www.inkthinkerblog.com — This post is inspired by Anne’s confession at The Golden Pencil that she just isn’t as flexible as would like to believe. I read it and thought to myself, “I don’t have a writing routine.” But then I promptly realized that I was lying. And that I get really, really irate when something interferes with that routine. Just ask my husband. ;)
But seriously, I do have a routine. Although it tends to be kind of, well, fluid as far as the actual TIME goes, the order of operations is about the same every day. Here’s what most days look like:
- 8:00 am – Begin hitting snooze button. Continue for 30-45 minutes depending on how many dogs pile on top of me when the alarm goes off and how cozy it is.
- 9:00 am – Hit the office and start cleaning out the overnight inbox accumulation. Respond to e-mails and fire off a couple of quick blog posts if the mood strikes.
- 9:30-10 am – Settle in on work for my 11 am deadline.
- 11 am – Pick up on blogging again and respond to morning e-mails.
- 12 pm – Settle in on work for my 2 pm deadline, break for 30 minutes or so to get something to eat while catching up on American Idol or whatever the current talent-oriented reality show is.
- 2 pm – Continue blogging (if I’m not out of stuff to say) and work on other ad hoc projects (as opposed to the daily 11 and 2 deadlines) and paperwork and the like.
- 6 pm – Realize what time it is and get cranky because I haven’t had dinner yet.
How does your routine come together? Leave a comment.
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Wake up between 6:30 and 7:00. Start the coffee. Feed the cats. Do my morning yoga. Write my first 1K of the day. Blog. Check email for work-related mail and respond. Read daily blogs.
Alternate between writing, research, and pitching, depending on appointments.
Mornings are my best time. I slow down in the afternoon with reading or critique jobs, then go back and write for another few hours. Sometimes I write for another hour or so in the evening; usually it’s my time to hang out with friends or do non-writing-related things. And I usually work out in the evenings.
It depends on my deadlines and how many projects I’m juggling. But the schedule up to the first 1K of the day is pretty rigid.
Devon Ellington’s last blog post..Friday, April 11, 2008
My morning routine is rigid, as I follow up on leads, interview sources and write at least 2 news articles deadlined for 11am.Also have to fit reading business pubs somewhere in there.
After 11am, I do variations of:
responding to emails, managing schedule, making calls, interviewing people, going for a walk, meeting friends /associates for lunch or coffee, updating my 2 blogs/writing web content type articles.
This lasts until 2pm or so.
Then I work on articles for weekly and monthly pubs.
Daughter gets home from school between 3.30 and 4pm. Dinner by five, then I check and sign homework books, we hang out and do stuff until 8pm when she goes to bed.
I may work after depending on deadlines. Usually read blogs and check job boards.
I read Ann’s post too and I didn’t really think I had a routine because very rarely do things actually get accomplished with a toddler running around – once the others arrive home from school, then the routine is down the tubes.
I like to check email early in the morning, get a blog post out and complete one article by 11:30 all this around the toddler. Then it’s time for lunch, I resume somewhere between 12:30 and 1pm – check the email and knock out another article or prepare for another whichever is on the list.
By 3pm, I try to wrap up whatever I was working on because kids are starting to arrive home. Then its time for some straightening up and dinner. If soccer practice, games or brownie meetings are on schedule then I have to speed it up. Either way, 3pm arrives way too early for me.
Nikki’s last blog post..The Rule of Business You Won’t Find in the Employee Handbook
And I apologize greatly to Anne… whose name I spelled wrong!
Nikki’s last blog post..The Rule of Business You Won’t Find in the Employee Handbook