by Megan Hart

Created on: February 28, 2010

The beauty of writing is that there is no “one true way.” Writing can be done in spurts of inspiration or at the beck-and-call of a time clock. It can be easily done or take years to complete. But one common thread in all styles of writing is that yes, good writers do write to a schedule.

Writing schedules, however, are as diverse and complex as the writers who keep them. While one writer might work best by setting aside daily time to write, another might flourish waiting for the muse to come calling. The importance of a schedule is not in the time-keeping but rather in the keeping of it at all.

Professional writers, bound by deadlines, contracts and the paycheck waiting for them (or not, if they don’t complete their obligations) must set some sort of schedule in order to finish their work in a timely manner. Unpublished or writers who aren’t supporting themselves with their work may have less of an incentive to complete projects within a certain time frame and yet, without a schedule of some sort, it’s unlikely they’ll ever finish a project, much less be able to submit it for publication. All writers, too, are subject to the necessities of daily life – family, friends, social obligations. Cleaning the house, paying bills and exercising must be accomplished as well, and without some sort of schedule, it’s all too easy to put aside the writing in favor of “life.”

A schedule makes the writing important, and if it’s not important to the writer, it won’t be important to anyone else.

So, what does making and keeping a schedule mean to you? First, determine your style. Are you a driven personality with everything in its place and a daily list of tasks to accomplish? Or do you prefer winging it by the seat of your pants, taking each moment as it comes?

If you’re the former, finding a schedule that works for you should be easy. In fact, it’s likely you already keep one. On the other hand, if you find yourself among the second group, it might be more difficult to keep to a schedule. “But I have to wait for the muse,” you might cry.

What if your muse shows up while you’re driving, or in religious services, or in the shower and you can’t get to a computer or pen and paper to scribble down your inspired prose? Worse, what if the muse simply doesn’t come at all? You might be surprised how happy the muse is to show up during a scheduled writing time.

The key to a schedule is not to lock yourself into something you’ll resent or regret. Find a time of day that works best for you. Take ten minutes or half an hour, or any time you choose. Set aside that time for your writing with as much dedication as you’ve put into watching your favorite television show or a workout or any other thing you do make time for. Then, keep to the schedule. You might spend a large portion of the time staring at the computer with nothing to say…or, you might find inspiration strikes and you keep writing after your allotted time is up.

If daily writing time is impossible, pick a couple days a week. Once a week. Even once a month, if you keep to it and dedicate yourself to your self-imposed schedule, you’ll be accomplishing more than you expect.

You schedule dentist appointments, haircuts, car maintenance, therapy sessions and a plethora of other appointments all the time. Do the same for your writing. Keeping a schedule won’t necessarily make you a better writer, but a good writer is one who writes often enough to improve his skills. Keeping a schedule, whatever it may be, is an excellent way to make sure you’re writing more often.

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