Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Getting Your Groove Back


Admit it. You slacked a little this summer. All those plans and writing ideas and somehow… the months just slipped away. Now you’re looking at a (maybe) half-finished project.

How do you regain your momentum?

Here’s one thing that always helps me. It's going to sound lame, but:

Stick-it notes. I’m not gonna lie – as much as I love my iPad and its sticky-note function, there’s nothing like having a check-list right in front of my face. All. Day. And if it practically glows in the dark it’s hard to ignore. :)

Sticky notes are not just for lists, though. My favorite way to organize my writing during the brainstorming season is with the medium-sized, brightly colored notes. I sit at my desk and write every chapter idea down… stupid or not. Later I throw out the bad ideas and arrange the chapters where I can see them at a glance while I write. Eventually they go into an envelope where I can pull them out of my file for future reference.

So maybe stick-it notes aren’t your thing. Maybe there are other tools that motivate you to get organized with your writing, or to stay that way.

Your turn! Tell us all about it in the comments. 

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B.J. Hamrick writes non-fiction for teens and for you, especially at www.realteenfaith.com

3 comments:

  1. Yeah, it's easy to slack.
    This doesn't help me stay oraganized but I am in L-O-V-E with my alphasmart :) I wish I could hook it up to my iPad. Hey, what are your favorite iPad apps for writing?

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  2. I love sticky notes...I even leave them up around my home for little words of encourgement or bible verses on my bath room mirror. I don't know how I would live with out them. :)

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  3. I'm a list person. Often I find myself writing a task on a list after it's done just so I can cross it off. Silly, I know, but it seems to work.

    The visual of actually seeing something completed motivates me.

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