood—my pre-writing routine came to mind.
I’m not sure when I first started my routine, but over the years this ritual has become as much a part of me as breathing. I sit in the same spot at my branch office, order the same drink every time, set my screen at the same angle, find a concert video on YouTube, and put in my ear buds. Only then am I ready to write.
Peter DeVries, an author and editor, once wrote, “I write when I'm inspired, and I see to it that I'm inspired at nine o'clock every morning.”
You might not write at 9:00 a.m. every day. Whenever you start your writing session, be mentally ready to write.
Have you thought about a pre-writing routine? Or do you plop into a chair and start pounding away at the keyboard? Either can work, and the key, as with many things in writing, is that you find what works best for you.
Your assignment: Figure out a pre-writing routine that will help you get in the “mood” to write. Try this routine for three weeks. Tweak as necessary to maximize your writing time.
January 24, Assignment Four - Time to Shoot the Weasel Words
1/24/2021 7:00:00 AM by: Cindy Sproles
Assignment 3 - The Role of Speaker Tags and Beats
1/21/2021 7:34:00 PM by: Cindy Sproles
Assignment 2 (2 of 2) Week of January 10
1/13/2021 7:00:00 AM by: Andrea Merrell
January 10, Assignment 2 (1 of 2 assignments)
1/10/2021 7:00:00 AM by: Cindy Sproles
Assignment 1 - ACWC January 5 - Let's Start with a Bio
1/5/2021 11:25:00 AM by: Cindy Sproles
Assignment 8 & 9 - Titles & Sentences - Nancy Lohr
2/13/2020 7:29:00 PM by: Cindy Sproles
Assignment 7 - What in the World is a One Sheet - Andrea Merrell
2/7/2020 7:00:00 PM by: Cindy Sproles
February 1 - Assignments 5 & 6 - Linda Glaz
2/1/2020 7:31:00 AM by: Cindy Sproles
Sensory Perception Enhances Your Writing - Assignment 4
1/26/2020 10:09:00 PM by: Cindy Sproles
Don't Write Your Bio - Write WHY ME? - Assignment 3
1/18/2020 7:00:00 PM by: Bob Hostetler
How to Make the Most of Your Conference Experience - Assignment 2
1/18/2020 4:15:00 PM by: Cindy Sproles
Appropriate Emails - [email protected] - Assignment 1
1/11/2020 7:47:00 PM by: Cindy Sproles
How Not to Get an Agent - Assignment 7
2/10/2019 5:47:00 PM by: Bob Hostetler
January 27 Assignment 5 -Storytelling Your Life Lessons
1/27/2019 8:55:00 PM by: Lucinda Secrest McDowell
It's Not What You Know; It's Who You Know - Assignment 4
1/20/2019 5:44:00 PM by: Bob Hostetler
Stay on Track with a Writing Schedule - Assignment 3
1/13/2019 7:35:00 PM by: Larry Leech
Assignment 2 - Finding Speaker Topics
1/5/2019 7:38:00 PM by: Beth Fortune
IMAGERY–WHEN THIS IS LIKE THAT
12/30/2018 9:00:00 PM by: By Ann Tatlock
Asheville Christian Writers Conference Privacy Policy
6/4/2018 8:00:00 PM by: Cindy Sproles
2018 Writers Charge
2/18/2018 10:20:00 PM by: Cindy
Last Chance - Assignment 7
2/11/2018 7:00:00 PM by: Cindy Sproles
An Adjective Safari - Assignment 6
2/4/2018 7:30:00 PM by: Denise Loock
Get in the Mood to Write - Assignment 5
1/28/2018 7:10:00 PM by: Larry J. Leech II
Getting Rid of “I” Disease - Assignment 3
1/14/2018 9:37:00 PM by: Andrea Merrell
Curb Your Adverb Addiction - Assignment 2
1/7/2018 7:30:00 PM by: Denise Loock
WHO ARE YOU? - Writing Your Bio
11/17/2017 7:30:00 AM by: Cindy Sproles
WRITING IN A PICKLE
11/13/2017 9:45:00 AM by: Cindy Sproles
THE NaNoWriMo CHALLENGE
11/10/2017 11:30:00 AM by: Cindy Sproles
BRINGING YOUR CHARACTERS TO LIFE
2/12/2017 3:35:00 PM by: By Andrea Merrell
DON’T LET SPEAKER BEATS RUIN YOUR MANUSCRIPT
2/5/2017 3:43:00 PM by: By Andrea Merrell
HOW TO CRAFT GREAT DIALOGUE
1/30/2017 3:49:00 PM by: By Andrea Merrell
AVOID REPETITION AND WRITE TIGHT
1/20/2017 3:55:00 PM by: By Andrea Merrell
THE QUOTATION QUOTA – ASSIGNMENT 2
1/13/2017 3:38:00 PM by: By Andrea Merrell
ELIMINATE THE EXCLAMATION POINTS – ASSIGNMENT 1
1/7/2017 3:43:00 PM by: By Andrea Merrell
WRITING ADVICE FROM MARK TWAIN: WRITE WITHOUT PAY UNTIL SOMEBODY OFFERS TO PAY
12/22/2016 3:48:00 PM by: By Sandra Merville Hart
WHEN THE STORY STALLS IN THE MIDDLE
12/20/2016 3:51:00 PM by: by Sandra Merville Hart
WHO REALLY SELLS YOUR BOOKS ?
9/20/2016 3:53:00 PM by: by Cindy Sproles @CindyDevoted
MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR 15-MINUTE APPOINTMENTS
9/16/2016 3:56:00 PM by: by Cindy Sproles
ARRRGH! ANOTHER REJECTION – CINDY SPROLES
9/12/2016 3:59:00 PM by: by Cindy Sproles
FROZEN IN PLACE – ICEY SELF-TALK TO FREEZE YOUR WRITING
9/8/2016 3:15:00 PM by: By Cindy Sproles
THE BIO – THE FRAGRANCE OF WHO YOU ARE
9/3/2016 3:21:00 PM by: by Cindy Sproles
THE PAIN OF UNSOLICITED
8/29/2016 3:24:00 PM by: by Cindy Sproles
REDUNDANCY: AN EXCESSIVE, OPPRESSIVE, PERVASIVE DISEASE
8/26/2016 3:31:00 PM by: By Denise Loock
7 THINGS TO DO NOW TO BE READY WHEN WRITING INSPIRATION STRIKES – EDIE MELSON
8/23/2016 3:33:00 PM by: by Edie Melson
MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR 15-MINUTE CONFERENCE APPOINTMENTS
8/20/2016 3:36:00 PM by: by Cindy Sproles
WHY SHOULD I ATTEND THE ASHEVILLE CHRISTIAN WRITERS’ CONFERENCE?
8/17/2016 3:47:00 PM by: by Cindy Sproles
YOU NEED A PLATFORM – LIVING A STORY- ASSIGNMENT 3
1/20/2016 3:49:00 PM by: By La-tan Murphy
THE ONE SHEET
1/8/2016 3:51:00 PM by: by Cindy Sproles
OVER-EDIT?
11/4/2015 3:54:00 PM by: By Steven James
