A weekly writing schedule is not the same habit as writing daily.

Writing daily is an ideal. It’s a habit that doesn’t work for most of us.

Attempting to write daily and then being unable to maintain this goal can leave creative writers feeling guilty and doubting their writerly identity.

I don’t write every day. I can’t maintain this structure.

In today’s post, we’re going to look at building a time management system that works for creative writers who need more flexibility in their writing routine.

And, in the end, I’m gonna give you a free time tracking sheet with action steps to help you create a weekly writing schedule that suits your lifestyle and needs.

There isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach to “being a writer.”

We all come to the craft with different lifestyles, responsibilities and self-management systems.

Rather than forcing ourselves to fit into a daily writing routine that isn’t working for us, ultimately leading to burnout, let’s build a writing routine that focuses on consistency rather than quantity.

I teach remotely in a different time zone from the one I live in, which means my days look a little wonky.

What I would normally choose as my writing time no longer works for me.

I needed to readjust my expectations.

Some of us are more energetic in the morning before the workday begins. Others love ending the evening with their writing session. Both are great!

Some of us can’t imagine fitting writing into our busy weeks, but we can dedicate time on our weekends for uninterrupted creative writing.

Remember, you don’t have to write every day!

A weekly writing schedule might mean once a week, twice a week or three times a week.

That’s up to you!

Use your free time and your energy levels to determine when is best for your writing sessions.

Ask yourself:

• How much time can I realistically set aside for writing each week?
• What non-negotiable commitments do I have? (family, work, etc.)
• When do I feel most energetic and creative?

Action Step: Spend one week tracking your time.

What are you doing with it?

Block out the must-do obligations and determine the times that you could potentially free up.

Even when we set aside writing time, we can find it difficult to maintain focus.

One of my bad habits is scheduling time before an additional commitment and getting worried that I’ll miss what comes next. I waste a bunch of writing time checking my clock every couple of minutes.

Many tools can help you remain on task and become a time management pro!

Visual timers are a great way to track how much time you have left.

Set them before you begin!

The Pomodoro technique is a time management method where you break up tasks into 25-minute deep work sessions followed by 5-minute breaks.

This technique can be easily adjusted to fit your routine.

Learn more about how I used the Pomodoro technique to build my writing routine with a full-time job in this blog post.

If you’re struggling with focus during long writing sessions, start small. 

Set the timer for just 5 minutes, and when the timer goes off, you can continue writing or put your work away, feeling accomplished.

Bump the timer up by another 5 minutes as you begin consistently writing past the 5 minutes.

Continue with this process until you find your personal writing sweet spot!

You’ve reflected on your personal writing rhythm and considered the time management tools that might support you.

Now, it’s time to craft the weekly writing schedule that works for you.

Here’s what you’re going to do:

1. Decide on your ideal number of weekly writing sessions (your upper limit) and the minimum number of writing sessions that would still make you feel accomplished. (wondering how to make time to write? Check out this blog post.)

2. Decide how long you want to write for (remember, you might spend time building up to it!)

3. Analyze your weekly schedule and identify your best writing days.

4. Schedule your minimum number of writing sessions first

5. Spend a month trial-and-erroring: Did you accomplish all of those writing sessions consistently? If so, now you can work up to adding additional sessions or longer writing blocks. If not, what needs to be adjusted? Identify the pain points and seek realistic solutions. 

6. Keep trialling your weekly writing schedule until you discover what works for you!

Missing writing sessions is normal. There’s no need to feel guilty!

Aim for flexibility. Aim to try again during your next session or reschedule later in the week. It’s totally up to you!

What works right now might not work later.

Our lives ebb and flow, so if you discover a weekly writing routine that works for a while and then isn’t anymore, that’s great!

Your life is growing and changing, and your writing routine can grow with you.

Return to the action steps in this blog post and work on discovering the new routine that fits into your current lifestyle.

You are in charge of your writing routine. 

You are allowed to experiment. 

Discover what works for you. Ditch what isn’t working.

Your weekly writing schedule shouldn’t feel like a chore. It should fit into and enhance your life.

Start small.

Try a writing schedule for 1 month and discover what happens.

What’s your biggest challenge in managing writing consistently? Share in the comments.

Grab my free Time Tracking Sheet here and create your Weekly Writing Schedule today!

Talk soon!

Julia