How a global pandemic helped me create a writing practice

For as long as I’ve been writing, I’ve been hearing about the importance of having ‘a writing practice’. What the heck does that mean? In short, creating a set of habits that help you put pen to page.

What is a writing practice?

A writing practice usually consists of: a time, a place, and a ritual. An example would be: first thing in the morning, at your writing desk, with a special playlist blaring in the background.

Sounds easy right?

When it comes to forming habits, it’s not as easy as it sounds! Staying motivated requires determination and support!

Despite previous attempts, it’s taken a global pandemic to finally create a writing practice that works for me. You see, a funny thing happened when the province began to lock down in March due to COVID-19. We began to search out ways to connect in digital spaces. As seemingly insurmountable barriers arose in some instances, some were lowered.

How did COVID-19 change my writing practice?

• My writing critique group moved online. We still host a monthly meeting (now via Zoom) in which we critique each others work. We also set up a Discord server and began meeting on Wednesdays for writing sprints. Concurrently, I joined the YEGWrites Discord server (hit me up for an invite or check it out on the WGA website), where we sprint on Monday nights. The result is that I’m sitting down twice a week at the same time for several hours of writing. This simple change, from writing with my whims to writing at a set time, has had a major impact on my productivity. I’m also hearing from other members of my writing group how much it’s impacted their word counts.
• I started working from home. My entire office has been working remotely for the last few months. I consider myself incredibly lucky to be able to do this, even though it does present its own challenges. I spend the entire day working at my desk, writing. Often, in the evenings I simply return to my dining room office and continue to write! Because my brain now accepts this space as a writing place where things get *done* I feel more productive and less prone to distraction.
• I added structure to my writing sessions. I mentioned before that I’m participating in writing sprints twice a week. Sprinting consists of a timed round of writing, nose to the grindstone, don’t look up and don’t get distracted, followed by a timed break chatting with other sprinters. Rinse and repeat. It’s a great tool I’ll talk about at length in another post, suffice to say, it provides structure, support and gamification to my writing sessions. Secondarily to sprints, I’ve been making a concerted effort to at least write 200 words a day. Even that little effort makes a huge difference when I do sit down to write with a higher target in mind.

And there you have it. Add a generous helping of tea and the very encouraging words of my sprinting pals and you’ve got a writing practice that has doubled my monthly word count.

A time: Mondays and Wednesdays from 7:30-9:30

A place: Dining room table

A ritual: tea, window, sprint, encouragement, music (check out the Spotify playlist I listen to while writing The Tower Project)

Bonus round: Events moved online. Both the WGA (Writers Guild of Alberta) and EPL (Edmonton Public Library) host regular writing events. Since self-isolation began, many have moved to digital spaces. Fun fact about me, I don’t drive AND I have a baby! Before my daughter was born, distance was a small barrier that I would begrudgingly Uber across, now I have a nightly date with a 15-month-old I just can’t skip out on. The result is that I haven’t been able to attend an event in more than a year. Hosting workshops digitally has removed a lot of accessibility barriers. Since March, I’ve attended five workshops and am registered for another this weekend. Workshops always get me fired up, fueling my creativity and increasing my productivity.

In short, isolation has been tough. I’m sure you’re feeling it too. As an immunocompromised person, I’ve been more cautious than most around our province’s reopening. During this time, establishing a writing practice has helped me stay connected to my passion — and my joy. There’s really no feeling in the world like seeing that word count go up.