How To Build a Daily Writing Habit

In today’s world, it can feel impossible to write every single day. Each writer struggles in their own way. Some writers have hours-long commutes, some writers have exhausting work lives, some writers must juggle children and a full-time job, others may simply struggle to stay inspired. But writing daily is a habit we simply must cultivate if we are to achieve our dreams of becoming authors.

So, how can you build a daily writing habit? Read on to find out!

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1. Start small 

Let’s get this out of the way. Most likely, you’re not going to write your magnum opus straight out of the gate. You can’t expect to write something great immediately after starting. You’ve got to build the habit before the words will flow.

Sit down one day and write for 5 minutes. Do that daily for 2 weeks. After that, sit down and write for 10 minutes for 2 weeks. Then increase it to 15, 20… you get the picture. Before 2 months have passed, you have made the habit of writing every day.

In my 'The Magic of Writing Daily' blog post, I elaborate upon two friends who have different writing styles; one writes in bursts of inspiration 8 times a year, while the other writes daily for just 15 minutes. The difference in their yearly word count is massive. Essentially, by writing for just 15 minutes a day, you can write tens of thousands of words more per year than someone who simply writes in bursts of inspiration. Writing daily, even just a small amount, is powerful. So start small, and find pride in being consistent!

Start small, and find pride in being consistent!

2. Set specific goals

Another way to build the habit is to set highly specific goals. Studies show that people are more likely to achieve their goals when they are specific and intentional about them. Vague goals don't accomplish very much.

Here's a vague goal: “Write more.” Technically, writing 2 words more per day counts. But this vague goal probably won't get you where you want to be as a writer.

Here's a specific goal: "Write for 15 minutes daily." This specific goal is small enough to maintain but will actually help you to achieve your dreams.

There are two reasons to make your goals specific. First, you are more likely to achieve them if they are specific and maintainable. And second, you are more likely to benefit from specific goals precisely because you will be able to maintain them.

3. Habit stacking

This is my favorite one because it is so helpful for my own easily-distracted brain. It is far too easy to forget about the intentions of yesterday in the hustle of today. Habit stacking is the practice of pairing your pre-existing habits with your intended ones.

It works like this: imagine that you want to start doing 40 squats daily. You decide to habit stack, so you simply do 20 squats when you brush your teeth in the morning, and 20 when you brush your teeth again at night. Boom! Bam! Done! Isn’t that wonderful? 

Considering writing, here are my suggestions: pair your daily writing with your morning ritual. Whether your ritual is coffee, tea, or a walk with your dog - pair it with a quick jot and you will be on your way to building a great habit. 

Pair your daily writing with your morning ritual.

4. Aid consistency

Let's be honest, most of us fail at staying consistent. We have a few good days, then we feel free to slack off. So let's make it easier on ourselves by aiding consistency. There are a few ways to do this.

Ways to aid consistency:

• writing around the same time each day

• setting reminders on your phone

• asking a friend to hold you accountable

• utilizing a habit tracker you enjoy

• being lenient about how you write (use a voice recorder or notes app)

It is so hard to build habits, but once consistency is established, you will be surprised to learn that you don't need to work so hard anymore. Visualize building habits like this: rolling a boulder up a hill for roughly 21 - 40 days (i.e. actively building the habit), finally reaching the top (i.e. establishing consistency), at which point the boulder will then roll down the hill (i.e. benefiting from the habit). That is what it is like to build a habit. Stay consistent, and eventually it will feel like a breeze.

5. Reward Yourself

It is so important to be gentle on yourself and reward your consistent efforts. Rewarding yourself will motivate you to keep going on the hard days, and reinforce your motivation to write.

Rewarding yourself will motivate you to keep going on the hard days.

Whether you reward yourself daily or weekly or bi-weekly is up to you! You know yourself better than anyone, so use your intuition when choosing how and when you reward yourself!

Here are a few of my ideas for rewards:

• Place some chocolate on your desk and enjoy it after each writing session.

• After each writing session, place $1 in a jar. After 20 sessions, go buy yourself a new book!

• Set a timer on your phone, and allow yourself to check social media only after writing.

• Buy yourself a nice cup of jo and write at a coffee shop one day as a reward.

• Ask a friend, family member or partner to suprise you with a nice dinner.

• Plan out something really nice as a reward for completing 40 + days of writing!

6. Give yourself grace

This is the most underrated aspect of building a habit: give yourself grace. Building even a small daily habit of writing takes a lot of time and effort. There might be a day or two when life happens and you just can't write. When those rainy days come, don't stress it. Give yourself grace, pick yourself up, and do better the next day. There is so much power in moving forward and keeping your eyes on the big picture.

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Writing every day is the best thing you can do as an author. Writing daily will help you to accomplish your book dreams sooner. But it will also boost your creativity, be an outlet of expression, and encourage self-discipline. I hope these tips were helpful, and I wish you the best of luck on your writing journey!

Happy Writing!

"Finding Your Story in the Stains"